Published: Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Smiley the dog escapes death and now is being trained for adoption
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Smiley is in a doggie foster home run by the Rescue Pup organization of Mill Creek and is being trained for adoption.
COUPEVILLE -- Smiley the dog has escaped death by lethal injection.
Now in a doggie foster home run by the Rescue Pup organization of Mill Creek, Smiley is being trained for adoption.
The mixed-breed dog was at the center of legal fight over his fate when he was stolen in February from the Whidbey Animals' Improvement Foundation shelter in Coupeville.
The Island County Sheriff's Office took possession of the dog earlier this month when Smiley was seen frolicking in a dog park at the south end of Whidbey Island.
The dog was taken into protective custody as part of a felony theft investigation. The case against the person who allegedly took the dog has been sent to the Island County prosecuting attorney for review, sheriff's spokesman Ed Wallace said.
Smiley was returned to the nonprofit WAIF shelter on April 20. From there, WAIF board member and past president Pamela Hill-Keeva arranged the transfer of the dog and liability for him to Rescue Pup.
On Feb. 6 an Island County judge denied a request by a Freeland couple to stop the animal shelter from humanely killing Smiley, but ordered the shelter to keep the dog alive, pending an appeal.
That night, a chain-link fence was cut and it looked as if Smiley had been lured out of the kennel with a piece of salami, WAIF officials said.
The couple and animal shelter officials all had been worried about Smiley's care after he was stolen. The dog is on a strict diet for health reasons.
Barbara Moran and her husband Bob Baker, former animal shelter volunteers and donors, wanted to pay to have Smiley moved from the shelter where he had lived for two years to a dog-training organization. WAIF officials wanted to humanely kill the dog because of aggressive behavior and potential liability for the nonprofit organization if it allowed his adoption.
Moran and Baker said in an e-mail that they are grateful to Hill-Keeva for asking the WAIF board to allow transfer of the dog to Rescue Pup.
Hill-Keeva paid for the dog's transfer to the south Snohomish County organization, she said.
"Personally, I never thought Smiley was a dangerous dog," Hill-Keeva said.
Gale Fiege: 425-339-3427, gfiege@heraldnet.com.
Now in a doggie foster home run by the Rescue Pup organization of Mill Creek, Smiley is being trained for adoption.
The mixed-breed dog was at the center of legal fight over his fate when he was stolen in February from the Whidbey Animals' Improvement Foundation shelter in Coupeville.
The Island County Sheriff's Office took possession of the dog earlier this month when Smiley was seen frolicking in a dog park at the south end of Whidbey Island.
The dog was taken into protective custody as part of a felony theft investigation. The case against the person who allegedly took the dog has been sent to the Island County prosecuting attorney for review, sheriff's spokesman Ed Wallace said.
Smiley was returned to the nonprofit WAIF shelter on April 20. From there, WAIF board member and past president Pamela Hill-Keeva arranged the transfer of the dog and liability for him to Rescue Pup.
On Feb. 6 an Island County judge denied a request by a Freeland couple to stop the animal shelter from humanely killing Smiley, but ordered the shelter to keep the dog alive, pending an appeal.
That night, a chain-link fence was cut and it looked as if Smiley had been lured out of the kennel with a piece of salami, WAIF officials said.
The couple and animal shelter officials all had been worried about Smiley's care after he was stolen. The dog is on a strict diet for health reasons.
Barbara Moran and her husband Bob Baker, former animal shelter volunteers and donors, wanted to pay to have Smiley moved from the shelter where he had lived for two years to a dog-training organization. WAIF officials wanted to humanely kill the dog because of aggressive behavior and potential liability for the nonprofit organization if it allowed his adoption.
Moran and Baker said in an e-mail that they are grateful to Hill-Keeva for asking the WAIF board to allow transfer of the dog to Rescue Pup.
Hill-Keeva paid for the dog's transfer to the south Snohomish County organization, she said.
"Personally, I never thought Smiley was a dangerous dog," Hill-Keeva said.
Gale Fiege: 425-339-3427, gfiege@heraldnet.com.
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