Attempted doggycide in Surrey, British Columbia

Matrix

It has been pointed out to me how my doggycide posts seem to focus almost exclusively on such events in the United States, so here’s a reminder that trigger-happy police incompetence with regards to household pets is endemic to all nations, including America’s toque:

According to [Alma] Brown, the incident took place just after noon Saturday. RCMP officers, who were attending to a domestic dispute call several doors down, were canvassing residents in Brown’s neighbourhood.

“Matrix was 15 feet in front of the doorway,” Brown said, noting the front door was open on the hot summer day and her three-and-a-half-year-old Terrier-Boxer cross was inside chewing on a rubber toy.

[…]

Brown said Matrix then sat up suddenly with his tail wagging, the way her dog usually greets visitors who approach the door.

“Next thing I know, there’s a blood-curdling scream and footsteps running away from the door,” Brown said, describing how she ran outside to see a female RCMP officer and Matrix on the other side of her truck parked in front of the home.

“I looked over the box of the truck and I heard the gunshot. My knees buckled from under me,” Brown recalled. “I ran around the truck and there’s my dog convulsing on the ground.”

The bullet entered Matrix’s left jaw and was lodged in his right shoulder. RCMP officers then helped load Matrix into a police cruiser and rushed the dog to a nearby animal hospital.

Thankfully, Matrix is one of the rare lucky ones (relatively speaking) who survived and is presently recovering. Unfortunately, while a supervisor originally promised that the dog’s vet bills would be covered, the RCMP has since decided that Matrix was being “very aggressive and growling” during the incident, thus justifying the shooting and placing the full charge on the owner, who’s had to sell her truck to try and pay the nearly $10,000 in medical costs.

Even more depressing is how several commenters over at the article immediately jump to the conclusion that the police shouldn’t have to pay the bills because it’s the owner’s fault for not keeping her “pitbull” – who, as the report clearly states, doesn’t actually have a drop of pitbull blood in him – chained up in her backyard or something. Because it’s never the fault of animal-slaughtering cops with these people – it has to be the dog (or the stupid irresponsible owner), of course.

(via Rob F – my first-ever doggycide post not courtesy of Radley Balko. What a day this is.)

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Doggycide Bingo Index

Confirmed hits:

Injured Matrix

Officer shot first

Matrix was reportedly being playful

Shooter unpunished (shooting “justified”)

Investigation whitewashed (shooting “justified”)

RCMP claims Matrix attacked; Brown disagrees

RCMP excuses shooting by saying Matrix was “aggressive”

Brown stuck with nearly-$10,000 vet bill

Total: 8/25
No bingo.

Tags: Matrix the dog • Alma Brown • RCMP • Steve Wade