Piper attacked my fiance

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Don't feed the trolls...
 
Just add the person to your ignore list and move on please
 
Unfortunately, I learned today that Piper will be put down after 10 days. An animal control officer came by (at 9am on Sunday, btw, wtf?) to investigate the dogbite because of the first hospital's report. They informed us that we had 2 choices: We could quarantine him for 10 days and that would be it, or we could surrender him, they'd quarantine him for 10 days, and then put him down. I explained that he'd already been surrendered, so the ACO explained that he would be put down after 10 days.

Now I wish I'd have kept him, quarantined for 10 days, and then surrendered. :( :(
 
SkyHog said:
Now I wish I'd have kept him, quarantined for 10 days, and then surrendered. :( :(
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No Nick, you did the right thing. He needed to be taken out of the house. He was dangerous. For whatever reason he has decided to be aggressive. he had already bitten a couple of people and you fiance had to go to the hospital. The best thing for all was to get him out of a situation that you would have regretted and was making him behave aggressively. I sad that he may be put down, but in the long run that may be best for all.
 
Sorry to hear about this Nick, but realistically I think the only solution would have been to find someone willing to take Piper on with his problems, and I don't know who would choose a known biter when there are other dogs available unless it's someone who just wants a challenge. It wouldn't be right for either you or the shelter to let someone adopt him without disclosing, just hoping that things might work out OK. :frown3:
 
SkyHog said:
Now I wish I'd have kept him, quarantined for 10 days, and then surrendered. :( :(
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See post #15. The best thing you can do for him now is to be there when it's done, no matter how hard that is for you. Then see if you can take him to a place where he can lie in peace.
 
Ron Levy said:
See post #15. The best thing you can do for him now is to be there when it's done, no matter how hard that is for you. Then see if you can take him to a place where he can lie in peace.
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Unfortunately, that is no longer an option, since he's been surrendered, I have lost all rights to the dog. My only choice would be to wait the 10 days, hope they didn't put him down, readopt him, and then put him down.

:( I ****ed up, now he's going to die alone.
 
SkyHog said:
Unfortunately, that is no longer an option, since he's been surrendered, I have lost all rights to the dog. My only choice would be to wait the 10 days, hope they didn't put him down, readopt him, and then put him down.

:( I ****ed up, now he's going to die alone.
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Nick,

I highly suggest calling animal control and asking if you can at least be there. Tell them you'd be willing to sign some kind of waiver if they'd like.

It can't hurt to ask.
 
Nick, you did the right thing by a factor of a million. Think about this for a minute. You have a dog with aggressive tendencies that has a history of attacking humans and jumping the fence. What if he jumps the fence and bites a samaritan who is just trying to help him? What if he bites a neighborhood kid who just wanted to pet him? He could hurt someone quite seriously, and given the situation they could sue you for all you're worth. You are in the process of getting married and don't need that kind of exposure. Those telling you that all dogs are good and all we have to do is the right thing haven't seen your (ex)dog, and might not be able to cure what ails him. Caesar can fix anything, but he has decades of experience and a whole dog pack to help. You did your best, and can't be asked for anything more.
 
What I've decided to do, is call the shelter tomorrow, find out if I can un-surrender him, then I'm going to take him to the vet to have him medically euthanized. Its my last chance to do this the right way.
 
SkyHog said:
What I've decided to do, is call the shelter tomorrow, find out if I can un-surrender him, then I'm going to take him to the vet to have him medically euthanized. Its my last chance to do this the right way.
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Good luck, Nick. Hope all works out for the best for all of you.
 
SkyHog said:
What I've decided to do, is call the shelter tomorrow, find out if I can un-surrender him, then I'm going to take him to the vet to have him medically euthanized. Its my last chance to do this the right way.
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Holy crap dude. You handed him in. You told them he has issues. They are probably going to do it anyway but at least he has a chance of getting matched with someone who can re-program him. Why do you feel the need to kill him?
 
wby0nder said:
Holy crap dude. You handed him in. You told them he has issues. They are probably going to do it anyway but at least he has a chance of getting matched with someone who can re-program him. Why do you feel the need to kill him?
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My father said the same thing. And actually, I looked at their website, and they currently have him listed for adoption, without the 10 day hold that they usually do....so....christ, I don't know what to do....

:(
 
SkyHog said:
My father said the same thing. And actually, I looked at their website, and they currently have him listed for adoption, without the 10 day hold that they usually do....so....christ, I don't know what to do....

:(
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I say leave him at the shelter for the ten days. If the end result would otherwise be the same, at least there's a chance someone could adopt him from the shelter.

If that doesn't work, call in 9 days and ask if you can be there....

I hate to sound like I'm cold about it, because I'm anything but....
 
Since the bite event is now on record and they have made the follow-up call, is re-claiming a possibility with their quarantine policy?

I understand that this is a very personal and very emotional matter, but have also lost a few dogs over the years. The worst part (for me anyway) was when it happened. After that, the only thing that helped was the passage of time. In your case, the die is cast and the outcome is going to be the same. There's no good outcome (for the pooch) and no good answer for you that isn't a gut-wrencher.

Without trying to interfere with your thought process, I would advise you to sleep on it and decide if you want to re-open all those wounds (yours, not hers) by going through all the emotional trauma of starting over.

SkyHog said:
What I've decided to do, is call the shelter tomorrow, find out if I can un-surrender him, then I'm going to take him to the vet to have him medically euthanized. Its my last chance to do this the right way.
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I think perhaps asking on the internet was a poor choice (no offense to anyone here intended). There are too many opinions, and I'm getting them from about every angle, and my brain is already so jacked I can't think logically. I'm going to do whatever my heart tells me, but not for a few days.

FWIW, every one of my friends locally has a different opinion too. This is not easy.
 
SkyHog said:
I think perhaps asking on the internet was a poor choice (no offense to anyone here intended). There are too many opinions, and I'm getting them from about every angle, and my brain is already so jacked I can't think logically. I'm going to do whatever my heart tells me, but not for a few days.

FWIW, every one of my friends locally has a different opinion too. This is not easy.
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I'm sorry man.

I'm an insane dog lover but practical too. I also have a pal who re-trains aggressive dogs. I've been trying to reach him for days to see what he'd charge to drive to NM. But it's a long shot.

You've got 10 days to chill on this. I'm staying out of it but here if I can be of help

M
 
Years ago I had to have my dog put down because he, according to my wife, had turned viscous. I didn't believe her until I almost ran over a kid on a bike who was being chased by my dog. The kid came flying out of the downhill alley I was just going to turn on, I missed him by inches.

I took him, his name was Tokay, to the vet the next day. I held him in my arms, he did not know what hit him when the vet did the deed. Trouble was, I knew what hit him. 30 years later, I still have regrets. I don't know what to suggest to you, I wish I did. If the dog attack was bad enough to hospitalize her..............

John
 
I know this has got to be rough on you Nick, but we know how much you love Piper. No matter the outcome, he was lucky to have you as his owner. Be sure to remember all the good times, especially the ones that prompted you to share them with the rest of us :)

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When I was 12 a 3rd cousin of my Dad was spending the summer in their travel trailer parked in our orchard... One day I was walking past the trailer and their dog, a pit bull, was standing there and he lunged for my throat... I got my arm up across my throat just in time and he clamped onto my bicep, growling and shaking me around like a rag doll (I still have the scars nearly 60 years on - and I can clearly remember the sound of his fangs grating on the bone like fingernails on a chalkboard)... The two men had to choke the dog unconscious to get him to let go... The strange thing was the dog normally ran up to me to get his ears scratched, until that day... Dad was going to shoot the dog but I refused to let him, and they packed up and left... We found later they were hiding out in our orchard because the dog had bitten another child before they showed up at our farm...

They went to Georgia where within a few weeks the dog attacked and severely mauled another child and they had to flee across the state line into Florida with police cars chasing them (1950's) to avoid arrest...
The end for doggie came later that fall when they went shopping for a few hours with the dog in the trailer and when they came back the dog would not let them open the screen door... A grizzled, old, Florida officer came to answer the phone call, listened to what they had to say, and walked up to the trailer - the Mrs. pleaded with the officer to "just calm him down"...
When doggie tried to come through the screen door to get him, the officer simply plunked him between the eyes with his 38, got back in his car and drove away without saying a word, no official reports, no animal welfare, just problem solved...

We have a dog we dearly love and when his time comes it is going to be tears... I understand how attached you get, like having another child.. But any animal that is an unprovoked biter has to go...

denny-o
 
God this is so hard. Piper was such a good, trusty friend to me. He was there when I needed him.

I know I made the right decision, but why does it feel so wrong?
 
SkyHog said:
God this is so hard. Piper was such a good, trusty friend to me. He was there when I needed him.

I know I made the right decision, but why does it feel so wrong?
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Because "right" isn't always "easy". Sometimes you have to do what you have to do, no matter how much you don't want to.
 
SkyHog said:
God this is so hard. Piper was such a good, trusty friend to me. He was there when I needed him.

I know I made the right decision, but why does it feel so wrong?
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Nick, your pain is obviously heartfelt.

Nothing we say will help. Time heals.

Hang in there brother. Seek comfort in the arms of Brianna. She is there for you.

Best wishes in a difficult time.

Andrew
 
SkyHog said:
God this is so hard. Piper was such a good, trusty friend to me. He was there when I needed him.

I know I made the right decision, but why does it feel so wrong?
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For the same reason I still hurt after having our dog put to sleep last year. Wasn't there something else that could be done? And reading through my Dad's autobiography (again last night) I had trouble getting through the part where he described putting a number of our pets down over the years. And he was a veterinarian. It wasn't any easier for him, either.

You've made the right decision, even if you don't feel that way now. You really have, Nick.
 
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Nick, hang in there my friend. We do get attached to our pets and it's very tough to let them go, even in your situation.

Time heals all wounds.
 
Nick
Sorry to hear about Piper.
I'm from the old school ,and I know I'll get some grief for this, but people ALWAYS come first. I grew up on a farm and when an animal needed to be put down you did'nt take it to the Vet. You took him or her for "a walk behind the barn" You took responsibilty of what needed to be done, you did it with out malice or vengence. It was quick and painless.
How would you feel when you and Brianna have kids? Could you trust Piper,could you live with yourself if your child was scared for life or worse?
Don't second guess yourself, you did the right thing.Remember dogs are great,cats are ok, people come first.
 
Nick, however this turns out, it's not going to be easy for you for a long time - that's just the cost of loving him. I was in your exact situation feb, 2008, though Mica hadn't bitten anyone - but it was coming. So I did what I had to do, it damn near wrecked me, emotionally, and reading this thread has knocked me sideways, yet again.

But you have to do what you have to do, even if it hurts a lot. I won't wish you luck, because luck has nothing to do with this. I will wish you grace and ease and healing.

Tom
 
It's a tough break, and I am sorry to hear about it.

We had to put down a family pet a few years ago - my daughter held the cat, the vet gave the injection. Just so happened that there was a kink in the IV line and nothing was getting through. I straigthened out the kink and it was over.

The next time, I'm going to ask to do the injection, there's just something 'right' about doing it yourself.
 
Got some final good news on Piper.

I have been stupid, and constantly looking at the city of Albuquerque's website to see if Piper is still up for adoption. He disappeared from the site today.

I called the shelter to find out if he was going to be put down, and learned that he's been transported to "Lucky Paws," a place in the Mall where the best looking and most needy dogs are taken. Most dogs in Lucky Paws are adopted within a week.

The card says he is behavior challenged and needs work, but they wouldn't have put him in there until he passed all of their aggression tests.

And now, I no longer have a source to find information about him, so that ends my journey of watching Piper suffer for my mistakes. At least he gets another shot at life.
 
Good news, Nick. Glad to hear that Piper's been given a reprieve.

-Rich
 
Everskyward said:
Sorry to hear about this Nick, but realistically I think the only solution would have been to find someone willing to take Piper on with his problems, and I don't know who would choose a known biter when there are other dogs available unless it's someone who just wants a challenge. It wouldn't be right for either you or the shelter to let someone adopt him without disclosing, just hoping that things might work out OK. :frown3:
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A sheep or goat ranch would be a good place, The only good place for a dog like that is to live as a guardian dog for a herd, but you typically start them there when they're pups. They dominate the herd, the herd is good with that, and they take on any predators.
 
SkyHog said:
Got some final good news on Piper.

I have been stupid, and constantly looking at the city of Albuquerque's website to see if Piper is still up for adoption. He disappeared from the site today.

I called the shelter to find out if he was going to be put down, and learned that he's been transported to "Lucky Paws," a place in the Mall where the best looking and most needy dogs are taken. Most dogs in Lucky Paws are adopted within a week.

The card says he is behavior challenged and needs work, but they wouldn't have put him in there until he passed all of their aggression tests.

And now, I no longer have a source to find information about him, so that ends my journey of watching Piper suffer for my mistakes. At least he gets another shot at life.
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You're a good egg... whatever becomes of Piper, don't beat yourself up about it. Just having your trusted canine friend suddenly turn on someone you care about is enough to create confusion in anybody.

Believe me, I know how it feels to have made a life/death decision about someone you love- I still have twinges of "but what if?" when I think about how I made the call to put Peg down in September. Eleven-plus years of excellent companionship and devotion will do that to you. I probably always will just plain feel bad about that, even though I know it was the right move.

I can't fault you for not trying harder to find an alternative for him; many people would have responded by beating or killing the dog, or just driving him out into the boonies and turning him loose. You cared more than that, but didn't know what to do.

At any rate, I hope he gets another chance... I think a lot of dog aggression is completely misunderstood, and a dog like Piper, who is not completely "bad" due to lack of socialization and training is a good prospect for rehabilitation.

Euthanasia for behavioral problems is an expedient, really, not a necessity- society just does not see dog rehab as being worth the trouble (and it can be a lot of trouble, beyond the resources of most households, and hard to justify in a town or county budget). This notion that a given dog is "just plain bad", and cannot be "made good", especially as determined by breed, is a product of ignorance, and used to rationalize the expediency ("eh- it's just a dog").
Sure, some can never be made 100% "pet-worthy", but those are extreme cases. And a life in a fairly isolated, monitored setting is an option for some really messed-up dogs. It's mind-blowing to me that people will throw up their hands and say "wup- he's a bad one! Gotta kill him! " when their sweet, gentle trusted friend makes one mistake, as scary or harmful as it may be (I don't mean you; you considered it carefully).

Bad humans can exhibit all the same behaviors as bad dogs, but even for inexplicable displays of aggression, humans are given a chance to prove they can do better... that's considered just and reasonable, although personally I think rehabilitation of humans is a much dicier proposition. :rolleyes:

Dogs think very differently than we do, very different priorities and methods of social interaction, but their thoughts are extremely uncomplicated, IMHO, and easy for the average human to understand, if they stop imprinting their own human thoughts and feelings on the dog. It's a matter of figuring out what they need, and consistently applying it (admittedly not always easy or do-able for most households). In the right hands, Piper may learn to put these outbursts behind him, and maybe find another "pack" to live with. I wish him luck.
 
Nicely said. You must be a good egg too.


rottydaddy said:
You're a good egg... whatever becomes of Piper, don't beat yourself up about it. Just having your trusted canine friend suddenly turn on someone you care about is enough to create confusion in anybody.

Believe me, I know how it feels to have made a life/death decision about someone you love- I still have twinges of "but what if?" when I think about how I made the call to put Peg down in September. Eleven-plus years of excellent companionship and devotion will do that to you. I probably always will just plain feel bad about that, even though I know it was the right move.

I can't fault you for not trying harder to find an alternative for him; many people would have responded by beating or killing the dog, or just driving him out into the boonies and turning him loose. You cared more than that, but didn't know what to do.

At any rate, I hope he gets another chance... I think a lot of dog aggression is completely misunderstood, and a dog like Piper, who is not completely "bad" due to lack of socialization and training is a good prospect for rehabilitation.

Euthanasia for behavioral problems is an expedient, really, not a necessity- society just does not see dog rehab as being worth the trouble (and it can be a lot of trouble, beyond the resources of most households, and hard to justify in a town or county budget). This notion that a given dog is "just plain bad", and cannot be "made good", especially as determined by breed, is a product of ignorance, and used to rationalize the expediency ("eh- it's just a dog").
Sure, some can never be made 100% "pet-worthy", but those are extreme cases. And a life in a fairly isolated, monitored setting is an option for some really messed-up dogs. It's mind-blowing to me that people will throw up their hands and say "wup- he's a bad one! Gotta kill him! " when their sweet, gentle trusted friend makes one mistake, as scary or harmful as it may be (I don't mean you; you considered it carefully).

Bad humans can exhibit all the same behaviors as bad dogs, but even for inexplicable displays of aggression, humans are given a chance to prove they can do better... that's considered just and reasonable, although personally I think rehabilitation of humans is a much dicier proposition. :rolleyes:

Dogs think very differently than we do, very different priorities and methods of social interaction, but their thoughts are extremely uncomplicated, IMHO, and easy for the average human to understand, if they stop imprinting their own human thoughts and feelings on the dog. It's a matter of figuring out what they need, and consistently applying it (admittedly not always easy or do-able for most households). In the right hands, Piper may learn to put these outbursts behind him, and maybe find another "pack" to live with. I wish him luck.
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while it's not always a necessity, sometimes it is - we had to put Mica down, but that was after years of behavioral assessment, psychotropic meds and constant training and management. He was just, well, psychotic at times - breaks with reality, aggression, attacks. It had to happen.
 
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