Recently, I wrote about Lilly getting herself stuck inside a trash bag and later cereal bag. I found it very upsetting, but some people I know played down the danger as if Lilly could have gotten herself unstuck, if I hadn’t found her. As this sad example shows, that’s not necessarily the case. The following cautionary tale comes out of another online agility community. It came with permission to cross-post, so here it is:
I need to share some sad news and a warning with
the agility community. Some folks in the
area know Steve Sanders and his wife Sue. Steve has been competing for a while with his Aussie Lucy. His wife Sue regularly came to watch class and brought along their adorable blue merle Aussie puppy Mattie.
The months passed and Mattie was old enough to start classes. They were doing beautifully. Steve and Mattie were stars in their class and showed so much promise. I was really looking forward to see where they’d be in another year or two. Steve retired his older dog Lucy so he could focus on Mattie, who experienced so much joy doing agility. Mattie was a cheerful girl with a sweet personality and wiggly Aussie butt.
Last Thursday, I learned the tragic news. They turned the dogs out into their backyard to potty while getting ready for work. In the yard there is a set of agility equipment. After some time, Sue went to bring the dogs in the house, but Mattie was gone. With help from neighbors, they scoured the area, but couldn’t find her. When they got back to the house, they noticed that the agility chute in the backyard looked funny. The fabric had been bunched up in the barrel. It was typical chute fabric, not a tarp.
Sue found Mattie’s body tangled up in the chute. She had gotten twisted tightly in the fabric and suffocated. They tried to do CPR, but it was too late.
Steve and Sue are devastated by the loss. They asked me to share their story so that another dog doesn’t suffer the same fate. Please, tell your friends and students to always supervise their dogs around the chute or put it away when not in use. I have never heard of anything like this before and hopefully never again. I still can’t believe Mattie is gone. There will be a big hole in class tomorrow night.
Hugs your pups tonight and be grateful for every moment you have with them.
It’s so sad. I’m so grateful that my mistakes weren’t the cautionary tale kind. My dogs are usually crated when I’m gone, but we’ve been experimenting with leaving them loose in the house … so far, so good.
It happened to a friend’s dog several years ago. They left their dog in the garage most of the time and the garage had lots of stuff in it. I don’t remember what kind of container it was that the poor thing got his head trapped in.
Stories like this are why I never leave my dogs alone unless they’re in their crates with their collars off.