UPDATE | Watson the dog is safe, according to No Kill Colorado. The dog was transferred out of the Denver Animal Shelter on Monday.
No Kill Colorado is working to find a dog a new home after a toddler was injured by the animal.
The non-profit organization said Watson is a 10-year-old dog that lived with the same family for eight years. No Kill Colorado said recently, Watson was startled while sleeping by a toddler, who ended up with stitches. The family brought Watson to Denver Animal Shelter.
“When the shelter was talking to the family, they mentioned that about a year ago, the same thing happened, but [Watson] did not bite the child. There was no broken skin. There was no injury, there was no medical attention. That's not an attack," said Davyd Smith, the president of No Kill Colorado.
Smith said there is a ten-day hold on Watson, and believes on Sunday the shelter will decide if Watson is put down or not. Smith said other rescues are willing to take Watson, and would rather see those shelters take the dog. He also said the family does not want to see Watson killed.
"If they want to end Watson's life, they can do that starting tomorrow [Sunday]. If they want to save Watson's life, they can start doing that tomorrow by giving him to a rescue that's ready to help him," said Smith.
Denver Animal Protection provided Denver7 with the following statement:
Watson was surrendered to the Denver Animal Shelter last week after the animal severely bit a child in the face. When he was surrendered, it was made clear to the owner that this was a permanent decision. Denver Animal Protection is charged with protecting both the safety of people and animals in our community. Because of the severity of this bite and the history that his owner disclosed to us upon surrender – he has bitten the same child in the face before – we are closely reviewing whether it is safe to release him back into the community. We take this decision very seriously and will act in the best interest of our community.
