Posted on 12/23/2021 7:18:55 AM PST by real saxophonist
Dog owners claim UPS driver ran over pet on their property, offered a fraction of vet bill
by: Rogelio Mares
Dec 18, 2021
LAPORTE, Colo. (KDVR) — The Schimack family lives on a property in Laporte, north of Fort Collins. It was on that property they say their dog, Gunny, was run over by a UPS truck.
“The dog appears to have been on the driver’s side of the truck,” Steve Schimack said.
After a UPS delivery on Oct. 21, he said Gunny was left with traumatic injuries to her body.
“She got run over by the rear wheel,” Schimack said.
She was taken to a veterinarian where it was determined her injuries likely came from being struck by a vehicle.
“They got her stabilized and then ultimately, they had to amputate the leg,” Schimack said.
No other vehicles drove onto his property, according to Schimack, the day Gunny was injured.
The fees to get her back to health were tens of thousands of dollars.
“Between about $28,000 and $32,000,” Schimack said.
Considering how he suspected she was hit and weighing whether to get her treated was a quick decision for Schimack.
“You’re in the position where I had two choices, I could either taker her in or put her down. I couldn’t put her down, it wasn’t her fault,” Schimack said.
FOX31 reached out to UPS for comment on the situation, they provided this statement: “We are saddened to hear about the injuries sustained by the Schimack’s dog, and we are investigating the situation.”
Schimack said he received an offer from the delivery company’s insurance carrier that wasn’t enough to cover Gunny’s medical bills.
“Five thousand dollars, as a courtesy, those were his exact words,” Schimack said.
He has no ill will toward the driver, In fact, Schimack said the driver gave their dogs treats regularly.
UPS offered no elaboration on the extent of their own investigation
I once ran over a dog, a mid-sized mutt who ran in front of me in a dust storm. Went under the front bumper and came out the side, then ran limping across the boulevard and disappeared into the barrio.
I did not follow.
How does the owner know none of their own vehicles hit the dog? Did the UPS driver feel an impact?
If you’re expecting a UPS package, there’s a free feature on their website that lets you watch a tiny UPS truck make its way to your property. All you have to do is keep your animals out of harm’s way around that time.
It’s fair enough for UPS to offer to pay for some of the expenses if the owner and the driver agree that it’s a possibility, but the owner is also responsible.
Most people don’t train their dogs worth a s*** they think they do but they really fail the animal in that regard.
From leash up and walking ten paces it is easy to detect a lack of proper training.
Not training the dog properly is doing the animal a great disservice.
Yet whenever I rang the doorbell, it took the people 5 minutes to put the dogs away, usually while I'm standing at the door freezing.
YOU KNOW I'M COMING! PUT THE DOGS AWAY BEFORE I GET THERE!
“In fact, Schimack said the driver gave their dogs treats regularly.”
That is also a problem, the owner should have spoken to the driver and also part of the training of a well-trained animal is to avoid food that is not given to them at the bowl.
Don’t worry folks... as long as you don’t beat the animal, training is in the animals best interest.
There are breeds that are much more difficult training others, but this was a Shepherd and that breed can be highly trained.
UPS should not have been in the private driveway (if that was the case).
UPS should sue the vet over the excessive and abusive bill, and UPS should pay the resulting modified bill in full.
If they don’t want UPS on their driveway, they should make them pick their packages up at the depot.
We had a terrier who was obsessed with trying to bite the tires of delivery trucks. Never got crushed like this, but had many broken teeth.
The semi-truck driver managed to get the truck to bunny hop the ditch and up the 5 ft embankment to run over your dog in your yard?
No, the dog was in the road.
Oh, how was this the truck driver's fault then?
I was wondering myself if the dog had run out into the road and got hit and the owners blamed the UPS driver because that’s the only vehicle they knew about and it was the only way to try to get their vet bill paid.
Ha-ha. I was heading back to Statesboro after being loaned out to the Hinesville store. Big-ass possum! My car went BOOM-boom BOOM-boom. Surprised that thing didn’t destroy the suspension.
“He has no ill will toward the driver, In fact, Schimack said the driver gave their dogs treats regularly.”
Driver gave dogs treats regularly.
Dog was hit while running up to driver’s side of the UPS van.
This one’s a real poser.
Keep your damn dog in the house, fenced-in yard, or on a leash folks.
Were you driving your own car, or a Domino's vehicle?
As for the vet bill, the dog’s injuries were much more extensive than just an amputation. Probably should have put the dog down, but it’s his money and his dog.
Also, the area is pretty rural. The driver has to drive onto the property to deliver packages. It’s not like a residential street.
The only Domino's-owned vehicles are in urban areas.
Exactly. UPS owes them nothing.
Thanks for your reply. I live in the small city of Rome, New York, and I don't recall ever seeing my Domino's delivery person driving a company car, or a Domino's vehicle parked in front of the shop. Our Domino's is in a small strip mall. There's a lot of privately owned Italian restaurants here, but I still prefer Domino's thin crust. Pizza Hut here sucks.
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