Nikki Phillippi, a lifestyle influencer and popular Youtuber, announced on Monday that she and her husband Dan made the difficult decision to euthanize their family dog Bowser after he bit their young son Logan. The announcement, shared via Instagram and YouTube, faced a lot of backlash with fans wishing the family had sought alternative options prior to putting the dog to sleep.
In the devastating post (below), the mother shared of the beloved Bull Terrier:
“Bowser had an aggressive side that reared it’s [sic] ugly head a few times over the years… and recently he bit Logan….after a lot of counsel, we decided it was time for Bowser to pass peacefully on.”
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The content creator, who has 1.29 million followers on the video platform, continued:
“We didn’t want to make this decision…as I’m sure you can imagine. I’m not kidding when I say this was one of the saddest days of my life.”
Many followers criticized the couple for not attempting to find a new home for Bowser or seek more training before making the decision to euthanize him. The influencers insisted that while this seems like a shocking and rash decision to the public, they’ve avoided this outcome for years.
In a 24-minute video (below), the former dog parents attempted to explain why they took the actions they did, with Dan suggesting that while his furbaby (whom he had for nearly a decade) was friendly and fun, he had a “wild” side and was “extremely dangerous animal outside the walls of my house.”
Nikki went on to explain that a “big turning point in Bowser’s personality” came when he was “attacked as a puppy.” While they never spoke much on his aggressive side, the dog was involved in several accidents over the years, “seriously” hurting other animals. The most recent accident with Logan was the last straw. Nikki expressed:
“Never crossed my mind — ‘Oh, now we’re gonna have to put Bowser down’ — I just thought, ‘Oh, he’s just gotta be in the right home.’ But after getting counsel from multiple professionals who are with dogs all the time, all of them said that, they all said the same thing.”
While Logan’s injury “wasn’t bad,” he still has a “a little mark” from the bite, where he was attacked in the face. How scary! There’s no doubt this must have been an absolutely awful decision to have to grapple with… but when it comes to a child’s safety, we can understand why they took such drastic measures. It doesn’t seem like Bowser’s actions were a one-time thing, but this topic is certainly complicated!
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Comments were blocked on YouTube, but fans made sure to have their opinions were heard loud and clear in the comments of the mother’s IG, saying:
“Not sure what is more upsetting to me… the fact that you killed your dog instead of training him, re-homing him or creating boundaries with your small child likely being all over him…OR The fact that you are dangling a carrot like this to upset people and then using it to MONETIZE your YouTube video.”
“I’m sorry for Bowser. He didn’t deserve this outcome.”
“Some dogs can’t live with kids but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be allowed to live.”
“I’m sorry you thought killing your dog was the best and only option.”
“Woah… what about adoption? At the LEAST. Not a judgmental person here but wow, this saddens my heart and truly rubs me the wrong way.”
“I wish you would’ve posted about needing to rehome him.”
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Just a quick moody photo shoot of me and my dog before I euthanize him
You get the point… Animal lovers all over were hurting at this controversial news! Watch the full video (below) to hear more about Bowser’s history and make up your mind for yourself.
Reactions, Perezcious readers? Do you agree with the criticism? Sound OFF in the comments (below)!
[Image via Nikki Phillippi/Instagram/YouTube]
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