"Crushed with guilt": Decision to put down "pandemic puppy" causes heated debate
A journalist has sparked debates online over her decision to euthanise her dog she adopted during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Madeline Bills published a piece on Slate sharing the story of her adoption of Bennie, “a six-year old beagle whose photo melted my heart”, just before Christmas.
“Like many others last year, I was thrilled to adopt a dog,” she wrote.
“The so called pandemic puppy boom made for what felt like stiff competition at the time.”
But, the journalist said the New Jersey animal shelter she adopted Bonnie from likely failed to inform her of the dog’s history of aggressive behaviour.
After six months of behavioural training and “daily dog anxiety meds” seemed to make no difference to Bonnie’s biting, Bilis made the decision to try and rehome the pooch.
“But I soon learned the shelter where Bonnie came from wouldn’t help me. A volunteer explained that Bonnie was too dangerous to adopt out again, and their affiliated sanctuaries - including several beagle-specific rescues - declined to take her,” she wrote. “Another dog rescue organisation in New York City told me that her bite history - seven bites at the time, though that number would grow - was too extensive for her to even qualify for a special rehabilitation program.”
Bilis said both conversations ended with the same conclusion: “behavioural euthanasia”.
“She was adorable - and violent,” Bilis wrote. “I found a resolution many choose but few acknowledge.”
https://twitter.com/madelinebilis/status/1402611855252668417
The article drew praise from some readers for addressing a difficult topic, which described how Bonnie was involved in several biting incidents.
“Last Christmas morning, I patted my bed, invitingly my newly adopted beagle, Bonnie, to jump and cuddle,” she began in the piece.
“My boyfriend, still under the covers, reached out to pet her soft little head, which was now wedged between us. I turned away to grab my phone, and it happened: a guttural bark, followed by a human scream. I whipped around to see my boyfriend’s hand covered in blood. It was Bonnie’s second bite in the week since I’d adopted her.”
Bilis recounted another incident where Bonnie bit a man walking past them on the footpath, though she was surprised “the man brushed off the incident”.
As the number of incidents continued to grow, Bilis said her “desire to stop living with a dangerous animal” grew too.
“As the weeks went by and no new options appeared, I realised I had a choice: I could send her off with a stranger one day - someone she would certainly injure, and who would perhaps end up euthanising her anyway - or I could allow her to leave this terrifying world peacefully with someone she loves.”
She stressed the choice to pursue behavioural euthanasia was “not a decision made out of convenience”.
“Crushed with guilt, I wondered if there was more I could have done to help my sweet beagle,” she said.
Unsurprisingly, the article drew criticism online, with other owners of adopted dogs claiming the decision was motivated by inconvenience.
One user said that in her “30-year-plus career as a veterinarian who works on dogs with anxieties and behavioural issues, I’ve only had to euthanise two dogs for child safety reason.”
Many also defended Bilis, agreeing she had no choice in the matter.
“A lot of people angry about this article but obviously the correct thing to do with a violent and dangerous domesticated animal is put it down,” wrote Daily Wire host Matt Walsh.