TIFU by running over a dog.

Submitted by Mediocre_Problem_941 t3_11cj7uk in tifu

I'm not an English speaker, so apologize me if there's a mistake.

(20M) This actually happened last night, but the guilt is killing me, so I needed to take it out of my chest as I didn't tell this to any one yet.

Last night I was driving to a friend's house, there's this part on the road where you have a precipice on the right and a mountain on the left, so you don't really have much space to maneuver.

There was a pack of dogs barking and bitting each other, a dog scared another and it ran towards me. I unintentionally ran over it, I was going at 20mph so I definitely think I could have stopped on time but was too distracted to do it.

I parked the car and went to check on the dog, I ran over its upper left leg and it was limping. Fortunately there was no damage on its chest or belly. I tried to grab it and take it to the vet, but was so aggressive so I couldn't approach any more to it.

I had to left him there as I had no time. This is the part that most hurt me like Why did I left him there????? Was my appointment so important?????

I didn't enjoy at all my meeting cause I was thinking about this all the time and now I think... Why didn't I went to check again on the dog? I still had time to return to his house.

TL;DR I ran over a dog's leg and left him there because I had a meeting at my friend's house. It's totally my fault and any insult you plan to say to me, I already told myself.

Edit: Thanks to all of you!, I really thought I'd receive a lot of hate rather than any other thing, just wanted to take it out of my chest. You are amazing.

Also, as a bit of extra context... By "pack of dogs" I really meant a group of dogs, these dogs were apparently stray dogs (if that's the right word for homeless, I hope you get it).

Went through that place again and didn't see the dog, hope it is okay.

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Comments

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Dragonic_Smile t1_ja3mz1h wrote

A pack of dogs? Do you live where there are wild dogs? If so, then trying to capture it to take it to get treatment could be potentially dangerous. Dont get me wrong, it was awful that this happened and you did try to catch it, but if it was wild theres a chance that the dog in question could have had diseases like rabies. In that kind of situation its definitely better to call local animal welfare or animal control to come and check it out as they have the equipment to check on a wild animal. If it was a pet then well, I just hope that its found and sees a vet soon.

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bedrooms-ds t1_ja3dj2o wrote

I think you can call a rescue center (I don't know what it's called) and they'll handle it fine. You know, handling dogs is a bit dangerous, so I'd say you should have left it to a professional anyway.

Also, accidents do happen. Although drivers do have the obligation to do their best, humans ain't perfect.

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EriannaG t1_ja3hput wrote

The rescue center is going to do what? It was last night. They can’t do anything now. All the OP can do is use that guilt to learn from it and do better next time.

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Acheron98 t1_ja4p60y wrote

Do better how? Try to pick it up and potentially get rabies? This is a roaming pack of dogs that were already being aggressive towards each other. Idk where OP lives, but rabies is common in stray dogs in a lot of third world countries.

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EriannaG t1_ja4q96r wrote

Since this is a reply to a comment to someone suggesting they call a rescue center the next day, I would say calling the rescue center when it happens would be better. So, minimally that.

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mycologyqueen t1_ja5rmsb wrote

Um well having been involved in rescue they can do what we normally do and that is post on the local Facebook group pages for local animals/pets. Then everyone will comment when they see the dog. They could also put up a live trap (or several) ti catch the dogs and its siblings. Weve recovered some missing 2 months!

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ColgateToothpaste t1_ja3c5nl wrote

I did something similar one late night working as a AAA Locksmith.

I learned later that the lady let her dog go to the bathroom in the front lawn of her house which was on a very dark not lit up 50mph road. I slammed into her dog going 50 which nearly totaled my lock truck. Dog was on the ground coughing up blood and I got yelled at and called a murderer for running over her dog. Police came and took notes which I used in court to get damages back from her negligence causing me property damage.

It’s not your fault. Its a wild animal. It was going to bit you. The most you could’ve done is call animal control but they’ll put the dog down if it’s too bad, old, or just won’t become tame. Mountain roads suck for visibility.

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commandrix t1_ja492lm wrote

The dog's the one I really feel sorry for in a situation like this. It never really had a chance. But that one was more the fault of the owner who let it run around off leash. Maybe now that she's had to cough up for damages, she'll know better. (And if she refuses to pay up, I think there's a way to track down her employer and have them garnish her paycheck for damages awarded in a court case.)

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RiotBlack43 t1_ja3pj6i wrote

You're not a bad person, it was an accident, and as much as you wish you could've helped it, chances are if you'd caught it, it would've bitten the crap out of you. Wild dogs, especially injured wild dogs, will attack if they feel threatened. I don't know where you're located, but maybe Google animal control or animal services or wildlife rescues, and see if someone can keep an eye out for a limping dog.

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woogonalski t1_ja3w6xv wrote

Ease the guilt my friend. It’s not your fault. Shit happens. Here, head over to r/DeerAreFuckingStupid to feel better about the poor dog.

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mamahazard t1_ja45c1w wrote

I had a similar situation on a blind curve, followed by a straight stretch of road. I was going 55mph. Dog jumped out in front of me as soon as that curve turned into the straight stretch. I swerved to avoid it. It did the same thing. I ran over its spine.

I don't know how much I had slowed down by that time, but it was not safe to take an injured dog in the vehicle with my baby in the backseat. I haven't seen that dog since, so I imagined it died a few days later. Car was fine and so was baby.

Swerving to avoid animals can be just as dangerous as going straight, if not more dangerous.

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Omikapsi t1_ja48172 wrote

This is the truth. Your safety is as important (if not more) than an animal. I love animals, but I acknowledge that everyone needs to look after themselves first, including humans. Ironically, the compassion that we show for them is rarely mutual, and when it is, that's pretty special.

OP: If you want to assuage your guilt, I'd recommend volunteering or donating to a local shelter. You could end up helping many more dogs in the long run.

It's reasonable to feel bad about when we hurt a critter, that's what being an empathetic person is all about.

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Mediocre_Problem_941 OP t1_ja6414f wrote

Yeah, I definitely will. I now there's not much to do about that specific dog at this time, but if I can help other dogs in any other way, I will.

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Mediocre_Problem_941 OP t1_ja64wzk wrote

Totally agree, I once heard mom say that if you're on a car and you are about to run over a dog, trying to dodge it could cause much more damage than running over it. I told her "no, I'm sure you could stop the car or just slightly avoid it", but now I see it's really not that easy and she's always been right.

I'm glad you and your baby are fine!

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Kurapikasscarleteyes t1_ja43rck wrote

Not your fault it was a mistake the dog ran towards your vehicle. Things happen the dog was too aggressive for you to help that’s not your fault you couldn’t help. Best thing you can do is pay more attention to the road next time and use this as a learning experience.

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commandrix t1_ja48mwq wrote

If the animal control agency is any good where you live, you should be able to report an injured, possibly stray, dog to them and they'll come out and handle it.

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AcrobaticSource3 t1_ja43gfr wrote

> a pack of dogs barking and biting each other

You could’ve gotten bitten...sounds like these undomesticated dogs might have had rabies

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aacawe t1_ja4tmyt wrote

This post shows you have a heart my dude. There’s going to be times you let yourself down. Give yourself time for grief and time for forgiveness. You’re a young guy. There will be times ahead for you to step up.

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TheeRedHairedGuy t1_ja5z85o wrote

Had a dog when I was a kid who was 'wild', always running and all, she got hit n run 2 times in maybe 2 months, they just left, it was kind of impacting.

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penderhippy t1_ja3a40i wrote

wow

you are not a good person

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