Confused...

Old 03-08-2009, 02:01 PM
  #1  
Scooterz
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guys, I had to shoot our dog today. She was not sick, but she is big & hurt one of the kids. She scratched my baby girl 5 years old, drew some blood... not too bad. She was untrainable, ran away, etc... hard dog to own. They knew what I was going to do (my kids) & it was dramatic... let me tell you. I had no hope for this out of control animal... but my kids come first. JEEEZZ... I felt so sad when I told them I was taking her away from them. It was a emotional moment. I was humane about it- one shot to the head & zero suffering (I took her to my buddies ranch). Ever since then, I wonder... is this a sin? Should I have done something else? I feel a little rotten looking at my kids... It was hard. Scooter
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Old 03-08-2009, 02:14 PM
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Scooter, sorry to hear you had to put your dog down. I had to put one down years ago because of illness. It was given to us a short time before and had a severe case of heartworms. The vet said it was too late to help and so I took it out and put it out of it's misery. Still didn't feel good about it, but the kids didn't know. They thought it ran off. Sometimes you gotta make a hard choice and you made the one you thought was best for your family. Some animals just don't make good pets. Hope you get over the regret, but it would have probably hurt one of the kids badly someday.
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Old 03-08-2009, 03:29 PM
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You did exactly the right thing. I've been there and done that......exactly like you did. Don't spend any more time doubting yourself. Can you image how you would feel if something bad happened, and you wish you would have put the dog away? Good move.
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Old 03-08-2009, 03:47 PM
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you did the right thing, if there is any doubt about the safety of a child with any animal ,the animal has to go! I know you feel bad now , but let it go. if something realy bad happen to the kids because you didnt act, that would be something you would regret for ever.
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Old 03-08-2009, 04:24 PM
  #5  
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Scooter,

Never an easy answer to this. My brother in-law had to put down a mastive(sic). A once big ol' friendly pup. He got mean, too big to handle. He bit his boy, similar situation. His kids were real young then too.

When I was a kid, my Dad was always shooting strays. He loved dogs but said he had no use for strays, couldn't trust them. He once had to put down one of our pets. He had been shot by someone else, Dad wouldn't let him suffer anymore.

I'll fess up, I've taken out a couple myself. I think the worst one, we had a pack running thru this neck of the woods. I'm not scared of alot of things but a pack of dogs, can be a problem. Anyway to make a long story short, I rounded the pack with my hand gun, took what I thought was a solid shot at the leader , he moved, took out a big golden retriever that was a neighborhood dog. I still feel bad about it to this day. That dog was nothing but a big goofy, friendly dog, he just got in with the wrong company.

Don't mull over it too hard. Things happen for a reason. We recently rescued a border collie mix that came to my wifes work. Give your kids a chance to grieve a little and then take them shopping for a new pet. Kids can recover, most of us did! Sometimes animals are just bad, like people. Ask me about horses sometime. I've got a horror story or two to tell!

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Old 03-08-2009, 06:16 PM
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Man thanks guys... I really appreciate the explainations & examples. This dog was nice, but too big & hyper... it could get carried away w/ the kids & not even know she hurt them. The kids loved her- but you are right- can't have her do the same thing to somone elses family. She was aggresive to other animals too... killed some livestock once. I was that dog's last chance, but I put a bullet in her head. This is one of those things that my dad had to do when I was a kid... now I have to take on the same responsibility. I asked you guys because I felt I had to do it at some point... but if you ask my wife, she would say "give it away" or take to obidence school, or to a dog shelter of some kind.... seemed silly & only proloning the issue. I lied to the kids & said I took her to the ranch because she would be better off there. It is hard to look my 5 year old girl in the eyes right now knowing what I did. Scooter
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Old 03-08-2009, 07:25 PM
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Sadly you did the right thing my friend...you say you have a hard time looking your 5 year old in the eye right now ....imagine having to look at that 5 year old if the dog accidently disfigured that precious face. I had to put one down because he killed the family cat , I wouldn't hesitate to put one down for hurting a child..seems harsh , but it's for the best.
Time heals all wounds and children are number one and relie on us to protect them from harm , which is what you did..
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Old 03-08-2009, 11:07 PM
  #8  
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scooter, i know what your going thru right now. i have had to shot a few of our own dogs. we live on top of a small moutian here in n. al. i had to shot them for a verity of reasons, hurt bad,killing chickens, chasing cattle( on the neighbors property)and being way to agressive.but ive ben very lucky, with all the kids that grew up around here only one kid got bite. wasnt hurt bad but could have been. 10 min. after that happened that dog was gone.i have always liked dogs better than i liked most adults.but when it comes to kids i dont give but one chance. i to lied to my kids about where their dog went to. and it hurt and it hurt bad.but how bad would it hurt if a kid got hurt bad or killed by a dog i should have shot.i take no chances with kids. i just cant.hell it would hurt me when i had to spank my kids.my kids made a killing in the toy department every time i had to spank them or take a dog for a last walk into the woods.sometimes its hard to do the right thing. this is one of them ken
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Old 03-09-2009, 04:28 AM
  #9  
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Scooter,
I am so sorry. the animals in my wifes and I lives are our children since we have none. I have had to put down some dogs in the past, car hits, one got rabies from a racoon. The worse was last August, our 13 1/2 year old husky/shepherd mix developed a tumor in her right lung and went downhill fast. I couldnt do the deed myself on that one so we went to the vet. I was balling my eyes out before we even got inside. The vet let her sit in my lap as she got the injection. I sat in that room for a half hour after it was over just petting her till they finally let me out the back door cause I was a giant blubbering mess. It took about 4 months till I could convince my wife to get another dog, she just wasnt sure if she was ready. We went to the pets without parents no kill shelter after new years and picked out a boxer/shepherd mix. I think she has helped heal our souls. I have never had a dog learn so fast and be so much fun as a puppy. her name is Roxy...


Maybe a new dog would help your daughter, if its around kids from a young age the learn to be very tolerant of the children.

I hope things get better for you and yours
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Old 03-09-2009, 04:41 AM
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Scooter, you did the right thing. My wife & i had a dog that as she got older didn't like little kids. Well one day she nipped at our granddaughter and my wife said if she bites her it will be the end of her and i said if she bites her it's already too late if she hurts her. So we got rid of her before it happened. So i think you did the right thing.
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