How Far Would You Go For Your Dog

[Guest muttrus]

This happened some years ago and since then Ive owned other dogs and have fostered over 200 more BUT I never regret doing what I did and although having known so many other other dogs I wondered how far is too far? and how far would you really go for your dog?

Medically I think we all do whatever is in our means and many times I guess alot of us wish we could have done more BUT what about something else?

We owned a pure bred english mastiff he was used as a bikies guard dog chained to his bike however as it turned out he was too soft so we took him on.Our son had a friend who was slightly mentally disabled we NEVER let any kids alone with our dogs so I was there the whole time.One of this kids things was he was extremley loud anyway our dog stayed away this kid went up to the dog screamed and pulled his tail our dog turned around and growled at him thats it no contact I sent the kid home and explained what happened.

Afew days later we woke up to find our dog dying ----The vet later said he had been baited The day he died the kids granmother stood on our front lawn bragging about out dog dying and saying it was the best thing she made it known she was the one.So of course still upset hearing this I slapped her straight across the side of the face.I was charged with assult Yes I know she was 60 but not your sweet granmother type she was up at 6am everyday to walk her dogs full time carer of her dissabled granson etc She walked into court with a cane but the judge saw through her and I copped a good behaviour bond she put the cane under her arm and stormed out .Anyway our dog was buried and we tried to move on SO YES I SLAPPED A GRANMOTHER ACROSS THE FACE FOR KILLING MY DOG.

I did pay the price with her son breaking into my house punching me in the face while we had the kids locked in a room till the police came and took him away .I was beaten up 3 times after that including while I was pregnate BUT I would do it again .A cowardly act to kill a dog like she did .The police said the only way she would have been charged with animal cruelty was if I had photograph proof of her committing the act. -----------------------

[Dame Aussie]

I probably would have done more than just slapped her. How horrid

[Bjelkier]

If someone baited my dogs and then bragged to me about it you can be sure I would have done more then slapped them.

What a horrible thing to happen to you

[kitkatswing]

Yeah, I would have done a lot more... Someone kill my dog and brag about it??

Id probably end up in a cell....

[Rebanne]

I don't understand why you are bringing this all up now

and sorry we have no way of knowing if this is all true or not? why not just ask a hypothetical question

[Wobbly]

I wouldn't have slapped her. Fury makes me cold blooded, not hot blooded.

IMO violence is pointless, a simple slap is nowhere near adequate punishment for what she did. You were in the right, she was in the wrong, you had all the leverage you needed to exact as much lasting and permanent punishment as you wanted (via the legal system), but you forfeited all your real power with that slap.

I'm sorry for your dog, but you also need to understand that she was protecting her own too. She went about it in the stupidest, cruellest way possible way, but you can understand how a grandmother would want a massive and decisive settlement like that when her grandchildren are threatened, even if they did provoke.

There are two irrational, pointlessly violent people in this story - both you and her.

Odd thread, probably better suited to off topic since it's not really about dogs, it's about human relations.

Edited August 29, 2012 by Wobbly

[nawnim]

The death of your dog is obviously still a painful memory but I am not sure how slapping a sixty year old woman across the face helped your dog.

[Staffyluv]

In all honesty, I don't know what I would do in that situation but what a horrible thing to have happen...

Hindsight is a wonderful thing and thinking about it, I would have gone to the police and the RSPCA and reported them for what they had done to my dog.. I think I would have let everyone that would listen know what these people are capable of.

What sort of person baits a dog (any animal for that matter).. In my mind these types of people are the lowest of the low..

I have never understood how people can harm children or animals - both so reliant on us...

[Kirislin]

I would hate to have any of my animals deliberately harmed or killed. In my eyes it would be murder, just the same as if it was a human, but the law doesn't see it that way.

Many years ago my sister had a pet ram that was tortured to death. I dont know if they even caught the culprits, I think they did but they weren't punished much if at all.

I dont know what I would do, I hope I'm never in a position to find out.

[fuzzy82]

I would break the law to protect my dogs, and I would prolly have beaten or burnt the house down (without killing anyone of course) if someone injured or killed my dogs.

[Guest donatella]

I would have slapped her alright.

With a crowbar

[GeckoTree]

If you are aware of what the repercussions of your revenge is and you can play it out fair enough.

If a home invasion and bashing is a repercussion of an emotional reaction to someone unrelated to the poisoning you could have got victims of crime compo 3 times?.

f*** em.

[Wobbly]

Seriously, a slap is pointless - it stings for what maybe 10 seconds? Then it's forgotten forever. How is that any kind of recompense for your loss?

If the question is "how far would you go" I'd say a slap is relatively speaking, an almost infinitesmal distance compared to how far you really could go. You did nothing but punish yourself with that. If I really wanted revenge I would have taken a very different approach. Revenge isn't my cup of tea, and it's definitely not what I'd do, but just for the sake of a little creative visualisation, I've constructed the following:

If I were bent on revenge, and wanted to test how far I could go, I'd be thinking along the following lines:

1) Aim to wrap her tightly up in the legal system, first step would be to goad an admission of culpability for the dog's death in front of witnesses. By the sounds of it, she goes off half cocked on the bragging, so easy enough to achieve this. Now you have a winning case, so she will end up having to pay legal costs for any action you take. I'd be aiming for a big payout, I'd have to research the angle, but I enjoy that kind of research, and I've had occasion to learn I'm particularly good at using the legal system to my advantage, so should be doable. Failing a payout to myself, it'd be very possible to blow legal costs out to the point of her losing everything she had ever worked for, her house, her retirement security. Everything.

2) As for the beating you received at the hands of her sons or whoever, I have no idea why you didn't take that further if you're of the mind that punitive action is good. Depending on the dirt you dig up, and how far you could goad them whilst appearing blameless yourself, you might be able to add up enough cause to deny her and her sons the right to any custody or visitation rights to their children & grandchildren? If you were determined and clever in fact you almost certainly could. "What about the children?" is such an incredibly effective legal angle.

How far would you go? there's no end to how far you could go really....

You forfeited your best avenues to decisive punishment for a little slap that means nothing. A calculated, cold response may have taken many years, but would have yielded far sweeter results if that's what you're into.

But ultimately, for me neither of these revenge tactics would be satisfactory. Slapping, unless you're a primary school kid is a laughably paltry token response, and taking her house or denying her and her family custody and visitation rights to the grandchildren is bolting the barn door after the horse escaped. The dog is dead, nothing like that does anything for him. How far would you go for your dog... you're going nowhere with that because it's too late to help him. You really should have been a bit smarter to start with. All you could do is save other dogs the same fate in future.

Were I in your situation (I wouldn't be) I'd probably be inclined to ensure the child learned to approach dogs better, and furthermore get him into counselling via contacting youth and community services, his school, whatever groups or institution might collaborate. By the sounds of his family he's gonna need some intervention like that to have a hope in life.

The best course, from a cursory reading of this mess of woe and stupidity you've embroiled yourself in would be to ensure the grandchildren's generation are given officially documented and overseen professional guidance so they can hopefully develop a little more emotional intelligence, and this cycle of brutal stupidity is not repeated.

[mumof4girls]

What a demented family ..