Dog Community

Looking For Insight For Sad Owners

BJW

Posted : 7/7/2006 1:00:11 PM

I was hoping for some insight and inspiration. Our 8-year-old dog named Shelby was put down yesterday and it is very painful for us. She was mixed with what we believe to be Lab and Dalmatian. You could tell she was again; her pupils were turning blue, hair turning gray and arthritis developing. She has never had any behavioral problems; loved playing with other neighbor dogs and loved people. A year ago we got a puppy to keep Shelby company and they loved each other; playing together all day. She even got along with our cats. Shelby doesn't like loud noises so we had her with us during the 4th of July weekend at another home we were staying at. During the morning hours, we were all outside (Shelby, our puppy and I) when a lady walking a dog passed by. I tried to get both dogs inside quickly because Shelby was barking but when I was closing the door, Shelby got out. She approached the dog while waggering her tail (maybe to play) but then attacked the dog with no warning. She had the other dog by the neck (the other dog was half of Shelby's size). I intervened by straddling Shelby and prying her mouth open. It felt like forever but I did get them apart. I was bitten 4 times by the other dog during the attack but I believe that if I did not get involved then Shelby would have killed that dog. We were shocked because Shelby never acted like this before. The other dog had to the emergency and had surgery. We called our vet for suggestions on what to do with Shelby and the vet said that because of her age, that older dogs develop mental changes that may have caused her to do the unthinkable. The vet said that it would be risky to keep her around to possibly do it again. My thought was that Shelby was out of her comfort zone (being at someone else's home), she may have been protective to our other dog and may have felt threatened by the other dog not being on a leash even though the other dog wasn't doing anything wrong. I wanted to keep Shelby alive but keep her at home and away from unfamiliar dogs but we took the vet's advise. The other dog's vet bill is $600.00 that we are paying. It is a bad situation for all but I feel that we didn't give Shelby a chance. We're heartbroken and I am guilt ridden because I should have been more careful and not have let her get through the closing door. Any advise?

BJW

Posted : 7/7/2006 1:06:14 PM

I'm sorry if I posted my orginal message in the wrong area in this forum, I have never posted here before. Also, sorry about the miss spellings and grammer. I've been sick to my stomach over our dog.

Caprice Christian

Posted : 7/7/2006 2:00:23 PM

I am so terribly sorry for your loss! I don't know what to say. I don't want to make you feel bad, and it is out of your control now... but I don't think that I would have put her down. (But I have an obsession with my dogs, it would KILL me to have to make that decision).

Only time will heal your pain. Again, I am so sorry!

By the way, how is your other

uppy doing without its companion? My parents recently lost one of their dogs (got run over), and afterwords for about 2 months their other dog was really depressed. Wouldn't eat, great people, play or go for walks.

agilebasenji

Posted : 7/7/2006 3:37:26 PM

Loosing a pet (or any loved one) is very difficult. I wish I knew of a magic pill to take and help get through it faster, but unfortunately it just takes time for the pain to subside. Allow yourself to grieve. Avoid people who don't understand a special relationship with an animal.

loveukaykay

Posted : 7/7/2006 4:35:55 PM

Your mind may not have been where it should have at the time with the shock of it all... and maybe you made a mistke... maybe you didnt. You are the only person who can know what should have been done at that time and if your feeling you did the wrong thing, then thats something your going to have to work through. Im very sorry for you loss and the situation as a whole. I find it hard to find something to say as nothing we can say will take the pain away. Lots of people who lose pets feel guilty for one reason or another, even when it was totally out of their control... the mind starts with these "what ifs" and it can eat you up.

Whats done is done and time will heal your pain. Sometimes life lessons are quite hard, and losses like this are always hard.

Take care and try not to dwell because it wont change what happened, just work through it the best you can. I wish you the best of luck with this and am very sorry for your loss.

cakana

Posted : 7/7/2006 4:49:28 PM

I'm really sorry to hear what your going through and sadly, in many ways I can relate. I have 2 dogs. One is very stable, she's 11, and I trust her anywhere. My other dog, Sassy, is 7 or 8 and she's a bit unpredictable like your dog was at this time. She's only had fights with our own dog but I truly manage her with hyper-vigilance. She ran out to greet a neighbor walking her dog some time back and my husband quickly got ahold of her but said he heard a growl. I'm betting it was from the other dog but I'm also betting the other dog sensed that Sassy can be aggressive. She too will wag her tail and seem fine and in a flash, it "might" change. As I said, it's only been with our own dog, but I don't take any chances. Even in the vets office I make sure to keep her to the side of me where other dogs can't greet her. I'm very used to it and she's a total sweetheart otherwise but unless you already knew this and were prepared to manage her very carefully, no one can blame you for listening to the vet's advice. I think they tend to err on the side of caution and so his suggestion was to take no chances.
Again, I'm sorry you're going through this and I hope you find some peace with your decision.

BJW

Posted : 7/12/2006 10:33:02 AM

Thanks for your replys. It has been an aweful week, this situation happened on 7/4/06. We're dealing with so many emotions; we are shocked that Shelby attacked the other dog, sad about putting her down and the financial strain of paying the other dog owner $600.00 for vet bills. So much has happened so fast but now (without sounding insensitive to the other owner and the hurt dog) we're concerned about being sued. We live in an apartment complex and Shelby was only visiting (she's my boyfriend's dog) because she was affraid of the loud noises due to fireworks during 4th of July. I was outside with Shelby and my dog when a woman who also lives in the complex pulled up, let her dog out (without being leashed) and continued to get her grogercies out of her car. Shelby was barking, so I took both dogs inside but when I was shutting the door, she got through and approched the dog that was then wondering on my sidewalk. Shelby attacked it and wouldn't let go of her grip on the dog's neck. I straddled Shelby and pryed her mouth open until the other dog was free but in the mean time I was bitten by the other dog 4 times and the woman bitten by her own dog once. I feel that we are all grieving the incident and I feel that we have done everything possible to reaffirm our goodness to this woman but I don't know her intentions at this point and not sure if she has a basis to sue us. Any advise or experience in this type of matter? Again, I'm not minimizing what the other owner has been through but we have been through alot too. Thanks for any comments.

cakana

Posted : 7/12/2006 11:21:31 AM

Just my opinion, but if both dogs were off-leash, then I don't see what basis she'd have for suing. She could've probably filed a complaint that your dog was vicious, but you've since taken care of that issue. I guess anything's possible in this sue-crazy society, but I'd try not to worry about it unless it becomes a real issue.

tashakota

Posted : 7/14/2006 9:50:47 AM

I agree with cakana. If both dogs were off-leash then there really isn't a leg for this woman to stand on.

mudpuppy

Posted : 7/14/2006 11:32:16 AM

I'm deeply sorry for your loss, but I'm very displeased with your vet, I think he gave you horrible advice.