Shot my neighbors dog

[WilliamBos]

I would of told her to call a vet and do it the humaine way. That last part makes me sick. I hate how animals are discarded like that.

 

[20 20]

Oh yeah, the little dog was about 15 inches long and the Hornady Critical Defense 380 went thru the skull and penetrated the lenght of the dog and came out it's rear

Was this really necessary to spell out on a public forum. A lot of us have had to walk the line you mentioned with our own pets, never felt the need to make my gun nor bullet look bad a**! Maybe cause I'm old enough to realize what a bullet can do?? Sorry about the deed, but braging about what happened really took the sympathy away from you real fast!

 

[Ted Summey]

I've had to deal with pets and farm animals that needed to be put down. It is a necessary evil but the details I neither relish or discuss. The details of the actual harvest (a.k.a. killing) of a game animal are not shared or relished either. The details of the hunt are shared with only those I know appreciate such details but not with those who's disposition is not inclined toward hunting. That is the way of a true sportsman and gentleman.

OP shared details that make him appear callous and heartless at the end of a story that started out painting him as a good neighbor and animal lover. Certain details in the OP' post make him APPEAR as less than a gentleman in a forum of mixed dispositions toward his actions. Without the gory details, I sympathize. With them I do not.

 

[Tomtint]

I could have done without hearing your explanation. The animal was obviously suffering and I believe by your description, suffered even at the end.

 

[dave1949]

Many years ago we had a German Shepard that got a bit psychotic after heart worm treatment. He took our son's head in his jaws enough to break the skin and rip an ear lobe. That was it. I put him down with a .22 to head. Never like remembering that.

Many years later ... we had a dog that was beginning to suffer from bone cancer, and one that had had a bad stroke. They both died with their head in my wife's lap hearing soothing words at the vet's. Just like going to sleep. It's a lot better that way for you and the dog, is the way I feel about it.

 

[texasjohn]

You did what needed to be done, as humanely as possible as soon as you were aware of the situation. That's being responsible.

 

[QRTRHRS]

It is terribly difficult for some people to make that final decision for a pet. I know my parents waited way too long for their beloved dog.

As for vet vs doing it yourself, we had the vet put down a horse. Never again. The poor girl ran off 50 feet and stood there in pain, shuddering for a moment before she finally went down. I still hurt for her. Never again. I've put down dogs and horses very quickly and apparently with a lot less pain (if any) than the vet. Even the UC Davis vet school site suggests that a gun shot is at least as good as injections (and they show the proper technique.)

My vets have always used a two step process, one shot to relax the animal and a second or third massive shot to stop the heart. They are most likely dead before they hit the ground. I have seen inexperianced vets not give enough to stop the heart though.

Growing up, people did not have the money for vets so I learned proper procedure early on. Still, given a choice, I prefer the less violent vet way but in an emergency situation will do what needs to be done.

I always offer a prayer and/or words of comfort to an animal (or for myself) and treat the body with "respect" with a proper burial including careful handling. But then I do realize that a quiet corner with natural decomposition is viable and do not denegrate the practice.

I agree, we could do without the final description. I can also understand it is not a practice for everyone nor does it merit any "manly rating".

 

[dmccarty]

Oh yeah, the little dog was about 15 inches long and the Hornady Critical Defense 380 went thru the skull and penetrated the lenght of the dog and came out it's rear.

For everyone who is upset at that sentence, did it occur to you that it was a warning? A mention of what went wrong? An hard earned lesson?

My dog Kelly was sick for years before it came time to put her down. We spent a small fortune trying to make her right but we don't know what was causing her problem. She was slowly loosing her ability to walk and stand. Was it a nerve issue? Some sort of doggy ALS/MS disease? At first she was slightly unsteady which got worse. Then she could not control her bladder. We have finished concrete floors to make cleanups from dog and kids messes real easy which was a build detail that really helped. Since Kelly was a puppy she would get me up at 0200 to go out to pee. This became more urgent as she got sick and eventually she was peeing in the house before she could get outside. I got to the point where if I heard her move, I would ask her if she wanted to go out. This would happen several times a night so I was getting very little sleep. This went on for a good year or two.

Eventually, Kelly lost control of her bowels and we knew it was time. Kelly was ashamed of peeing in the house but pooping was just too much for her. Physically she was done. She could barely move at this point and it was time.

Our vet is also a neighbor and we scheduled a call. The vet used a two shot process with the first knocking the dog out and the last making the heart stop. When the vet arrived, Kelly go up to greet her as always but with great struggle. I told Kelly to lay back down in her bed which she dutifully did. The vet struggled to find a blood vessel to inject the drugs. The dog was dehydrated and the vessels were hard to use. This went on for awhile before she was able to knock Kelly out. Then the same thing happened with the killing drug. The vet was doing the best she could do but it took all of my self control to let this continue. The vet was not happy with what was happening and neither were we. I almost picked Kelly up to carry her outside to shoot her. It would have been faster, quicker and less painful.

Kelly deserved for more than I could ever give her and she did not need to suffer at the end the way she did. It was not the vets fault at all and I don't blame her one bit. It just was, what it was, but the dog deserved better.

The vet did everything she could to end Kelly's suffering as painlessly as she could. Just like the OP did. Sometimes scat happens.

Later,
Dan

 

[RSKY]

This was NOT my dog! It was somebody else's pet. They knew it was sick but could not stand to put it down. The owners were out of town but had taken the dog out that morning to do it's business. When her brother tried to take it out after lunch the dog couldn't stand and had messed all over the floor. He called the owner and she started bawling (43 years old). Thus I got the text asking me to take care of the problem.

I had no emotional attachment to the critter and was curious about the ammo. There have been several discussions about ammo on here and I just made an observation.

All I wanted to so was make it quick and painless!

 

[CBW1999]

All I wanted to so was make it quick and painless!

You did- as soon as it hit the skull it was over.

I see the balistics comment as a neautral statement. Each reader will take it the way they wish to interperet it.