Dog was going to be put down — so volunteer flees with it from Pennsylvania shelter
_fitted.png "A volunteer at a Pennsylvania animal shelter took off with a dog that was scheduled to be put down and is at the center of a controversy involving euthanasia.")
A dog at the center of a life-or-death controversy was taken from a Pennsylvania animal shelter shortly before it was scheduled to be put down, news outlets report.
Pursuit, a 4-year-old male American Bulldog mix, was loaded into the back of a car by a volunteer and driven away at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 13, as people protested outside the shelter in Harrisburg Township, TV station WGAL reported.
The dog has been a resident of the Humane Society of Harrisburg Area shelter for over a year, according to the organization. But staff recently made the decision to euthanize Pursuit, suggesting that he is potentially dangerous.
“Unfortunately, behavioral euthanasias are decisions that all shelters must make,” the organization said in a Feb. 11 Facebookpost, which drew nearly 2,000 comments. “If we believed Pursuit could have a good quality of life and live safely in the community, this decision would not be made.”
Some volunteers at the shelter disagreed with that assessment, saying Pursuit has never bitten anyone and would be a good pet for a loving home, PennLive reported.
McClatchy News reached out to the Humane Society of Harrisburg Area for comment but did not receive a response.
Just two months earlier, the Humane Society was looking to find Pursuit a home and described him as a “goofy” dog “known for his love of toys and always sitting like a proper gentleman,” a Dec. 16 social media post said. It was Pursuit’s second Christmas at the shelter.
Residents and animal lovers learned of Pursuit’s situation and began pressuring the organization to let him live, put him back up for adoption or hand him over to one of several groups in the area that have since volunteered to take custody, PennLive reported.
The organization hasn’t said what the dog has done that leads it to believe he is dangerous and, despite the other options available, the Humane Society stood by its choice to euthanize Pursuit.
Anger over the decision culminated in a protest outside the shelter on Monday, with police posted at the building.
Protesters disbanded shortly after the volunteer drove away with Pursuit, WGAL reported. It’s not clear where Pursuit was taken, but a protest organizer believes the volunteer may be delivering the dog to another rescue group.
“At the end of the day, I just felt like there’s a chance this dog could have, and I just wanted someone to give him that chance,” protester Melissa Pendleton told the outlet.
This story was originally published February 13, 2023 at 3:46 PM with the headline "Dog was going to be put down — so volunteer flees with it from Pennsylvania shelter."