Previously abused dog to be put down
The owner of a dog that will be put down after attacking three people says he wasn't informed of the animal's traumatic history when he adopted it from the local animal shelter.
Photo submitted
ON THE MEND - Trevor is shown at the time he was recovering from a chain that had grown into his neck. Photo courtesy CITY OF WHITEHORSE BYLAW SERVICES
The owner of a dog that will be put down after attacking three people says he wasn’t informed of the animal’s traumatic history when he adopted it from the local animal shelter.
Matthew Allaby, 27, went looking for a dog at the Mae Bachur Animal Shelter six weeks ago. A number of dogs appealed to him, but a two-year-old German shepherd Rottweiler-cross stood out among the rest.
“He seemed like a very happy-go-lucky dog,” Allaby told the Star this morning. “Real bouncy, playful, so I adopted him.”
At the time of the adoption, the shelter told Allaby that the dog, Trevor, was initially brought into the shelter because he had snapped at a child.
However, Allaby took Trevor home because he understood that “it wasn’t an aggressive attack. It was more of a playful thing,” he said.
When Allaby returned to the shelter Tuesday looking for a medical history of the dog to provide bylaw services, he was informed that, while in the care of a previous owner, a chain had grown into Trevor’s neck and had had to be removed. The abuse the animal suffered received extensive coverage in the Star at the time.
‘It’s kind of just a given that you would have the history of the animal and that you would give that history of the animal to the person who was adopting it,” said Allaby.
“Had I been given that information when I adopted him, I wouldn’t have adopted him.”
During a recent camping trip, Trevor was agreeable with other dogs and people. It wasn’t until Allaby brought Trevor back into the city and put a collar on him that he noticed a change in the dog’s behaviour.
Within the last week, Trevor has attacked three people, including Allaby’s landlord, who bled from the bite.
“So I made the decision to have him put down,” said Allaby. “I can’t have a dog going around and attacking people, and I can’t let other people have a dog that’s going to go around and attack people.”
Yesterday, Allaby turned his dog over to bylaw services.
Trevor was set to be put down this morning, but he can be held up to 14 days if bylaw services is not provided with the medical history of the dog.
If an animal does have rabies, it should show up in within that period of time.
At the time of adoption, Allaby said, he was told Trevor was up-to-date on all his shots, including rabies shots. But when he requested that information from the shelter Tuesday, he was told staff had no record of Trevor’s medical history.
Allaby doesn’t know if he will request compensation from the shelter for what he views as providing inadequate information.
“All I know is I’m out $200 and a dog. That’s how much it cost me to adopt him,” said Allaby.
“I’m going to be talking to them and laying out a guilt trip on them for adopting out a dog as violent as him.
“They should have known right from the beginning that a dog with that history was going to be violent, and they shouldn’t be adopting out violent dogs.”
No one from the shelter could be reached to comment on Allaby’s concerns before press time early this afternoon.
anonymous
Jul 15, 2009 at 8:28 pm
Poor you…you insensitive jerk. What about the poor dog? I could care less about your 200 dollars. You are an idiot and are lucky I don’t work at the animal shelter because when you came in to lay on your guilt trip I would tell you how insensitive you are. If you are sniffing around for a lawsuit I hope they see are lame you are and give you the nothing you deserve.