Our dog was euthanized by the city council, who took a pet from our garden in case of a mix-up… He would never harm a fly
A FAMILY says their dog was put down by a council who abducted the pet from their garden because of a case of mistaken identity.
An investigation is underway after the pet was abducted from a property in the Gisborne area of New Zealand’s North Island on September 22.
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The dog, named Sarge, who was wearing a collar and microchip, was kidnapped from a fenced property despite neighbors protesting and asking them to “leave him alone,” the family said in a statement.
Sarge was then taken to the animal shelter and “immediately euthanized.”
The family said: “(He was) the victim of gross negligence, incompetence and the most disgusting behavior imaginable.”
“He was kidnapped from his place of safety, his own property,” they said, due to what the council called a “mistaken identity.”
“He would never have harmed a fly.”
Animal control officers reportedly euthanized Sarge before his owners could come and pick him up 7 news.
The family added: “You were never just a dog to us, you were and will forever be our family.”
Gisborne City Council apologized in a statement for a “very unfortunate incident” in which the family dog was accidentally euthanized due to an “unfortunate case of human error”.
“We would like to reassure the community that we are taking this matter seriously,” it said.
“We will take appropriate action to ensure we learn from this and ensure this does not happen again.”
They also said the animal control officer involved in the incident was “deeply remorseful and shocked” and was receiving support.
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