Linnea Riebschlager went on a backpacking trip with her kids in late October. She left her dog "Floyd" with a family friend.

"He was just a good, happy dog," Riebschlager said.

Somehow, the dog managed to escape from a friend's backyard. Eventually, Floyd was picked up by an officer and transferred to the Boulder Valley Humane Society.

Employees at the Humane Society struggled to find contact information for Floyd's owners. When they tried calling them on their home phone and cell phone for four days, they received no response.

"It was difficult to handle him," Lisa Pederson, CEO of the Boulder Valley Humane Society, said.

While at Boulder Valley, Floyd was out of control. His family says he's a calm dog, but employees at the Humane Society say animals tend to act differently when they're in shelters.

"We had to tranquilize him just to do a scan for a microchip," Pederson said.
After holding on to Floyd for five days, Colorado law requires the Humane Society to take over ownership.

Since the Humane Society had no other way to get a hold of his family, and since they believed Floyd was too vicious, employees decided to put him down.

"Unfortunately for us we had to make that decision and it's not a decision we make lightly," Pederson said.

Once Riebschlager and her family returned from their trip, they pressed play on their answering machine and heard the messages from the Humane Society.

Once they got a hold of the shelter, an employee told them the news.

"I don't think he was given a fair chance and I don't think we were given a fair chance," Riebschlager said.

"Our heart goes out to the family for this tragic loss," Pederson said.

Boulder Valley deals with this sort of situation every once in a while. It says it should serve as a reminder to make sure your pets have additional contact information with them, especially if they're staying with a family friend.

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