By falconjade - 06/12/2013 17:28 - Canada - Bowmanville

Today, my friend's dog got hit by a car. I was the only one not in shock, and had to drag the poor thing off the road, then comfort a hysterical friend while the driver verbally abused us and demanded we pay for the repairs to his car. FML
I agree, your life sucks 46 952
You deserved it 2 878

falconjade tells us more.

OP here! The dog got out when the old man who rents out a room in my friends house - though he'd been repeatedly warned not to - let the dog out. The dogs not very well-trained and does not come when you call him, which is why we keep him inside except for when he goes on walks, on a leash. We had all been getting ready for our schools semi formal so we ran out into the cold in bare feet and dresses while we tried to make sure the dog didn't run away. He was running back towards our friends house when the car hit him. My friend lives beside a public school so the dog was hit in a school crossing zone, so there was no reason for the driver to be going fast enough to not be able to hit the brakes in time, but evidently he was. Fortunately the dog is a massive German Shepard. When he got hit, there was a terrifying bang followed by horrid whimpering. We all thought he was going to die. I'm trained in first aid and checked for injuries on the dogs body, and he seemed fine, except for a scrape on his eyebrow, so I took him back to the house. The bumper of the car was knocked clean off and it seems the dog has a concussion but he will live, but the driver keeps showing up to my friends house, who can't afford a vet bill, let alone the repairs cost.

Top comments

CamdenMarie 6

Did you direct him to a separate area in which he could go **** off?

I think that if he keeps demanding, then your friend should call the cops. He's the one who was driving so fast, and so not only can he be charged for speeding, and harassment, but also be forced by the court to pay for the dog's bills. As they say, the pedestrian always has the right of way, even if it's a dog!

Comments

Kuro_Kamen 12

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I seriously doubt the owner let there dog get run over when it was on a leash

#1, it's a legit question. You're not showing the sympathy, but still. I took my sisters dog to the vet (it was fine, just a routine check up) and saw half a dozen bin bags being loaded inside. Curious I asked what they were, those were the dogs they put down which were run over.

It's very harsh to ask that, but it is a legit question. In a lot of places around where I live, if the dog is not on a leash, the driver could actually make a claim against the dog owner for damage.

alex_the_tiger 14

Dogs should always be on a leash outside of your home unless it's inside on a fence, not to keep it from running away but for its safety

"Gonna be dragging you off the road in a minute if you don't shut the hell up about money".

If not a literal fence at least get an invisible fence. I can let my dog out even without his shock collar, and unless I tell him it's okay to cross the line he'll stay in the yard.

#78, if you use shock collars you shouldn't own a dog. Learn how to train it properly instead.

nursejohio 8

An invisible fence *is* proper training, as are remote collars when used properly. Some dogs have behavioral or drive issues that can't be corrected with obedience classes, or doggie behaviorists or medications.

114- Just to be clear, sometimes shock collars are very necessary. I have a German Shepherd that will climb over a 6 foot tall fence. She always comes back, but while she's out other dog owners tend to freak out a bit. She is a very gentle dog and is very well trained otherwise. She has an acre of land for herself, food, water, shelter, and more toys and treats than she needs. Don't tell me I shouldn't own a dog, I love her to pieces.

Shock collars are illegal here and thanks god for that. It takes much more time to train a dog without those ridiculous things, but in the end the dog will obey because it wants to, not because it's afraid. I could probably have taught my dog some stuff in a day with the use of a shock collar, but then he wouldn't have done those things out of love for me, but because he was afraid of what I might do if he didn't obey. How is that right in any way? Instead it took weeks/months to teach him those things, and it's worth it if you have any respect for your dog.

It's possible that the dog escaped from the house/yard and ran into the road before they could catch it.

Plot Twist / Actual Truth: Your dog doesn't do it because it "loves you", it does it because it relates doing a certain action to getting something tasty.

Karcasm 7

As someone above said; it's entirely possible the dog escaped the yard, or the owner accidentally let the leash fall while out for a walk and the dog ran for it.

#78 , shock collars are terrible, if we put a shock collar on every person who needed to learn something I'm sure they'd be outlawed real quick

******* monster. How would you like it if your parents put a shock collar around your neck and used it as a means to discipline you whenever you misbehaved?

I'm so sorry... That's terrible. I'm sorry for your friends loss :(

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Is it irony that the one putting down '27inch's' comment's name is 'IknowIwantyou'?

Has no one considered that perhaps the owner of the dog had dropped the leash on accident and the dog momentarily got away?

dog dying stories always make me cry no matter what

That's so horrible. Poor dog. I'm so sorry for your friend.

83- if theyre in a neighborhood, the driver shouldnt be going fast enough to have to slam on his breaks and spin out.

83- Too bad he didn't run over you, you heartless douchebag.

Yes 83, the dog should be on a leash in most cases. Bit dogs do get loose. And mistakes do happen. In residential areas, you shouldn't be driving fast enough to damage your car if you do hit a dog anyway. In more rural areas, many don't have leash laws and it isn't common for some people to let their dogs run if they have a lot of property and the dog is usually good for staying out of the road. While personally, Sid stays on a leash when out unless if in the backyard or dog park, I understand some areas think differently because the laws are different.

CamdenMarie 6

Did you direct him to a separate area in which he could go **** off?

fucMyLifeSoHard 18

" Sir, I'm going to have you step over to this designated area where you can kindly **** OFF!"

You know in some places if there was no leash the dog owner is responsible for all damages to said person/vehicle.

Not gonna lie, if that had been my dog and a driver acted like that his car would have a lot of face sized dents.

It's a shitty situation, but unfortunately it IS the responsibility of the homeowner for a dog in the road. It should be covered under homeowners insurance, however. (If memory serves.)

I don't get why this has so many thumbs down. I guess it could just be because it's not OP's dog, so it isn't their responsibility. But 5 has a point, it is the responsibility of the pet owner to make sure their dog is on a leash. It's a ******* terrible situation, and it doesn't deserve to happen to anyone, but laws are laws. That guy didn't have to be such an asshole, but he was legally in the right, although morally very, very wrong. I feel for you though OP, because you have nothing to do with it.

ninjuh_wingman 29

You don't know that the dog wasn't on a leash. It just says that the dog was hit by the car.

It really doesn't matter if the dog was on a leash or not :/ Legally, the only way the driver is in the wrong is if he drove up onto the sidewalk to hit the dog. Morally, as is pointed out elsewhere, is another story. I remember a similar case I had to work where the driver was on a country road, and you can imagine how that went.

ninjuh_wingman 29

If they were walking at a legal crosswalk and the driver hit them then legally the driver is responsible because pedestrians always right of way. Maybe an exception would be if they jumped right in front of the car at the last minute so he didn't have time to stop.

Not for nothing, but you're grasping at a lot of straws. I know you want to believe the animal/owner are perfectly innocent, because it's shitty to have to acknowledge that just because a person is an asshole doesn't mean they're necessarily wrong (legally, as I specified before). Without the OP responding, there's no way to know for certain the specifics of the situation, but it seems the probability is that the owner/pet were legally in the wrong. It sucks, but it's not useful to pretend otherwise to force a situation to fit your world view.

Brightbulb 39

My moms dog managed to pull out of his harness when he was 6 months old, the driver thankfully only broke his hips and he lived. The driver was very nice and worried for our puppy, but at the time if a problem had arose the law would gave been neutral as all parties showed "reasonable responsibility to obedience of the law".

I'm glad for that, and while I've no doubt there are subtle variations state by state and nation by nation, that seems a reasonable way to go about it. Unfortunately, your case, and cases like it, are an outlier in my experience. Freak accidents happen, but more often than not the situation is a result of something easily preventable.

ninjuh_wingman 29

You're skewing the meaning of what I said. All I did was point out another situation where the driver would legally be at fault because you said there was only one way. And you're right, I don't know exactly what happened so I can't say for sure who's at fault. But don't say that I'm forcing a situation to fit my view when I'm simply making an assumption on I think is at fault based on my experience just like you are.

I think the thing that makes people angry at the driver is the fact instead of apologizing or offering sympathy to the obvious upset owners, he started screaming over them paying for damages. If a child got hit(just an example) you'd expect them to offer sympathies, right? Everyone seems to focus on the legal part.. Also the dog could have run out of the house when the door was opened, it happens all the time.

He probably loves his car more than anything

And therefore he is a terrible human being.

Is it me or is an animal dying sadder then a person now?

In many cases this is true. Animals are innocent and pure of heart and soul. Most people are not. I would never say that anyone deserves to die( with the exception of child rapists and child murderers, they deserves a slow, painful death).

Brightbulb 39

Even that would be overly polite. Couldn't we infect them with a flesh eating bacteria and not offer them a cure?

Hey, it'll only be considered "cruel and unusual punishment" the first few times they did it. ;)

I think it's EQUALLY sad when animals OR people die!

Am I the one who is super disgusted that people would rather a human being die than an animal? Unless you are all vegan you are a load of hypocrites. Of course it is sad that an animal died, but a human life is worth more than animal life. Stuff like this worries me...

SuperMew 22

Not always. Sometimes animals mean more to people because humans hurt them in the past. My Uncle had a seeing eye dog that worked with him for ten years before he died of heart disease (the dog, not my uncle.) Trevor was buried and mourned like another member of the family. He always got presents on Christmas, slept in the house, had his own chair in my uncle's house to have meals. That dog was in Christmas pictures and on holiday cards. When my alcoholic cousin died, no one really mourned him. He stole, hurt my little cousin, and made our lives a living hell. We wished Trevor was still alive and not that asshole.

Poor dog.... If I was you I would have instantly saw red and done something very.. Very bad.... Smh sorry op