WAILUA HOMESTEADS — Over the last six months, Honey, an abandoned dog, and Wailua Rise resident Betty Weichhart had become good friends. Over time, Weichhart fed Honey by hand, fell in love with the dog, and wanted her newfound friend
WAILUA HOMESTEADS — Over the last six months, Honey, an abandoned dog, and Wailua Rise resident Betty Weichhart had become good friends.
Over time, Weichhart fed Honey by hand, fell in love with the dog, and wanted her newfound friend to become part of her ‘ohana, or family.
Her dreams of that happening ended late last month, when Honey was destroyed at the Kauai Humane Society facility in Kipu.
Weichhart said she had been previously told by agency representatives that Honey needed to be spayed before the dog could be returned to her.
Weichhart is now asking the Kaua‘i County Council, which appropriates funding to the organization to implement animal-control programs, and the board of the Kauai Humane Society to investigate the incident.
“I want to make sure this doesn’t happen again,” Weichhart told The Garden Island. “How do we do that?”
In her defense Dr. Rebecca “Becky” Rhoades, a veterinarian and the executive director of the Kauai Humane Society, said she has apologized to Weichhart, Wailua residents and employees at the University of Hawai‘i agricultural research station in Wailua, who had taken care of the dog. Rhoades, who has won a reputation as a champion of animal rights on the island, said the whole episode was a “misunderstanding.”
In a letter to The Garden Island, Rhoades noted, “I apologize for the misunderstanding which led to the decision to euthanize Honey. I thought all had agreed that it was in the dog’s best interest not to continue a life filled with the terror and fear of living in a cage. If I misunderstood, I apologize,” she said.
“The toughest part of this job, and the one I wish I could avoid, is to be compelled to decide to euthanize an animal.”
Elizabeth Freitas, president of the Kauai Humane Society, sided with Rhoades.
“Dr. Rhoades explained why a decision was made to euthanize the dog, and she apologizes for the misunderstanding, Freitas said in a letter to The Garden Island.
“The board of directors of the Humane Society would like to also extend its collective apology,” Freitas wrote. “Dr. Rhoades is a true professional who has enhanced services provided by the society. Although we fully support our director, we share the anguish of Ms. Weichhart. We are gratified to see so many citizens who are willing to endorse and support Ms. Weichhart.”
Freitas also noted members of the humane society welcome “advice, assistance, and when appropriate, criticism. We solicit citizen input and will incorporate positive suggestions to improve levels of service.
“At the next board meeting, we will be reviewing the facts and circumstances of this case to see if there is anything we should do better to serve the community and the animals we all care about,” Freitas wrote. “We will communicate with Ms. Weichhart after the board has met.”
In a letter to The Garden Island, Weichhart said Honey had been dropped off in the Wailua Rise subdivision six months ago.
A neighbor saw the dog being dropped off and had the dog confined in her yard while she called officials at the Kauai Humane Society.
As the neighbor waited, the neighbor’s dog bit Honey in the back of leg, prompting Honey to make a break, Weichhart said. Frightened, Honey wasn’t to be seen for the next few months, Weichhart said.
Honey found a home at the UH Kaua‘i Agricultural Research Center, where staffers and neighbors at the Wailua Rise subdivision would feed her, said Julia Ta‘afuli, an agency employee who also befriended the dog.
“Honey was taken care of every day with fresh food, water and nibbles,” Weichhart wrote in a letter she earlier submitted to The Garden Island.
Although people opened their hearts to Honey, she was always tentative around them, Weichhart said. She said Honey eventually took food from her, but never let anyone touch her.
