A photo of a dog, Mercedes, sent to Newport city officials alleging animal abuse. In actuality, the dog had Cushing's Disease, and was euthanized this week. (Courtesy city of Newport)
Newport city officials learned the power of social media the hard way this week: Hundreds of emails, phone calls and Facebook messages from as far away as Switzerland calling for their action or resignation -- and, in the case of one city council member, the kidnapping of his dog.
"I have never had this experience before. It went crazy everywhere," Newport City Council member Steven Gallagher said. "It reminded me how in grade school when you tell a secret at the beginning of the class, and at the end, everything's wrong."
The calls came in response to an erroneous Facebook post about a dispute between a Newport dog owner and some tree trimmers. On Tuesday, in the 1000 block of Fourth Street, the trimmers saw an emaciated dog lying on its side in a nearby yard and took a photo.
They argued with the girlfriend of the dog owner -- who called police when the trimmers came on the property.
"The two (tree trimmers) felt the dog was being maltreated and tortured and chose to confront her. The lady did not appreciate the concern and verbal lashing she received," according to a police report.
But the officer soon discovered the dog -- which was being given food, water and medication -- had Cushing's disease, which causes dramatic muscle wasting. And the pitbull mix was being cared for by a veterinarian.
He told the owner, Mike Bradley, that it was likely time to put it down -- but, according to Newport Police Chief Curt Montgomery, "The officer didn't remove the dog so the owner could bring the dog into the vet. The dog would be less afraid or frightened than if a stranger had brought her into the vet."
That was Tuesday.
On Wednesday, it became clear to city council members that one of the tree trimmers, identified as Brent Morey of Ogilvie, Minn., and John Petersin of North Branch in the report, had posted a photo of the dog on Facebook, reportedly alleging animal abuse. It, in turn, was reposted and shared thousands of times -- and the outrage began rolling in.
Gallagher estimated receiving 500 emails, 110 Facebook messages and several dozen phone calls by Friday -- most citing the "clear animal abuse," wondering why the city hadn't acted and alleging a coverup. Chief Montgomery estimated hundreds of emails, as well.
Gallagher, wondering what was going on, called the chief, who filled him in. On Thursday, police checked back to confirm that the dog had been euthanized.
"I do want to make clear that Mike did work with us over the past year to diagnose and treat his dog as best he could," the dog's veterinarian, Jonathan Woodman of Town & Country Veterinary Services, stated in a letter to the chief.
The letter also confirmed the dog's diagnosis of Cushing's disease and added that Woodman euthanized the dog Wednesday.
"I do not consider that he (the owner) was purposefully neglectful or mean," Woodman added. "If she (the dog) was allowed to live longer than she should have, it was simply because he and his family had a very difficult time parting with her."
Still, the emails and calls continued to roll in. Worse, the Facebook posts included a wrong address. Montgomery, the police chief, said the person whose address was mistakenly listed had filed a harassment complaint, though he wasn't sure of the details Friday evening.
Neither Bradley nor his mother could be reached for comment Friday evening. Morey and Petersin also could not be reached late Friday.
The Facebook postings were removed as of Friday.
Regardless, "I was busy all day with emails. I didn't get the chance to answer the phone today," Montgomery said Friday.
"I got emails from all over the world -- from Canada, Australia. Somebody in Switzerland called me," Gallagher said. "A woman from a private number called and threatened to kidnap my dog -- said if I wasn't a responsible dog owner, then obviously my dog was not in a safe place."
On Friday, he said he took three-quarters of a day off from work to make sure nobody came to his house.
But as for Newport residents, the response has been supportive, Gallagher said.
"They weren't irate at all," he said. "I think they were skeptical (of the Facebook post) in the first place. They're not going to think we're trying to cover anything up, unlike some guy in Florida."
Although city officials' responses seemed to have dampened the flow of vitriol for now, Gallagher and Montgomery worry that things will pick up again Monday.
"I tried to let people know this isn't what it seems like," Gallagher said. "I got quite a lot of folks to back off because of that.
"But I wasn't able to convince everyone."
Added Montgomery, "Unfortunately, with the Internet, it's still out there somewhere."
Tad Vezner can be reached at 651-228-5461 or follow him on Twitter @SPnoir.
via www.twincities.com/washingtoncounty/ci_24293893/newport-facebook-post-about-maltreated-dog-takes-life?source%3Drss_viewed
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