‘No one can harm him now’: Trevor advocate
Three years, $45,000 and one “respectfully euthanized” animal later, the story of Trevor the dog remains unburied.
Photo by Whitehorse Star
left: ROB FENDRICK Right: DOGS’S DAYS ARE DONE – The final decision to euthanize Trevor (above) was for his own quality of life, says Shelley Cuthbert, the president of the Humane Society Yukon.
Three years, $45,000 and one “respectfully euthanized” animal later, the story of Trevor the dog remains unburied.
It’s been a week since Whitehorse’s most famous dog was put down at the Mae Bachur Animal Shelter, after suffering from an undisclosed illness.
Mike Grieco, an advocate for Trevor from the beginning, maintains the dog was not the menace he was made out to be by the city.
“He was a dog. He had his quirks,” Grieco told the Star last week.
“He was abused, unsure of people, hard to win over, but in the right hands, he was manageable.”
If anything, it’s remarkable that the dog was as well-behaved as he was, said Grieco.
“It’s amazing how resilient a dog he was. There were new staff around him all the time and other animals that he was exposed to, new conditions, new people to interact with, lots of stress.”
The decision to put Trevor down came after several weeks of deliberation on part of Humane Society Yukon staff.
Grieco didn’t think it was necessary.
“I am not sure what the illness was,” he said. “His foot was bothering him, and his shoulder and ankle were flaring up, I know that.
“He was on medication because he was sick, and he seemed more spooked than usual. We were doing the best we could for him, though, and I believed he still had some quality of life left.”
Trevor cost the city $45,000 in legal and staff expenses.
“They pissed the money away,” said Grieco. “It should never have gone this way. The city made their bed with it.”
The city maintains the cost was necessary to defend its legal position.
“It was definitely worth it,” said Rob Fendrick, the city’s director of administrative services.
“He had a tendency to bite, and did so on a number of occasions. Trevor was a public danger, and for that reason, we had a fiduciary obligation to follow through.”
Fendrick maintains it was a routine situation that got way out of hand.
“I mean, this file was a dangerous dog file,” he said. “The dog obviously had a very tragic beginning, which led him to be aggressive, and he inflicted one serious bite to an individual and we are sure he would have done so to others.
“The dog bit numerous people and had it had its rabies shots, it would have been euthanized immediately.”
The final decision to euthanize the animal was for his own quality of life, said society president Shelley Cuthbert.
What all parties do agree on is the remarkable amount of attention that Trevor’s case received — far beyond what anyone could have anticipated.
“We get 2,000 files per year, 800 of which are dog files,” said Fendrick. “Generally when a dog bites a human, it is pretty cut and dry. It’s just how we do things.”
“The thing is, we put down millions of animals per year,” said Grieco.
“The humane society is not the problem; we’re the problem. People breed these animals and then they refuse to care for them.
“There are a small group of people out there trying to help, but they can only do so much.”
After three years, the Animal Control Bylaw, which governed Trevor’s case, remains the same — if a dog bites a human, more often than not, it will be euthanized.
The city would defend its position in the future, should it be taken to court again for a decision to euthanize a dangerous animal, said Fendrick.
The difference is one dog.
“I can’t ask you to care about any animal,” said Grieco.
“All I can say is that this dog was totally tormented, and now he is gone. But perhaps on the positive side, no one can harm him now.”
Billy Polson
Apr 2, 2012 at 6:18 pm
Geez Mike, you couldn’t foot the bill for his care? And you call yourself an animal advocate.