Community Chat

[57babe]

I just read an article where the owner stated he called 911, then called the Forest Rangers and the Sheriff's office and all stated that they wouldn't risk human life to rescue a dog.

Question: How can we castigate the dogs owner when the proper authorities were called for help and they refused to rescue the dog?

Sure, I can agree that he shouldn't have taken the dog up there in the first place. But after he made the mistake of doing that and was turned down for help should he have gone over the heads of the Forest Rangers and the Sheriff's Department and actually asked his friends and family to risk their lives to go back up the mountain to rescue the dog?

He had his friends teenage son with him and he's been criticized for not sending the teen down ALONE to get help while he stayed with the dog. Now that, IMO would have been a worse decision and would have put the teen in grave danger.

Other hikers saw the dog and also called the Forest Rangers and Sheriff's office and they told them the same thing -- they don't risk human life to rescue a dog.

I have a real problem with the revelation that the Forest Rangers and the Sheriff's office were called and they refused to help him get his dog off the mountain. They are the appropriate agencies trained for rescue missions and they would not help.

Initially I thought the owner should be charged with animal cruelty for leaving the dog up there, but after reading that he contacted the authorities responsible for rescue and they refused to do anything to help -- I've concluded that the Forest Rangers and the Sheriff's office deserve part of the blame for the dog being up there for 8 days and should have done more to help the owner get his dog off the mountain.

At the very least, I think we need to reserve judgement until we have heard all sides of this story.

Here's the most recent article about his if you wish to read it:

http://www.globalanimal.org/2012/08/20/dog-rescued-after-8-days-on-mountain/80111/