Poor Jack

[Rick Potter]

We had a Jack Russell terrier that wandered into our driveway about six years ago. Couldn't find an owner, probably dumped, so we kept him as a pal for our aging black lab, now 15 1/2.

Last night, 1:30 AM, I heard what sounded like a rabbit that had been caught by a predator, like maybe Jack. It went on for a while, stopped, then again. I went out and looked around the yard for a dead rabbit, and found nothing. Couldn't find Jack either, until he finally appeared at my side, all torn up with deep lacerations, trachea damage and lots of puncture wounds. I took him inside and cleaned the wounds, which needed stitches.

Woke up the wife, and we took him to an all night animal hospital. They said it would be about $1,000 for the initial treatment, then ongoing treatments, and they had to run a multitude of tests for internal damage, as well as his throat. Then, the results were questionable, not promising. We had them put the poor pup down.

My first thought was that it was an owl, because of one really deep, clean cut, like from claws, then we discovered the other damage. It could have been a raccoon, but we suspect it was probably a coyote, although we don't know why he wasn't carried off.

Molly, who is getting blind, and deaf, is sorta lost today. She slept through the whole incident. For the last year she has let Jack lead, and just followed him around.

Rick Potter

[Gordon Eyre]

Sad story, sorry for your loss. Dogs are freak pets.

[Mike Chance in Iowa]

I'm sorry for you, your wife and Molly's loss. It's never easy to witness an animal in distress and injured and not be able to ease their pain. I have seen raccoons do some vicious damage as well as coyotes. I have friends who have had their small dogs injured by coyotes similar to what you describe Jack went thru. I have also had friends who had their large dogs lured into the fields & woods by a single coyote, only to be attacked by a pack of coyotes. I have witnessed the aftermath of both raccoons and coyotes and sometimes, they kill just for sport.

[Phil Thien]

What a terrible way to go (the attack, not being put to sleep).

I've only had to deal with an emergency animal hospital once, but they did a great job communicating to me that it didn't look good for my older lab, and did not encourage me spending a lot of money and prolonging the dog's discomfort.

[Jim Koepke]

Sorry for your loss.

My love for many companions has resulted in similar feelings of grief. But never enough to stop me from befriending another.

jtk

[Shawn Pixley]

I am so sorry. It is terrible when you need to put a friend down. I'll wager it was a coyote or a mountain lion. Coyotes kill many small animals around here. Outdoor cats with bells are especially targeted. I feel bad for your other dog as well. Animals grieve as well.

[Rod Sheridan]

Dear Rick, please accept my condolences on the loss of you cannine companion, I'm sure he'll be greatly missed...........Rod.

[Lori Kleinberg]

Sorry for your loss. I totally understand how hard it can be. I have 2 small dogs (together they weigh about 10lbs.), they are never outside
in our yard by themselves. We have a 6 ft block wall around our yard, but that is not enough to keep the owls, coyotes, bobcats etc. out of
the yard.

[Fred Perreault]

Rick, my wife Kathy and I are very sorry for your loss. We hope that your sad experience does not keep you from finding another companion to love and share your life with.

[Jim Stewart]

Very sorry for your loss. My dog is my best friend these days.

[Rick Potter]

I appreciate the condolences, thank you.

Last nite I heard a cat wail, and got up and put Molly, our 15 1/2 year old black lab, in the garage. Just in case the coyote came back to look around again. Molly is lonesome, and since she is so old, we have decided to look for a large dog, probably lab, to be her companion and eventually replace her. She can still train it to stay in the yard etc. Later, will get another medium size dog, as we like to have two for companionship.

I cannot remember not having a dog,

Rick Potter

[Paul McGaha]

I'm very sorry Rick. A good dog does truly become part of the family. Other animals too I'm sure.

Good of you to look out for Molly and try to find her a companion.

PHM

[Jim Matthews]

He got six great years with you.

Pretty good for the Jack Russel.
If his mortal wounds were that bad, I hate to think what he did to the coyote.

God rest his soul, sounds like he was a great dog.

[Rick Potter]

My wife and daughter took me to three shelters today. Found out two facts. 1. Labs are hard to find, usually adopted in a couple days. 2. Pitt mixes abound and are very hard to place...sad.

Then my daughter looked on the net for rescue dogs. She fell in love with every one of them. I told them to relax a little, the right one will show up soon. I have narrowed down my perfect dog. Lab or Lab mix, at least 60#, female, about two years old, likes people of all sizes, very protective, hates coyotes, and most importantly....has not had all the spirit beaten out of her like so many we saw today.

They will probably surprise me with a Beagle.

Rick Potter

[Peter Stahl]

Sorry for your loss Rick. Do you leave your dogs out at night or do you have a doggie door, just curious?

[Larry Klaaren]

I am a veterinarian. The main point I want to make her, is that people should have a pre-plan for night emergencies. If your vet doesn't see them, know which clinics have a good reputation and what their typical charges are. There is a huge difference in how well emergency clinics are stocked, and how well the veterinarians are trained. Your regular veterinarian will probably be pretty willing to give you his or her view. In our area, the fee just to admit the pet and for the exam ranges from $150 to $500. If you just drive up without an idea, you may see more fee than you care for. Just a thought.

I see a lot of trachea wounds in these night attacks. It could have been a coyote, but I have never been able to rule out a raccoon. Coyotes generally attack and carry away. Racoons are usually fighting to defend themselves, or else they are rabid, but in either case, they usually don't carry away. Raccoons really put up a vicious fight, but if the other animal runs away, that's usually the end of the fight.

I always advise people to give it a little time, and then decide what they want to do.

Larry

[Larry Klaaren]

One more thing. Some Emergency Clinics close during the day and all the pets have to be taken to a regular vet, which means a transger every twelve hours until the pet is recovered. Others are able to keep animals on IV or oxygen etc. without a transfer. Just another reason to make a plan before you are in an emergency.

Obviously in the first line of the previous post, I meant to use the word "here" rather than "her".

[Rick Potter]

Peter,
They are outside dogs. Here in SoCal, it's not as cold as elsewhere. I let Molly in on the enclosed patio last night, and she really wanted to be back outside, but I am being careful for a few nights in case the coyote comes back.

Larry,
Great advice. In our case, we have a 24 hour vet clinic about three miles away. They were very helpful, but not too hopeful on the prognosis, so we had Jack put to sleep. I wondered about the raccoon also, but I guess we will never know. Molly, the 15 1/2 year old lab slept through the whole thing.

If I may ask, what do you think off animal health insurance?

Rick P

[Larry Klaaren]

If I may ask, what do you think off animal health insurance?

Rick P

I don't deal with the money side that much. I know there are a couple of companies that the bookkeepers and receptionists do not care to work with. I do know that some do not reimburse all costs, just ones they deem necessary and then only a set price per procedure. Some of our clients are really satisfied, but it depends on the company. If you have a relationship with a vet, ask there. Typical costs vary around the country, and some insurance plans may be better suited for your pet and the way the clinic operates. As far as I know, you always pay up front and they reimburse you, not the veterinarian. From mu my perspective, they cause a lot of extra work and time, because I have to do my record keeping, then fill out a separate record to send to the insurance company. They more than double my charting time. But for the client it can be really good deal. Just start before you have a pre-existing condition.

Sorry I took so long to answer. Our computer crashed and I spent a lot of time transferring files from that hard drive to backup thumb drives, and all of that.

Larry

[Wayne Lovell]

I hope you can find comfort in the fact that you gave him a number of good years he would not have had without you.

[Shawn Pixley]

Peter,
They are outside dogs. Here in SoCal, it's not as cold as elsewhere. I let Molly in on the enclosed patio last night, and she really wanted to be back outside, but I am being careful for a few nights in case the coyote comes back.

Rick P

Rick,

Again I sorry for your loss. I think that you are wise to be cautious with the coyotes. When we lived in Ojai, we'd hear and observe the coyotes around the neighborhood. They are creatures of habit. The tried looking in our yard once. The caught sight of our 105 lb all muscle lab and looked for easier prey. You may want to consider a friend's big dog to deter them from seeing your place as a drive through.

[Jim O'Dell]

It always hurts to lose a pet. We lost our second Irish on the operating table due to a theft from our back yard during her third surgery, and almost our first one during the same theft. The one we lost was only 9 months old and was a surprise Christmas gift from me to my wife. Since that episode, our dogs are basically inside dogs. They sleep in our room and often in our bed, just so we know where they are. Not everyone can do that, but it is a priority for us now. I haven't seen any coyotes here, but we have raccoon, turkey and deer, and the backyards across the street backs up to ranch land, so I'm sure coyotes are around. Jim.