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Animal control took my baby.

20K views 175 replies 53 participants last post by  llombardo 
#1 ·
Sorry if this is posted in the wrong section.

Im devastated. We brought my boy to this nice lady shop that we met 2 weeks ago and she had a kid with a golden retriever, last night. Her kid wanted to meet Bandit so we brought him there. 10 minutes into him playing with the kid, some other kids came. They were playing with the soccer ball and asked about my boy, so finally we let him off the leash so he can play with the kids. He was having a blast, kids were having fun. And after maybe 5 minutes we call him back and put him back into the car. Next thing i know 10 minutes later, the kid parents came out fussing, they were speaking spanish so we didnt understand until the lady who own the shop translated. He told us that the kid said our dog bit him and him and the parent was yelling saying he was badly injured. So they called an ambulance and what not and when emt and police came, they didnt see any punctured skin, barely a little scrap. But animal control came and picked him up saying he had to be put in 10 day quarantine. And for what? The kid had no bite mark at all on him.

Now the house feels so empty without him. I know its only 10 days, but that's 10 days too long. All because a rotten apple ruined it for everyone. I just dont know what to do. I keep wondering if theyre treating him right, are they abusing him. I stayed there for 3 hours with him until animal control even came. He was so frollicky as usual, running around, trying to catch flies. And then i had to put him in that small cramped up crate in the animal control car, and watch them drive away. He must be so confused right now..

Im sorry if this is kind of long. I need someone to talk to.
 
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#2 ·
Go to animal control and see if you can quarantine him elsewhere. Is he not up to date on his vaccines?
People will probably try to sue you....if there was nothing but a scratch, how can it be proved your dog even did it?
Sorry you are dealing with this, lesson learned, never ever let your dog play with anyone you don't know and trust.
 
#4 ·
If he is up to date on rabies vaccination, most of the shelters here will allow quarantine at your vet, sometimes at home. If they will allow it, move fast and get your dog out of the shelter.

Out of curiosity - which shelter is he quarantined at?
 
#5 ·
Clayton county animal shelter in georgia. The thing is i dont even have the recent papers for his vaccination. I recently not too long ago cancelled the optomus wellness plan at banfield because they almost killed my dog and only caref about money. So im not even sure if they have records anymore.
 
#8 ·
You need to get those records ASAP! Call Banfield and try to get a copy and, if not, call animal control and ask how to get them. ALWAYS keep those records. I have a photocopy in my truck at all times in addition to a scanned copy on my computer and the original at home. You are lucky you got a 10 day quarantine; that is the duration for IMMUNIZED dogs. Non immunized can be 6 months or immediate euthanasia.

They may or may not let you shelter your dog at home. They probably would at your vet. The "bite dogs" often get bad treatment at animal shelters.

I would also ask for a copy of any bite reports for my files for future reference. Patient privacy may overrule but you should have some right of access to the records with personal information redacted. Did they file an insurance claim against you?
 
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#9 · (Edited)
My dog will nip when she's in drive and you are playing. She's not biting and does not break the skin, she's just leaking drive. (This was more when she was a puppy. Someone at her daycare, a new girl, said my dog bit one of the girls there, but the girl said 'oh no! I was throwing leaves at her and she was trying to grab them and I got in the way, I'm totally fine!'. You can imagine the heart attack I was having in the meantime)

Never leave your dog to play with other people's kids.

10 days quarantine is normal even for a vaccinated dog, but if your dog is unvaccinated they will need to observe him most likely. Just happened to my co-worker, except his little dog bit his grandkid in the face when she tried to hug him and the dog meant business.

Sorry about the ordeal, hopefully you'll get your dog back in 10 days without further incident.
 
#29 ·
Never leave your dog to play with other people's kids.
This!! I don't know how the parents taught the kids how to behave around dogs. I know my dog nips me when he gets excited. We're working on that, but he does not nip hard.

I try to protect my dog and not put him in situations that can turn out badly for him. I rarely let people pet him. I know he won't bite, but people are odd and may do stuff to try and antagonize. JMO.
 
#14 ·
Wow, is all I can say. You don't even know if the scratch came from your dog, could have just happened in all the play - either by himself or another child.

You really need to get the vaccination records so someone does not start vaccination the child - those shots are very expensive.

We've never let our dogs play with children and don't even let children pet them because people in this country are so litigious now.

We had a feral kitten we took to the vet for vaccinations. All over the crate we put warning - Feral Cat. The vet tech tried to handle the kitten without protection, got bit and we were required to quarantine the kitten in our home. We had a police officer check on us twice during that time. The weird thing was the kitten had been vaccinated for rabies a week earlier.
 
#17 · (Edited)
I'm going to be blunt here.

Your dog is at risk and is in extreme danger if you do not provide proof of rabies vac.
I'm going to be even more blunt so that you get off the Internet, take off work if need be, and get this paperwork from your vet over to animal control TODAY:

In many parts of the country (including much of the Deep South), without proof of rabies vax, AC will euthanize the dog, cut off its head, and send the severed head to the state university's vet school to dissect to look for evidence of rabies in the brain tissue. A 10-day hold on an unvaccinated dog is very generous -- here, that's what the vaccinated dogs get.

Take that paperwork in person to animal control. Talk to the shelter director while you are there to guarantee no euthanasia and request approval to transfer to your new vet for the remaining observation period, at your expense.

Be prepared for the possibility of a proceeding where AC seeks an order designating your pet a "dangerous dog" requiring it to be muzzled whenever it leaves the confines of your home--for life. This is a big, serious thing: your homeowners insurance company will likely not insure your dog once it has a "dangerous dog" label (and may not if there's a bite history anyway). It depends on your community as to whether this will happen, and whether animal control routinely does that -- try your best to make nice with the shelter director and AC officer as best you can so that they understand your version of the facts and aren't inclined to pursue this. You may need to hire a lawyer, if they do.
 
#18 ·
if you get your dog home
Never leave your dog to play with other people's kids.
ever
because of these type things here
whether or not the dog used his mouth you cannot even say at this point

get the rabies vaccine record and go get your dog before he is put to sleep!
 
#19 ·
I know folks are giving your dire warnings but (1) depending on the law, many states do euthanize or hold for 6 months, if there are no innoculation records and (2) this may be the first strike on your dog being labeled as dangerous, the 2nd strike=death.
I would sure make sure this does not go in your dog's "permanent record", and it could also impact your insurability etc. It is very important to clear it all up now.
 
#20 ·
One of my own dogs bit me on the hand while I was breaking up a spat between two dogs. I needed to have x-rays, stitches, and antibiotics and because it was a bite, the hospital reported it to the county. Animal Control came to my house, but since my dogs had current rabies certificates and current county dog licenses, I was asked to keep my dog at home for 10 days. They checked back after 10 days to make sure me and the dog were not dead of rabies and that was that. If I hadn't had the rabies certificate, I think they would have taken my dog away and either quarantined him at the shelter (probably in this case, since he bit me his owner during a dog fight, he didn't bite a kid or attack anyone), or put the dog down (likely if he had bit a stranger). You MUST be able to show the dog is up to date on the rabies vaccination, and if he is not, consider it a lesson learned for the future. That is the one thing you can't mess around with because they will seize and possibly euthanize the dog.
 
#22 ·
While you are at county, ask them what costs you will be responsible for due them picking up and boarding your dog. If you are allowed to bring him home, they won't release him without said fees being paid.
 
#23 ·
Kids or even some people who do not have dogs or understand what "play" looks like can easily misunderstand. Dogs can easily knock someone over, accidently scratch them getting a ball, or even accidently bite them trying to get the ball out of the hand - again - not intentional -accident. Then you have someone claiming they were attacked or bitten.

Intentions were good here allowing the dog to play with the group of kids. I would not allow it because this is my fear what happened to the OP.

I feel so bad thinking of this poor boy at the shelter. I hope the OP takes the advice to get the vaccine records NOW and get in contact with the shelter. I would make it very clear - even if I had to call several times a day or show up to talk to the staff that as the dogs owner am doing everything under the sun to prove he's current and am trying to get him out of there.

Good luck - an awful situation to be in.
 
#24 ·
OMG!!! I couldn't even imagine!! I am so sorry this happened to your poor dog! Life is full of surprises. I always keep both my dog vaccine records with my important paper work!!! It is a must to keep great records. Again I am so sorry this happened. Keep us updated on your precious pup. Hope all works out for you and he is home soon.
 
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#26 · (Edited)
AC usually quarantines first and sorts out facts later--the risk of having a rabid dog out in the community while they sort out facts has been deemed by most communities to be too high.

This scenario here is the very real risk of all that titering advice that's so freely dispensed here -- and all the anti-vax advice too. Following that advice could literally get a dog put to sleep and then beheaded in situations like this, if the owner lives in the wrong place. Titers don't "count" legally as an alternative to a rabies vax certificate everywhere (they do some places, but many other places still are "old school" and only count a vax certificate by a veterinary professional as proof--the laws are changing on this very, very slowly) -- you've got to know what the ordinances are in your city/county (usually by checking animal control's website). When I talked to my vet about titering, he warned me that in our community, AC does not acknowledge titering as an alternative, so the dog would likely be seized and euthanized if anyone ever alleged an incident (or even breaking up a dog fight). He couldn't even write a "medically necessary to titer" exemption letter for a senior dog, where we live (and he'd rather titer, especially the old ones). I really wish it were an option for us, but in my community it's just not.
 
#28 ·
I've had multiple dog bites and they have all been home quarantined. Also had to have a vet check up after the 10 days.

Lesson learned to have paperwork ready. Lesson learn to also watch your dog at all times. Letting a dog run loose with strange kids chasing a soccer ball is a disaster waiting to happen. I wouldn't do that in a million years.
 
#30 ·
I would have to assume that as a dog owner ..especially certain breeds, GSDs, pitties, rotts, dobies etc...you are on the wrong side of the equation when it comes to any problems involving animal control or other law agencies.

The general perception of breeds such as these by the general public who care not for dogs or are intimidated by such breeds puts these people in a certain mindset...so the slightest behavior which could be misconstrued as aggressive, will be treated as if your dog is Cujo. We all either know this fact or should wake up and acknowledge this mentality by most of the public.

If "Lassie" nibbled on or licked someone's hand it would be "cute"...if it was a GSD et al..... it would be described as an attack.

SuperG
 
#31 ·
WOW! Ridiculous! So, I would tell you to contact your local bar association and ask for a recommendation for an attorney who specializes in this area. These kinds of cases have become the latest fad in law suits. Especially, with all of the breed shaming and fear monger media coverage of incidents. You also want to ask that attorney what your rights are as a dog owner in your county and make sure that your rights and your dogs rights are protected. Not only is this a lesson to you for trusting that there are more good people than bad, but I would want to send a message to the people accusing your dog of biting the little brat (whom, most people would probably want to kick in the seat) that frivolous lawsuits cost everyone money.

I really hope your pup comes out of this unharmed. I guess it's also a reminder to keep his records in a file where you can easily access them if you need them.

What a little ****head.
 
#33 ·
It all boils down to you are at the complete mercy of the animal control officer(s), they have complete control of the dog's fate and they take it very seriously. I told this story here before about the drunk neighbor that harassed my wife then called me out. me being a hot head I open my gate from my front yard and went out and we threw some blows, unknown to me I left the gate open in the heat of the moment and my GSD took him down with a forearm take down, he called the cops I called the cops, they came and we both wrote up reports.

Then the fun started, 2 animal control officers showed up wanting to know everything, spent a couple of hours with them, my saving grace was I had every scrap of paperwork in my dog in a binder. I had his rabies records, his shots records, his training records and they wanted to see it all. Then the did behavior tests on him to see if he was aggressive or out of control he passed all the tests. The 2 officers the went outside to talk it over that's when I got nervous. They came back they ultimately I was to blame because he was off my property but they concluded he was not vicious and gave him 3 years probation where he had to stay on property if not leashed and finally just left. They checked in a few times but my dog did not do any time.
 
#34 ·
I agree with Magwart. To be fair, it's probably in everyone's best interests to quarantine the animal in a case where you aren't sure (or can't prove) if the dog bit a child or not, and with no proof of vaccines having been provided.

The child has to be protected above all, and while in this case the parents seem like they have over reacted, they also have an obligation to protect their child from harm or disease from an animal bite.

ETA: Is it possible for people to stop bringing the family's race into this? It's totally irrelevant to the subject at hand, and unfair.
 
#35 ·
But GatorBytes - didn't you demand rabies vaccine documentation (not titer testing results) from the owners of the dog that bit you - which I think was an accident.


I think Magwart and Lies make excellent points. I'm scared of the rabies vaccine - hate what I have read and what some dog owners have experienced giving it (awful side effects). But I don't mess around with this one and also keep him up-to-date on his dog license with the county. I give core vaccines then do titer after that but rabies - no way.
 
#39 ·
But GatorBytes - didn't you demand rabies vaccine documentation (not titer testing results) from the owners of the dog that bit you - which I think was an accident.
I had nothing to do with demand for rabies cert. I wanted a titer test done however along with proof of vax. and the dog locked up with animal control at the owners expense hoping the costs would force the owners to surrender so the neighbourhood would be rid of it and I wouldn't be responsible in the eyes of the owners if the dog was destroyed....Instead the onus was on me to force AC to go do their job b/c public health couldn't be bothered b/c he was going on vacation.

This was a dog attack. Not an accident.
BTW - The dog owners never provided a rabies cert....just means they had to get vaccine post bite incident
 
#36 ·
dog bites are typically treated as guilty until proven innocent, no matter who they bite (or didn't bite, if that is the case). the case will be taken up by the county, the family doesn't necessarily need to pursue anything. In fact, the family can pursue in civil court AND the county can pursue in criminal court. All it takes is an accusation, and the burden of proof is on the owner to prove that the dog didn't do it. Time to get a lawyer and start building your defense. Do not wait until the 10 day holding period is over...
Things you can do right now without legal representation:
-Copies of police report
-statements from anyone/everyone involved
-Get a new vet, ask them to get a blood sample and run your own tests


I wish you had taken video/pictures of the kid playing last night after the cops came...

i'm sorry your'e going through this.
 
#40 ·
dog bites are typically treated as guilty until proven innocent ...

I wish you had taken video/pictures of the kid playing last night after the cops came...

Video would be nice to have. Maybe we should adopt the Russian driver strategy which is to film everything while driving. As I understand it, this is a self-protective measure since there has been a rash of people throwing themselves at cars, pretending they are hurt and then suing the driver. Google some of the videos and you can see what I mean.

I'd rather not strap a go-pro to my dog's head for every walk, however.
 
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