Open letter to the jerk who dumped the dog at my gate

[Eyeheartquail]

Quote:
Just an FYI: It is my understanding that a shelter may say that it is no-kill but that does NOT mean they don't euthanize at all. If there are dogs with medical issues that cannot be fixed or very aggressive that cannot be rehabilitated they will be put down.



I think you guys did exactly what I would have done. Like everyone else has said, it was very unfortunate. Try working/volunteering for a shelter. Nothing surprises me anymore.

 

[aubreynoramarie]

I'd write this on a giant poster board and put it at the bottom of my driveway.

They will drive by again.


I'm sorry you had to make such a tough decision. You did all you could

 

[spish]

may i please make a suggestion?

if i were you i would stick a notice in the shelter, id alsostick one up in any local vet centres/shelters...or at least keep an eye out for 'missing' posters.
is it not possible this dog could have been lost (out for a walk with his owner in that area and got lost, then hung around yor house waiting?) or perahaps fallen/jumped off the back of a truck? (perhaps it hung around due to sore pads?)

im in no way saying you did the wrong thing in shooting it because i would have done the same if my poultry was in danger, it was unfortunate for the dog but had to be done......but i guess what im wanting to say is maybe it wasnt 'dumped' and there is an owner out there wondering what happened to their pet?

 

[dainerra]

dogs that are "dumped" are way more common than dogs that are "lost" Especially in the country. Every person who decides they can't handle their dog anymore wants to give them a nice home on a farm. They drive out, drop off the dog, and assume that he will live happily ever after.

Here, there is only 1 Humane Society. They have a several month waiting list and a fee for dropping off the dog. Very few people want to pay, so they just take the dog off and dump it.

For no-kill shelters, there is also another way around it. Many will "interview" a dog before they accept it. If they think that the dog will be hard to adopt, they just don't take it in. Others will euthanize for aggression issues as well as medical. It depends on the shelter.

Dogs that are lost tend to keep roaming, even if they stay within a certain area. Even a dog that fell from a truck, though that would be pretty obvious because the dog would be injured or at least really banged up) Add in the fact that a person whose dog fell out of their truck is going to hopefully notice immediately or at least drive back to find the dog when they realize it is missing.... Dogs that are dumped will usually sit right in the exact spot where they were put out, often for days. Eventually they will range a bit farther, but always return quickly to that exact spot. It can be a week or more before they move more than a couple feet away. They also watch. They don't play around, sniff or look for food. They just stare off in the direction that the car went. So it's pretty obvious once you've seen it.

Here, they often leave the collar on the dog when they dump it. Unfortunately, that means that Animal Control won't come pick up the dog since they only handle "strays" and a dog with a collar probably has an owner.

 

[carolinagirl58]

dainerra, you are exactly right. Stray dogs wander around a lot, dumped dogs usually wait very close to where they were dumped. This dog was waiting. She would NOT leave the area, even though my son tried to chase her off. She just barked and growled at him and stood her ground. He has a 4 year old child and a small dog......this dog did not need to be hanging around here. His driveway branches off from mine so this dog was hanging out right outside of his front yard. And honestly....if this dog WAS just lost, she's better off dead than getting more of the kind of care she had been getting. She was very poor and unhealthy looking, not at all like a beloved pet who wandered off. She had a very saggy belly, having recently weaned a litter of pups. Who knows how many litters this dog had brought into this world and where they ended up. Chances are, her owner got tired of all the puppies so they kept one of the pups and dumped her instead.

I really do appreciate the support I have gotten here about this whole incident. I kind of thought I'd get blasted for shooting this dog but instead most of you understood why we had to do it and were supportive. That helps me a lot. I still feel bad, but I do know there was no other options in this instance. Trust me.....if I felt like I could have helped this dog without endangering myself, my livestock or my other animals, I would have.

 

[carolinagirl58]

well, you all inspired me, so I put my rant on my FB page. I did clean it up a little and took out the part about shooting the dog, although it was implied. I don't want to get in trouble over this. I have a lot of dog friends on Facebook so maybe it will get shared enough times that people may see it and realize what happens to their dog after it's dumped.

 

[OldGuy43]

My heart goes out to you. Taking the life of another living thing scars one's soul forever. (A fact I learned at a very young age in SE Asia. I pay the price for that sojourn yet today.) We too live in "a perfect place to abandon pets." Over the years, 30 or more have been left here. The sad part is that we, with comparative ease found good and loving homes for all of them, except for the few who lived out their lives with us. I've only had to put down two, to end their suffering. Both times I have dammed to hell those who left their dirty work to me. The worst was a dog we named Lady. She came to us skinny as a rail and pregnant. She gave birth to 8 lovely puppies and destroyed her own health feeding them, and the only humane thing to do was put her down.

It only took a weekend to find homes for her pups once they were old enough.

We just added yet another two days ago. (We keep swearing that each will be the last.) A black lab mix, age about 3 months. She's underfed, (of course) has worms, but is loving and active. It took only three days to lure her in. OldGal and I have decided she'll stay with us. Cure the worms, get her neutered, house break her and she'll be a fine addition to the family

 

[mommyofthreewithchicks]

I have had a few "drop off" dogs. Found 7 dogs in one year for 6 of those dogs I actually found their owners. Two of those after two + weeks and I had given up. Some of those dogs wandered over 20 miles to find my house. The one that has made us their permanate home I am guessing was a drop off dog for those others I wrongly assumed that they may have been dropped off. I know it happens we live next to a country church and a few people have agreed that the corner is well known to dump.

For me I would still call the humane society and county animal services to report the dog. I am not saying you weren't in the wrong but since I have now reunited several country dogs that did get lost I am just encouraging you to try and report the found dog. The year of dogs we had nasty weather and perhaps that led to so many dogs coming to my door step.


Again I understand your situation, if we had found a mean dog with the kids I would also have to dispatch the dog. But I have had a few of those lost dogs stick to my place like glue.... The one pup only lives a mile away.... Darn dog but so far he has not been back since being reunited.

 

[NewHopePoultry]

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Im so sorry you had to do that.
I live in town and every one knows Im an animal lover, so get dogs (& other critters) tied to my gate all the time.We've had to have a few put down since they were in such poor health, it wasnt fair ro them to keep suffering.


A no kill shelter just means that they wont kill a dog to make more room, but they still will put down mean, sick, etc dogs.

 

[Orchid]

We get dogs and cats dumped out by us a lot too. My neighbor, bless her heart, just took in a dog someone dumped on our dead-end road this summer. She found him curled up on her porch in the morning. She already had two dogs, but the shelter was full and he was a nice guy, so she kept him. We have no less than two cats that were dumped, one I found in the early spring with frozen ear tips and not an ounce of fat on her.

I understand having to shoot a mean stray, too. A few years ago we had two dogs show up in my dad's yard and I happened to be there at the time. They had collars so I wanted to see their tags, but I brought a handgun out with me just in case. Turned out they had run 5 miles from home together and fortunately for them (and me!) they were friendly, but I was prepared to shoot them if necessary. I was happy to be able to call their owner, that's for sure.