Owners Agree to Euthanize Dog that Killed Miniature Horse

The owners of a dog that allegedly attacked and killed a miniature horse over the weekend have agreed to euthanize the animal, the Edgartown animal control officer told the town selectmen Monday.

The owners of a dog that allegedly attacked and killed a miniature horse over the weekend have agreed to euthanize the animal, the Edgartown animal control officer told the town selectmen Monday.

Animal control officer Barbara Prada said Adam Mahoney visited Mugsy, a three-year-old neutered American Staffordshire-bulldog cross who is on 10-day quarantine at the pound Monday afternoon and “agreed they had to do the right thing and put Mugsy down,” she said.

When the state-mandated 10-day quarantine is up next Monday, Ms. Prada said, the dog will be put down. She said the owners will make arrangements with a veterinarian, and the dog will be brought to them for euthanizing.

The selectmen said they wanted to be sure the dog remained in quarantine or under the town’s control, and they voted 3-0 that the dog was dangerous and should not be released unless to the owner for euthanasia.

Magik, a miniature horse owned by Ellen Harley, was attacked and killed at the Harley farm of Meetinghouse Way sometime Saturday afternoon. Another miniature horse, Chance, was injured and is recovering.

A woman who had been feeding and caring for the horses found a gruesome scene in the paddock when she came to check on the animals; Ms. Prada said the animal that killed the horse cleared a four-foot split-rail fence that was lined with sheep fencing and was intact. She said there was no evidence that the horses had been chased or dragged down. Two other full-sized horses nearby were unharmed, she said.

“There were no bite marks on the horse [that was killed], the dog went right for the jugular, telling me the dog had done something like this before. It has to be a good-sized dog, or possibly dogs,” Ms. Prada said early Sunday when town authorities were still looking for the dog. She said the horse that was killed had most of its face ripped off. The injured horse had puncture wounds, was treated on the scene by its owner and remain in the paddock at the farm.

There were no known witnesses to the incident.

On Sunday, police received a tip about the identify of the dog that had attacked the horses, Ms. Prada said. Two dogs belonging to the Mahoneys, who live in Island Grove near the farm, “came home filthy and they had to give them a bath,” Ms. Prada said.

“I sort of thought of Mugsy at the time, but without proof didn’t want to go and accuse people,” Ms. Prada told the selectmen, noting that the dog had bitten a calf a year and a half ago.

The owners admitted that Mugsy came home with blood on him, Ms. Prada said. She added that she didn’t believe the second dog, a four-year-old neutered pointer cross, was involved. He is also on quarantine, though at the home of his owners.

 

Comments

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 05/13/2013 - 18:24

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Ann Massachusetts

Wow. A dog comes home with blood on him and the owner bathes it. Owner should have investigated if the dog hurt another animal or person.
Best plan for a vicious dog.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 05/13/2013 - 19:49

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Jocelyn OB

My thoughts can't help but go to the fear and pain that poor little horse experienced. So sweet and unable to protect itself, I cried reading the breaking story. To those who lost their little pet, my sympathies.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 05/13/2013 - 20:07

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Martin Bayerle Formerly OB

The dog was just being a dog. Surely removal from the Island and an adoption off-Island is a better choice - sine the error was the owners ...

Molly VH

If the dog was just being a dog (which I agree with) then removal from the island would not change the dogs inherent behavior and the owners would not have had as much responsibility.

Brenda Grant

"A dog just being a dog?" Domestic dogs do not grip onto and rip off noses of livestock. Pitbull type dogs do. If this was normal, farms would not keep dogs. Don't move this violent dog elsewhere to make another victim. It is always the owner AND the dog. This woman chose a dog both bred for this and was also aware of a prior attack on a calf, and yet still did not care enough to contain it. Add to this, she washed the blood off the dog, and didn't care enough to even go investigate what it killed. And as for the dog..the owner did not make it do this, genetics did.

Doc

Completely agree. What happens if “re-homing” fails? The cost of failing could be an attack on a child.
I have owned big dogs my entire life. If the child’s story is true, this is one dog that needs to go heaven.

Carol once Chilmark

I agree - the dog should be re-homed. There aren't cows or mini horses in the suburbs or cities - the dog would live out its life, very likely, as a well loved family dog. Killing it is barbaric, spiteful and unnecessary.

I am very sad for the family that lost the miniature horse. However - welcome to the world of predation (including humans). The dog was assuredly just doing what dogs do, when they are unlucky enough to be owned by careless, stupid humans that do not help them navigate life in a human world. Shame on Tisbury for killing this dog.

Louise Boston

Re-home the dog in the suburbs? Welcome to the world of predation?? I grew up in the suburbs. When I was in second grade I went outside to feed my rabbit who lived in a sturdy hutch about 3 feet above the ground. The rabbit wasn't inside, so I went to get my mother. I won't ever forget the look on her face when she first saw the hutch, which I finally figured out had the wire ripped off. She tried to get me inside the house but not before I looked down the garden path and saw the dismembered remains of my pet. A very kind animal control officer told us the culprit was a dog and they would try to find it so it wouldn't hurt anyone else's pet. They never found the dog, but we did learn that another rabbit in the neighborhood was killed a couple weeks later. It is too bad that Mugsy must be put down, but that's the only way to make sure no other pets are put in danger. Even the most careful owner can't guarantee that the dog won't bolt or be let out of the house or yard by accident.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 05/14/2013 - 12:55

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islanddogs edgartown

The dog is apparently problematic with other animals...it's animal agressive. There are no reports of it being dangerous to humans.

Putting this dog down should be a last resort. Re-home with someone who can handle the dog and get it training with a specialist. (Doesn't anyone watch all the animal shows on tv?)

I'm not naive to think that euthinasia might be inevitable, but at least give the dog a chance...new home, new training, it might just work.

Of course I feel horrible about the damage/death/destrution the dog caused but I'm opposed to euthanasia...use it only as an absolute last resort.

Brenda Grant

I would say that ripping a horses nose off and killing it is a bit more than "problematic" When a dog is this violent, there is no possible way to predict if it will use discretion in what it will attack. This breed often attacks other dogs and people. No trainers or specialists or doggy therapists can train away this dogs genetics, reality tv is not reality. The owner made the right choice.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 05/14/2013 - 18:54

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Charlie CT

This is the unfortunate part for the Staffordshire. Having worked with several rescues over the years, the challenge is that if a dog has had a truly traumatic past that is not evident upon re-assignment to a foster or forever home, bad things can happen. Sadly, multiple incidents over the years have led me to believe that there have to be very strict extra precautions put in place before this breeds and its mixes can be placed. I've known some truly amazing Staffordshires, but sadly, those in the bunch that have been previously mistreated or mis-handled have an alarming rate of incidents down the road.

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