Rough week last week :(

[SOchick]

Not sure if this is the right place for this, but I just need some hugs now.

I lost my first bird last Wednesday, Buffy, our BO, and one of our favorites. I let her out of the run for a few minutes while I refilled food and water, and my dog jumped the fence and got to her. My DD told me the dog was out, and when I went to check it out, she was chewing on Buffy's rear end. She was still alive, so I drug my dog back in her fence and took Buffy to my Dad, and he took care of her for me. My DD was so upset because she didn't realize what our dog was doing. She kept saying it was her fault, because she didn't go and see what the dog was chewing on and rescue Buffy. I told her it was not her fault, it was natural for a dog to eat a chicken, and if she would have interfered, she would have been severely injured. I never saw this coming, I never thought the dog would jump the fence. My dog (Minka) was very dog aggressive, and now that we know she can jump the fence, and my DD is terrified of her now, and she had a taste of blood, my DH and I had to make the difficult decision to put her down. I know many of you may disagree with my decision, but I knew I could not rehome her because of her animal aggression, and I refuse to have a dog my kids are scared of, and one I can't trust to stay in a fence. I live in a subdivision, so if she saw another animal walking by, and decided she wanted it, there would be no stopping her. She was a 105 lb Neopolitian Mastiff/Presa Canario mix. She was my baby, and it breaks my heart, I was with her till the very end. RIP Buffy and Minka.

I did have a talk with my DD, who is 9, and she understands, and she wants chicks. I did explain that there is a chance some will die, and she is ok with that, so now we are planning on getting chicks in the next few weeks. She wants more like Buffy

 

[Hillbilly Hen]

You did what you had to do. Don't beat yourself up about it. I know it was a hard decision.

 

[JessHall]

I think that mom's know best, and if you all REALLY thought that your dog was dangerous... you did the RIGHT thing. The right thing is always the hardest, and i think you deserve a pat on the back too, because that is not an easy choice to make.
I'm sorry for your losses, best of luck to your whole family.

 

[debilorrah]

Humane euthanasia (sp?) is best with an animal that is agressive and can no longer be a family pet. While it is the right thing to do, it is still very difficult.

 

[sred98]

So sorry you had to suffer two losses this week.

You really can't take a chance with a dog that big. Especially if she had aggression issues. What if your DD had tried to take Buffy away from her?? It could have been very bad. Thank goodness she didn't try.

Tell your DD we are sorry, too.

Shelly

 

[SOchick]

Thanks guys, I missed y'all for the week and a half with no internet! Minka was my sweetheart and ok with the family, but not with other animals. But I just couldn't trust her anymore. Poor Buffy was the sweetest girl, so we are getting more BOs.

 

[debilorrah]

Quote:
I have to tell you that an animal that is not good with other animals is probably iffy with people too. I really do believe you did the best thing for the rest of your animals and your family, as hard as it was.

 

[English Chick]

..... you did the right thing... safety of your family is what is uppermost...

 

[CATRAY44]

I would have been seriously worried about keeping the dog, too. Children are small, quick and often make sounds that could be mistaken for a squeal by a dog. If the dog has gone after other small things, I would not trust it either, once it tasted blood. I know it is a tough decision, but we are the caretakers and people are more important than animals.

 

[mullers3acers]