A black Labrador retriever bit a woman and mauled a puppy so severely it was put down, a December 14 ruling has determined, ordering the 4-year-old dog, named Benson, to be “humanely destroyed” for being a “dangerous dog.” His owners, Michael and Kelsey Hill, had asked that Benson be returned to them “under any conditions deemed necessary.” They plan to appeal the ruling.
Two separate incidents led to Benson’s death sentence, according to the administrative court ruling. On July 1, 2018, Michael Hill had been walking Benson off leash when his neighbors invited them to meet their new puppy. Benson grabbed the puppy by the back and shook her violently; the puppy was treated at an emergency veterinary hospital but was euthanized due to her injuries. Hill paid her vet bills and helped pay for a new puppy for the neighbors. The incident was not reported to Animal Services, said the puppy’s owner, as they were neighbors and understood the Hills’ love for their dog; the neighbors, however, told the investigator they no longer trusted Benson.
In the second incident, Hill had been playing fetch with Benson at La Patera School on October 21, 2018. Benson ran behind a hedge and there grabbed a six-month-old golden retriever puppy by the neck. The puppy was being walked on a leash by its owner, who had a second golden puppy on a leash. The owner got Benson in a headlock while he tried to bite her face and bit her left arm. Hearing the noise of the dog fight, Hill ran over and tackled Benson. The owner of the two puppies was treated at the hospital. Neither of her pups was injured, possibly because the one attacked was wearing a training collar, the owner testified; Benson had two cuts, Hill said. After this attack, Benson was first quarantined at home and then taken to a county shelter by the Sheriff’s Office.