SPCA volunteer on run with abused Rottweiler
Woman went into hiding with 'Cheech' after the pup was ordered euthanized
Matthew Ramsey
The Province
Friday, June 18, 2004
Amanda Muir, who nearly lost both arms after a vicious mauling by a dog last year, doesn't believe Cheech poses a danger to anyone.
Dog-lover Amanda Muir, who nearly lost both arms in a vicious mauling last year and was the host of a popular SPCA TV show in Delta, has been banned from volunteering for the society and accused of stealing a dog.
In an interview with The Province, Muir, former host of Live at the SPCA, admitted she and a fellow volunteer took Cheech the dog from the shelter Wednesday. Cheech, a Rottweiler cross who is less than one year old, was due to be euthanized.
Muir's accomplice has also been suspended from volunteering, and a receptionist at the shelter suspended from work because of the dognapping. Muir is now in hiding with Cheech.
Cheech was brought into the shelter in late April. He had been abused. Four SPCA assessors deemed Cheech too vicious and unpredictable, especially toward men, and recommended he be put down, said spokeswoman Lorie Chortyk.
On Wednesday, Muir, who has volunteered at the shelter for five years, even after she was mauled a year ago, and another volunteer took Cheech to a female vet for the euthanasia.
"We just wanted him to be euthanized by a woman . . . there's only men at the shelter," she said, adding that none of the Delta SPCA staff agreed with the euthanasia order.
That female vet also disagreed and refused to put the pup to sleep, at which point the SPCA was called to collect the dog and take it somewhere else to be euthanized, Muir said.
Muir and the volunteer decided to take Cheech to save his life.
"He's a very young dog, he's less than a year old," Muir said last night. "I would be the first one to euthanize a dog that was a danger to society . . . he has never bitten anybody."
Muir said the SPCA has contacted Delta police to have dog-theft charges laid against the two. Police spokeswoman Const. Sharlene Brooks said officers spent Wednesday and yesterday searching for Muir and Cheech.
A decision on charges will be made later, Brooks said.
The SPCA's primary concern in this case is that Cheech poses a threat to the public, Chortyk said, adding that the society has a moral and legal duty to protect the public from harmful animals.
"We did everything in our power to help that dog, because euthanasia is always the last resort," Chortyk said. "[Muir] made the situation happen, we didn't. We didn't ask her to steal a dog from the shelter."
The suspensions may be lifted pending the resolution of the case.
Chortyk insisted Cheech is not an adoptable dog and that keeping him in a small pen at the shelter for the rest of his days would be "a fate worse than death."
Speaking from her hiding place, Muir said Cheech will be cared for in a secret location. She and her fellow suspended volunteer hoped to speak with the SPCA yesterday to try to get the shelter to reconsider.
Muir's friend, Laura Ballance, said banning the long-time dog-lover from the shelter is an outrage.
"She's a treasure to that organization . . . I can't believe they've done this to her," Ballance said.
Muir has had seven surgeries since she was mauled by a Rottweiler on
June 18, 2003, and has two more to go to repair the damage done to her arms.
Ballance said Muir was at the SPCA within days of her first surgery to work with abandoned and sick pets.
"The second she was out of hospital, she was going back [to the Delta shelter]," Ballance said.
"Now, she's not even allowed on their property. It's just so sad."