Put Down The Wrong Dog

[Steve]

http://mornington-peninsula-leader.whereil...kill-wrong-dog/

PROCEDURES for euthanising animals will be “thoroughly reviewed” after Mornington Peninsula Shire Council rangers put down the wrong dog.

A young Mt Martha couple are grieving the loss of their family pet after he was put down in a mix-up the council has described as a “terrible mistake”.

Laura Clements and Troy Bartling want answers after their microchipped American staffordshire bull terrier’s corpse was returned frozen to them on May 3.

Ms Clements returned home from work on April 29 to find the terrier, called Syphon, gone and a note from a council ranger telling her to phone him.

The pure-bred dog was taken to the pound because his backyard enclosure was inadequate.

Syphon had been declared a dangerous dog after he escaped as a young pup last year and bit another dog.

Ms Clements and Mr Bartling had erected a locked 2m-high cage in their backyard, but had not finished the required roofing and guttering when their pet was impounded.

Four days later they received the devastating phone call.

“They said they had put the wrong dog down,” Ms Clements said.

“They said he was in the fridge and when did we want him dropped down?”

Mr Bartling described Syphon as his best mate and said there was no excuse for the mistake because his pet was microchipped.

“We didn’t get a chance to say goodbye,” he said.

“Our dog was never meant to be put down.

“We want to know what went wrong.”

The council’s environment protection unit acting manager Mark Upton would not say if anyone had been reprimanded.

He said it was premature to make any further comment until a review was finished.

[raz]

Oh my lord I'd be going directly to a senior counsel for an advice.

Edited May 20, 2010 by raz

[casowner]

No excuse for the mixup, but if the dog was declared dangerous last year they would have been given guidelines including the erection of the pen which at least 5 months later was not completed? The yard was considered inadequate and the dog seized am I reading that right? The dog was in the pound for four days before it was euthanased, if it was me and the reason my beloved pet was seized was because I hadn't finished the roof I would spend day and night fixing it to get him home.

I understand that they must be devastated but it couldn't have happened if they had fixed the enclosure months ago. I would be looking at what recourse I could take against the Council but they haven't been reponsible either and if they were the enclosure would have been done.

RIP poor doggie

[gaawjustaffs]

Thats horrible how sad for that couple

[nickojoy]

“They said he was in the fridge and when did we want him dropped down?”

That statement is just wrong!

The ranger was only doing their job taking away that animal. Why did it take the owners 5 months to construct the dog pen? And there is no comments from the owners to say that they had fixed it over the weekend after the dog got impounded and were about to pick up their dog.

Sad, but did someone really stuff up?

What was in the original documentation when the dog was declared a DD? Was there a time frame and at what time would the dog would be impounded and destroyed? Was the dog just running around the back yard without the collar and muzzle on? Big fines if that was the case!

[kendall]

No excuse for the mixup, but if the dog was declared dangerous last year they would have been given guidelines including the erection of the pen which at least 5 months later was not completed? The yard was considered inadequate and the dog seized am I reading that right? The dog was in the pound for four days before it was euthanased, if it was me and the reason my beloved pet was seized was because I hadn't finished the roof I would spend day and night fixing it to get him home.

I understand that they must be devastated but it couldn't have happened if they had fixed the enclosure months ago. I would be looking at what recourse I could take against the Council but they haven't been reponsible either and if they were the enclosure would have been done.

RIP poor doggie

I agree :D

[gundogs xoxo]

RIP little man. I feel so bad for his family!!

[GardenofEden]

How devastating. The fact remains that the dog was put down when it should not have. The fact that 'The council’s environment protection unit acting manager Mark Upton would not say if anyone had been reprimanded' is proof that an error has taken place irrespective of how long the owners have taken to complete the enclosure. I would be suing the bastards.

[casowner]

It is about time that dog owners took responsibilty for their own animals safety and well being and not wait for tragedies to occur where the animal is the one that invariably suffers. I have no doubt there has been a major stuff up and it needs to be dealt with but again it comes back to the dog shouldn't have been in the pound in the first instance. What about the people whose dog was bitten by it last year for it to be declared dangerous I am sure they would be upset knowing that after their dog was attacked the owners hadn't finished the enclosure, they are just lucky another innocent dog or person hadn't been bitten.

Absolutely criticise the Council for their major, major f#!k up but also remember that it shouldn't have been there for the mistake to be made, another innocent animal dies because of human negligence

[SkySoaringMagpie]

It is about time that dog owners took responsibilty for their own animals safety and well being and not wait for tragedies to occur where the animal is the one that invariably suffers. I have no doubt there has been a major stuff up and it needs to be dealt with but again it comes back to the dog shouldn't have been in the pound in the first instance. What about the people whose dog was bitten by it last year for it to be declared dangerous I am sure they would be upset knowing that after their dog was attacked the owners hadn't finished the enclosure, they are just lucky another innocent dog or person hadn't been bitten.

Absolutely criticise the Council for their major, major f#!k up but also remember that it shouldn't have been there for the mistake to be made, another innocent animal dies because of human negligence

Absolutely agree with this.

[dogbesotted]

oh stuff the shit kicking!

THE COUNCIL MADE AN ERROR AND IS THEREFORE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DOGS DEATH!!!!!!!!!

we may all have criticisms re the dog pen etc but when allis said and done teh council stuffed up big time, and the way the owners were advised leave a great deal to be desired.

H

[Ker]

Yes, the owners should have finished the pen....BUT SO WHAT???!!! The council killed their dog, by MISTAKE. That's a pretty bloody big error and if it were me, I'd be after someone's head. I'd sue.

[Casima]

That is terifying to think that an impounded dog (no matter why it was there) could be PTS by accident. Enough to give me nightmares. Poor dog and family.

[casowner]

I have said the Council is at fault see my quotes

"I have no doubt there has been a major stuff up and it needs to be dealt with "

"Absolutely criticise the Council for their major, major f#!k up but also remember that it shouldn't have been there for the mistake to be made, another innocent animal dies because of human negligence"

" I would be looking at what recourse I could take against the Council"

"No excuse for the mixup"

"I would be looking at what recourse I could take against the Council"

But again it was an unnecessary impoundment and the mix up happened 4 DAYS after they were notified that he had been impounded. I am sure the Council weren't just bored and decided to pop over to their house to seize their dog, there would have been a reason - eg complaints, dangerous dog requirements follow ups etc. If my dog had been put down "accidently" by Council all hell would break loose I can tell you but I know that he wouldn't be sitting there for 4 days for it to happen either. Not that it is anything to do with this case but I thought that Councils only had to hold animals for 72 hours and then they could legally euth. It is hard to get all of the info from one article as newspapers aren't generally known for posting "accurate" information but the end story is still very upsetting for pet lovers and hopefully this never happens again.

I'm sorry but I do think that it is a disgusting chain of events that led to a dog dying but the owners should have protected the dog from being seized in the first instance.

[tdierikx]

I agree with casowner... well said...

T.

[GeckoTree]

They musnt read microchips hey RIP Syphon.

[Kirty]

Absolutely agree with casowner. I feel sorry for the dog, and agree the council stuffed up, but if the owner had done the right thing, the dog would not have been impounded.

[GardenofEden]

Absolutely agree with casowner. I feel sorry for the dog, and agree the council stuffed up, but if the owner had done the right thing, the dog would not have been impounded.

True enough, Kirty, that if the owners had completed the job the dog would not have gotten out and been impounded and in the end meet such a grim fate through the inadequacies of the council but sometimes dogs do get out even though the fencing is more than adequate, through someone leaving the gates open, etc. and I would hate for such a stupid mistake to repeat itself. I hope that they are made to pay for this! It is completely unforgivable! What this boils down to is that it was a foolish mistake as the poor dog was not meant to put down! I cannot even begin to understand how the council could have made such a dumb mistake! No excuses, f***wits.

Edited May 22, 2010 by GardenofEden

[MTD]

Did I read that right , the dog was PTS 4 days after they were notified of its impounding .

If it was my dog I would not have left it 4 days in the pound

Doesn't take away the huge stuff up of PTS the wrong dog though

[Crisovar]

Monumental cock up on behalf of the council and as far as I am concerned declaring a dog dangerous because it bites another dog is bullshit.

Any dog mixup of this nature is human error and means that either procedure wasn't followed or that inadequate procedure is in place. Either way they need to lift their damn game.