Posted on 06/21/2018 5:40:33 PM PDT by Norski
n May of 2017, 90 year-old Margaret Colvin was fatally mauled by the dog her granddaughter had just adopted from a Virginia Beach rescue.
According to the adopter, and the lawsuit that was filed, rescue personnel never told her about the dog’s significant bite history. Tragically, this case does not represent an isolated event. Many of us in the animal welfare field have been increasingly disturbed about a growing practice of some shelters and rescues, also known as releasing agencies, to achieve “no kill” of status at all costs, including the insistence on adoption of dangerous animals without due regard for the safety of children, adults and pets in our communities.
Some organizations have allegedly engaged in practices that include changing animal names and altering intake records, destroying records, withholding information about bite history, or deliberately lying about such incidents. Often euphemisms are used such as “Not good with children….needs to be an only dog….not good with cats and other small animals…has anxiety issues….is very protective….is a one person dog…..” An unsuspecting adopter, confidently assuming that no releasing agency would ever act in a manner contrary to public safety, may not probe deeper on any of these statements.
The above lawsuit is not the only one that has been filed pursuant to adoptions that went horribly wrong. At the present time there is a lawsuit in Fluvanna, Virginia regarding an adopted dog. This dog was allegedly returned to the shelter for biting multiple times and yet re-adopted to a family . . .
(Excerpt) Read more at facebook.com ...
Virginia bars shelters & rescues from hiding dogs’ bite history
May 30, 2018 by Merritt Clifton
(Beth Clifton collage) No more “Don’t ask, don’t tell” for pit bulls
https://www.animals24-7.org/2018/05/30/virginia-bars-shelters-rescues-from-hiding-dogs-bite-history/
. . . In a nutshell. Thank you.
Oh wow, what timing. Two weeks ago I adopted a 6 year old “Schnauzer” from a no kill shelter. She appeared to be sweet, affectionate, snuggly... My cousin came over and went to hug my niece when Casey suddenly bit him on the leg 3 times, one bite did break skin.
Now what??? Well, with much guard and caution we are proceeding and she does seem to be truly sweet, just protective - and she was brand new at the time. There have not been anymore incidents and she does not attack people when walking, she wags her tail and/or ignores people. BUT, it would have been nice to know ahead of time, I never would have adopted her.
I’ve been looking for a companion dog for my dog for the last couple of years, as my dog needs a buddy. The several shelters I visited and some other places that has animals in need of homes have about an 80% Pitbull or pitbull mix ratio. I kind of gave up and plan on going to a breeder and picking up a dog breed that I know is not only intelligent but non aggressive and probably a puppy which I can raise up as I know how. I have raised a number of dogs and they’ve all been wonderful pets but refuse to adopt a dog that has been “ruined” due to negligence of the previous owner that is no longer an option for me.
My kid rescued a Pom Poodle from a Dog store that was dumping the dog at a shelter on Xmas eve . It was too old to sell at 6 Mos .
The dog is smart and very gentle plus only 10 pounds but a good 24 hr watch dog .She walks the house at night.
No walks near the property without her announcing .
We had a dog that came to us through a relative. He snapped at me a couple of times. And then he snapped at my young daughter.
He got his ass kicked over the rainbow bridge the next day. The vet said that dog ain’t right in the head.
“An unsuspecting adopter, confidently assuming that no releasing agency would ever act in a manner contrary to public safety, may not probe deeper on any of these statements.”
In other words, the adopter ignored the warnings. What a load o’ lawyer pooh. It’s common knowledge that pitbulls can be dangerous killers. No person with a lick of sense would trust a pitbull from an animal shelter until it had been watched like a hawk for months (and even then I wouldn’t). I can only blame the shelter for adopting a pit to an idiot.
If you have them from puppies they can be great dogs. As long as you don’t mind never having company.
Fiance’s dog attacks, kills woman in Calvert County (Virginia)
They can be wonderful loving dogs. The problem with pits is that they are so darned good at inflicting death and destruction once they get started, and you are never sure when that’s going to be.
You might want to report this to animal control, get a copy of the report, and then demand the complete history of the dog. If the bite turns septic or the dog bites you, it would be helpful to track this.
As per:
Kenneth Phillips, Dogsbite Law
June 15 at 12:06 AM
IF YOU DON’T REPORT A DOG BITE, BAD THINGS HAPPEN - Your dog attack report to animal control will help to prevent more injuries, and get you compensated for your scars, pain and suffering. If you don’t report what happened to you, however, bad things will happen.
Video explaining more at link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/dogbitelaw/permalink/10156518596108872/
You may have averted a bigger problem.
Yes, the legislation described above is for this very scenario.
“otoh an ahole can’t turn a jack Russell into a killer.“
A single bite from a Jack Russell on one finger nearly killed my wife a few years ago. 8 days in the hospital on intravenous antibiotics to cure a massive septic infection.
It took less than 36 hours to develop.
L
Thank you - I have been away and am now reading.
You may remember that the Dogo Argentino breed was discussed on these forums within the last week or so. I have been expecting something like this eventually. Just not so soon.
Instead of an adoption shelter you might try a rescue group.
Rescue groups generally rescue certain breeds and they are kept in volunteer homes.
The groups have a better idea of the quirks the dogs come with and they sometimes will inspect the home the dog is going to.
Some shelters have web links to rescue groups in their area.
Good luck.
“The bite from the jack Russel didn’t almost kill your sister. Ignorance almost did. The lack of proper wound cleaning and lack of application of a local antibiotic did.”
Bull****. You weren’t there. Paramedics were on her ten minutes after the bite. A trip to Urgent Care where antibiotics were administered happened within 8 hours.
The bite inoculated a tendon sheath which was found by a court of law to be the proximate cause. To whit, a dog bite did it.
Now kindly go **** yourself.
L
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.