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18 thoughts on “2015 Dog Bite Fatality: Newly Adopted Rottweiler Kills Owner in Madison County, Tennessee

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  1. Oh, lookie! It's a RESCUE! And we all know that RESCUE dogs are the most wonderful dogs on earth! How do we know this? Because their fur mommies and daddies keep telling us so!

    (Sarcasm off.)

  2. Yet another reason why I'd never buy a dog from a shelter. Not only to they lie to their customers about the aggressiveness about their dogs, but they also send off dogs to the most unfitting people. Who in the hell lets a 57 year old man take home Rottweiler?

    I hope we get some details on whatever shelter sold this man this monster. I can't imagine a 57 year old man going to a shelter with the intention of getting a Rottweiler over safer, more manageable breeds.

  3. I'm more afraid of Rottweilers. I was taking a walk yesterday and a man with two leashed Rottweiler were walking towards me. I felt so scared. I passed with a hello and afterwards turned around and saw the dogs sniffing where I had just walked. These are not pets in my mind. They are German military service members. May the victim in this new attack rest in peace.

  4. I hope that this shelter gets sued into the ground.

    Breed-Specific Litigation. That's the BSL that will change things in a hurry.

  5. A relative left a comment yesterday at the WBBJ post:
    ——–
    Adrienne Davis Riggs Please all, I am a dog lover and animal lover but speculating what coulda, shoulda, mighta happened to the dog prior to yesterday really doesn't matter anymore. The pound said it was a stray so we will NEVER know. What IS important, is that a gentle man, a loving father, and good person is DEAD. Getting that phone call last night from my hysterical son on the verge of collapse is not something I want to go through ever again. The dog not only killed Tony, but it attacked my son's step-mother and a neighbor. The police had to shoot it because it was threatening and preventing anyone from entering the house. Forgive me but I don't care about the dog anymore!! I DO care about my son who is grieving so deeply that he cannot eat or sleep and with his health issues, could end up in the hospital. I care about the pain in my son's eyes and the hopelessness in his face right now as he faces the rest of his life without the most important man in his life. I care about the loss of a man I loved and friend I will miss. My priorities lie with my son and mourning the loss of a good human being. My son is reading every comment people make about his father. Please don't add to his grief and pain.

    https://www.facebook.com/WBBJ7/posts/10153835730424742

  6. I work in rescue, and I believe that not EVERY dog needs to be rescued. Some dogs simply need to be euthanized. Period.

  7. I pray that your son can get through this time. It is devastating to lose a parent to the unexpected and suddenly. Prayers

  8. Plan A: dog gets adopted. Dog kills a man and wounds 2 others. Dog creates a wake of disaster and devastates a family and ends up getting shot and killed as a result.
    Plan B: since we have no idea this dog's history let's humanely euthanize.
    Is it ever worth taking a chance on plan A? To save 1, countless others may die.

  9. If I read the sale requirements from the pound they offered a small refund on the dogs purchase after proof of neutering. I had no idea any county/city pound let anything out without strilization, and certainly not a powerful tyou of dog. They have since pulled down the dogs listing on facebook so I can not go back and look.

  10. 111 lbs??? And not an once of fat on him! Intact huge adult male, a naturally aggressive breed, unknown history, absolutely irresponsible to release him.

    No obvious scars on the dog, so probably not used in fighting, but definitely looks like it has had some physical training. I would guess a "protection" dog for a business that became too much to handle so they dumped him.

  11. Thank you for the updates Colleen. It's great we can have someone to provide us with details since the shelter itself will not.

    I hope this shelter gets its butt sued off. Selling an un-neutered aggressive breed, to a man nearly 60 (or possibly 70 since there are conflicting stories), and then not saying anything after the man is KILLED by the monster on the same day he bought it; and even going to the point of taking the thing's picture off Facebook. That's the pinnacle of IRRESPONSIBILITY and ENDANGERMENT. How people still have the mindset "all breeders bad, all shelters good" I'll never understand.

  12. The dog was only in the shelter for 5 DAYS?! When a dog is quarantined for rabies after biting someone the standard is 10. I thought all states went by the 10 day quarantine.

  13. But Dayna, you don't understand. This dog is a RESCUE! And RESCUE! dogs must be adopted out! ASAP, in fact!

    Sarcasm off.

    And I hope that this man's widow sues the HELL out of this shelter.

    Which leads me to another point: I favor BSL. But it's not the BSL that is often discussed here. Face it, *legislation* can take years to get enacted.

    But Breed-Specific Litigation? Oh, man. It will change things in a hurry.

    Money talks. And you-know-what walks.

  14. Doesn't animal control have to hold an animal for TEN days just to be sure it doesn't have rabies? This entire incident seems incredibly negligent on AC's part.

  15. Was the dogs brain tissue tested for rabies after they killed him? All dogs with unknown history have to be quarantined for at least 10 days before being put up for adoption (since there's no rabies test for live animals) they monitor for clinical signs of the disease. Most shelters test for food agression (placing a stick in thr dogs bowl as he is eating) and other common aggression triggers. Did none of this happen? On a ONE HUNDRED AND ELEVEN POUND rottweiler with zero history. If so, theit policy needs to change or they need to be shut down. I've never worked in a shelter that didn't do these standard simple things to protect future adopters and the dogs from homes with potential triggers (kids, other dogs, cats). Makes me sick and I really would like to know if this dog was rabid and not quarentined long enough. Sounds like no one was looking for signs anyway and that's terrifying.

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