This is Moxie. He has 2 lawyers and 15+ people fighting for him because of a horrible accident, but an accident, nonetheless. There were 15 letters to the court written on his behalf from the people who know him best. There were 12 people in the courtroom in support of Moxie and his owner, Patti. Two of those 12 were called to testify and both have children that have played with Moxie. Regardless, the City of Houston wants to declare him dangerous and euthanize him. We are waging the best fight we can to stop this because Moxie is not what the city is claiming him to be.

Who is Moxie? Moxie is a rescue. He is a golden retriever and shepherd mix. As you can see from his picture he has Shepard markings, but his features are all golden retriever and so is his demeanor. He is a calm, sweet boy who would spend all day retrieving his ball if he could. My friend, Patti, adopted Moxie 9 yrs ago. At the time of his adoption, she was told he had a back injury—that he had been shot and the area still bothered him.

Over the 9 yrs my friend has had Moxie, he has interacted with many people—friends, family, neighbors, neighbors and their children, etc... Some of those children have played with Moxie on a regular basis; however, one incident is now defining him…one accidental incident is erasing years of this dog’s character and demeanor. So, we are all fighting for him, because he is not what he is being labeled as. This has many of us thinking about our own dogs because this incident could have easily happened to anyone, and in an instant, you lose any control you’ve had over the wellbeing of your dog and more importantly over whether you can keep them from being euthanized. It’s a horrible feeling to know you have no control over what happens to your pet once the city steps in.

As a veterinarian technician for 4 ½ years, I interacted with some aggressive dogs and unpredictable ones. Moxie is not that kind of dog. He has never been that kind of dog. He is a sweet, silly, boy. My friend has never had issues with him greeting anyone on their walks through the neighborhood where she encounters people often. For 9 years there has never been an incident! But now, the city wants to end his life for something no one witnessed.

What Happened:

It was the end of a walk, and my friend was trying to give her two dogs water before leaving a neighborhood park and walking home. She was away from everyone and in an isolated area. A pop-up bowl she brought for water kept spilling because dog’s the leash handles kept knocking it over. She had a limited amount of water, so she undid the leashes on both dogs to let them drink. She heard a crash behind her and turned around. A small boy was now standing in front of her. Both dogs walked around each side of my friend and greeted the boy. He petted both of them then a voice called out “He’s mine.” This was the boy’s mother approaching. She distinctly said to her child “…remember what we told you about staying in front of a dog…” My friend stated both dogs were sweet and told the boy to be careful—that Moxie had a bad back. Then my friend and the mother engaged in a conversation. Moxie walked away from the boy and behind my friend—most likely to drink some more water. He was out of the sight of my friend and the boy’s mother. The boy followed Moxie behind my friend. Suddenly, there was a scream. No growl or sound of an aggressive dog attacking. Just a scream from the boy. The boy was bleeding, and my friend raced to find something to apply pressure to his face.

We all understand how horrible this is. No one is disputing that, and there is no one in support of Moxie that doesn’t want this little boy to heal fully. But, to call this an attack when no one saw what actually happened is an assumption at best. It is also inconsistent with the demeanor of this dog. Again, there was no growling or sounds of an attack, just a scream from the boy.

Based on Moxie’s history and demeanor, the belief is that he was drinking water, and the boy did what kids do when the like an animal. They hug them or lean on them or over them. The child’s body weight would’ve most likely hurt Moxie’s back injury, and he would’ve reacted in a way most animals do when they feel pain or discomfort. They can’t say stop you are hurting me. They can’t speak in a language we know, so they react in a manner to stop the pain or discomfort. He most likely reared back, swinging his head around—mouth open from drinking and hit the boy in the face causing injury. Meaning, the injury caused was reactionary and not due to Moxie being aggressive. It was more likely due to him experiencing pain from his injury and not due to a purposeful attack. In other words, a horrible accident.

If Moxie was a bad dog, there wouldn’t be such a strong show of support for him and my friend. If this was an aggressive dog, we would not be fighting this fight, and my friend would willingly put him down. But this is not the case. However, there are some individuals that would rather perjure themselves in court than tell the truth. Unfortunately, this is part of the fight. And although I’d like to, I won’t name the individual because two wrongs don’t make a right, here.

This is not a black and white situation, but that is how the city is viewing it. A dog cannot have an accident without it costing that animal its life? There is something very wrong when the city and individuals want to euthanize an injured animal for communicating its discomfort in the only way it knows how…by reacting.

This is why we are fighting. Moxie doesn’t deserve the label he’s been given, and he doesn’t deserve to lose his life. Again, in the 9 years that I and many others have known him, we have never seen any aggression. Euthanasian should not be the automatic response of a horrible, unfortunate, accident. Regardless, my friend is willing to do whatever the courts ask of her in order to keep Moxie alive. If it means never leaving her home and yard, that will be abided by. If it means a muzzle and leash any time he leaves her property, that will be abided by.

What is happening now is unprecedented in the City of Houston. The fact that we were able to appeal the verdict is a huge relief. This has not been available to dog owners until recently. I believe my friend is the first to get this opportunity enabling her to fight in the county court system. Unfortunately, this appeal is the last chance to be heard and to help free Moxie. He has now been kenneled at Barc for over 2 ½ months. Vet care has been needed to reduce his stress levels—which my friend had to push for. Being an older dog, his health and wellbeing is a concern. We just want to get him home as soon as possible.

Fortunately, there are many people in Moxie’s corner that want to help in any way possible. It says a lot about an animal when there are so many wanting to save him. We all know how unjust this is. However, I want to be very clear that no one in Moxie’s corner wants anything less than a full recovery for the boy involved. From what I understand, he has gotten wonderful care and is recovering well.

Currently, there are two lawyers fighting for Moxie. This Go Fund Me is simply to help our friend pay for them in her fight. She would never ask for the help, but her friends are all aware of how expensive this fight has already been. If you would like to help in the fight for Moxie’s life, it would be greatly appreciated and everyone in Moxie’s corner would be tremendously grateful.

We are still waiting for a court date. All of this has gone on way too long and has been hard on both Moxie and my friend. If you want to do something, but can’t donate, send good energy and prayers for a positive outcome—Moxie going home with his owner. We will post an update after the verdict.

Thank you very much.