The three and a half year old Pomeranian Pekingese cross was being walked, on a leash, by the oldest son in the family, 15, near the bleachers at the Phoenix school grounds shortly after 7 p.m. on Sunday evening, Oct. 27. A man was walking his two larger dogs and let them off leash. They attacked Bella within seconds, leaving her with a broken back, broken teeth, bleeding eye and numerous puncture wounds.
She was gravely injured and was put to sleep while in the arms of her family.
The owner of the dogs did not offer to help and after uttering an expletive, left the area.
"We do not blame the dogs as they did not take their own leash off," said the owners who would rather not be identified, for privacy reasons, at this time.
"We do want to raise awareness in dog owners and let locals be aware in the area if they are walking their dogs."
They do not know the exact breed of the dogs, but describe them as having large builds, one dark tan colour and the other a lighter colour "pit-bull" type.
"We also just want to make clear that we are not after restitution, we are not out to harm the dogs or the owner unjustly, nor sensationalize or add negative stigma to any breed. It can happen to anyone, from any breed, when owners are not responsible," said Bella's "grandparents". "We want to raise awareness and hopefully get through to some dog owners who maybe thought it would never happen to them, from either end of the scale."
The RCMP and Coastal Animal Control have been contacted but have not yet been able to identify the dogs or owner.
It is assumed they are from the surrounding area.
"We raised Bella from a puppy after we drove around the clock one weekend to Grand Prairie and back to pick her up," said her family. "She was raised around many children, out of our home run daycare for the first year, and turned heads wherever she went. Often people coming up to comment on how sweet and beautiful she was. Unusual for her breed, Bella loved the water and would chase and retrieve sticks from the ocean. She could also do many tricks such as the moonwalk, roll over, dance, shake a paw, she had a great personality and demeanor, loved people and kids and just always wanted to be part of the fun."
The grieving owners want to remind dog owners that rules are there for a reason.
"When going off leash, be sure to check your surroundings and if you know your dog may have a tendency to be aggressive then don't let them off the leash in public areas," they said. "Know your dog and be responsible. The trauma it could cause has far reaching effects and in this case, at least, it was not a child who was attacked. But still, a pet is like one of the family and so takes an extremely hard toll on the family and creates everlasting memories of the event you would not wish on anyone."
An apology from the person would go a long way in the family's healing.
"Particularly for our 15 year old son, who witnessed it all, an apology would help," said Bella's "grandparents". "He was out with Bella when it occurred and he is impacted the most in terms of not only dealing with the loss and trying to forget the scene that unfolded before his eyes as well."
Bella's family wants the owner of the two dogs to step forward and let the proper processes and procedures take place so the right course of action can be taken to prevent it from happening again to someone else's pet or even worse, a child.
"This trauma has hit us all pretty hard," they said. "You know that eventually the day would come to say goodbye, but we never expected it to be so soon and so traumatic."
Bella leaves behind a young girl, 7, older youth, 15, her "grandparents" and many people who knew and loved her.
If you have any information to help identify the owner and the dogs, please call the RCMP 250-286-6221 or Coastal Animal Control, 1-888-754-1397.
(Courier Islander - Nov 6, 2013)
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