By MADELINE REIDA

Staff writer

Peabody police chief Bruce Burke spent his Christmas Eve chasing a trio of dogs through downtown Peabody.

A pit bull, a boxer, and a blue heeler repeatedly have got loose in Peabody and forced police to play dogcatcher.

When they were caught for the third time on Christmas Eve, Burke decided to board them at a local veterinarian at a cost of $29 a night for each dog until Jan. 12 — a total of almost $1,700, paid by the city — until the owner, whose name is not yet public, could be tried in municipal court.

“That person had two other counts of dog-at-large from a previous case that they were found guilty of at court,” Burke said.

Normally, owners have to pay for boarding before they can claim their dogs. However, municipal judge Brad Jantz issued an order for the owner to relinquish the dogs, with the city footing the boarding bill. The owner refused to relinquish ownership, so the dogs were placed back in her possession. The case will be heard again next month.

“It’s been ongoing for quite some time,” Burke said.

Peabody law enforcement will usually hold stray dogs for three days unless they are claimed before sending them to a veterinarian or Caring Hands Humane Society in Newton.

If the three downtown dogs get loose again, Burke said, he will start the process over.

“One dog can be aggressive to other dogs, but I don’t think any of the three are aggressive to people,” he said.