Friday, August 14, 2009

EUTHENASIA DAY - WEDNESDAY, JULY 22, 2009

I woke up not feeling too well because I hardly sleep at all. I got to work and was there a little over an hour when Claudia called me. She said, “We have a reprieve for Buddy until the end of the day.” I was shocked! I said, “How?” She explained that her dad was so upset and disgusted with the decision to euthanize the dog, he had gone to the shelter and talked with Greg Beck about his decision to put the dog down. He told Greg he wanted to file a formal complaint with the County, and then Greg asked him, ‘You really want this dog, huh?” He said, “Sure do.” Greg then said he’d give the dog a reprieve until the end of the day.

Claudia told me she had also called Greg Beck and spoke to him this same morning. She indicated he was very cold and mean to her on the phone. She said she felt this matter had turned into a "vendetta" for him as he now had egg on his face over his staff giving us incorrect information. She also indicated that a lot of people she knew had emailed the department after she told them what had happened. I asked her when a decision would me made, and she said probably not until tomorrow.

After I got off the phone with Claudia, I stopped and said a prayer, thanking God for giving Buddy a reprieve and asking him to provide a way for us to save him.

Claudia promptly drafted an email to Brian Cronin, Greg Beck’s boss, and sent it to him at 9:52 a.m. She explained to him in detail the whole story about the dog, starting with the beginning when we found the dog at the vacant transmission shop. She explained that she had originally contacted Animal Control several times to request they pick up the dog, but after there was no response from their personnel, she turned to the Humane Society to get their assistance in capturing the dog. She explained that due to the triple-digit temperatures, this dog needed to be taken off the streets before he died. She explained that she had been rescuing dogs for thirty years and had never been bitten by a dog. She also said she had been a police officer at one time and there were many times she had to jump over fences and walls into backyards where dogs were, and she was never bitten. She explained that her intent was just to rescue the dog from the street and find him a home, and had she known the outcome was going to be to euthanize the dog, she would have never had the dog taken to the shelter in the first place and would have instead worked with him longer in the field. She basically pled her case to the best of her ability, with compassion and sincerity.

At 9:54, Claudia also sent an email to Steve Singley of County Counsel and advised him briefly of the situation and attached a copy of the email she had sent to Brian Cronin, explaining the situation in detail. She received a response back from Steve at 12:45, indicating he would see what he could do about the situation and he needed to check with Risk Management.

Claudia received an email response from Brian Cronin at 11:32 a.m., acknowledging receipt of her email. Mr. Cronin explained the Shelter’s stance on dogs that show severe aggression towards staff and indicated it’s the Division’s responsibility to have their contract vet render a determination as to the adoptability of the animal. He indicated that “in the case of the animal you have found and obviously bonded with, this is the case. Our state licensed veterinarian has determined the animal you have in interest in is aggressive.” He went onto say that “there is always an exception to the rule” and indicated he "has asked the Program Manager for Animal Care and Control, Greg Beck, to develop a summary of the staff’s findings and will request that County Counsel develop a waiver or release of liability for this pet so we may consider adopting this dog to you. I hope you understand the significant liability the County assumes if we intentionally place an identified vicious or aggressive dog in a home and then someone gets injured.” He then indicated he would ask his assigned County Counsel to review the matter that afternoon and would let us know of his response.

We waited in anticipation all day, with our fingers crossed. In the mean time, we contacted Connie and kept her apprised of the situation. She told us to not give up home until the day was over, that she had a lot of people praying for Buddy. We told her we weren't about to give up hope. Afterall, Buddy wasn't dead yet!

We went and fed Buddy that night and gave him his usual "treats". He ate quite a bit and then we just sat with him a while, petting him through the bars as much as we could. Eventually, it was closing time though, and we had to leave him. We assured Buddy we would do everything we could to get him saved and released.

It was a long, quiet ride home that night, for both of us as we were both pretty lost in our own thoughts. There had to be a way to save this dog. There just had to be. Like I had told her many times over the past couple days, I again told Claudia, "We just have to keep praying." She agreed.

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