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mamahazard t1_ja45c1w wrote

I had a similar situation on a blind curve, followed by a straight stretch of road. I was going 55mph. Dog jumped out in front of me as soon as that curve turned into the straight stretch. I swerved to avoid it. It did the same thing. I ran over its spine.

I don't know how much I had slowed down by that time, but it was not safe to take an injured dog in the vehicle with my baby in the backseat. I haven't seen that dog since, so I imagined it died a few days later. Car was fine and so was baby.

Swerving to avoid animals can be just as dangerous as going straight, if not more dangerous.

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Omikapsi t1_ja48172 wrote

This is the truth. Your safety is as important (if not more) than an animal. I love animals, but I acknowledge that everyone needs to look after themselves first, including humans. Ironically, the compassion that we show for them is rarely mutual, and when it is, that's pretty special.

OP: If you want to assuage your guilt, I'd recommend volunteering or donating to a local shelter. You could end up helping many more dogs in the long run.

It's reasonable to feel bad about when we hurt a critter, that's what being an empathetic person is all about.

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Mediocre_Problem_941 OP t1_ja6414f wrote

Yeah, I definitely will. I now there's not much to do about that specific dog at this time, but if I can help other dogs in any other way, I will.

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Mediocre_Problem_941 OP t1_ja64wzk wrote

Totally agree, I once heard mom say that if you're on a car and you are about to run over a dog, trying to dodge it could cause much more damage than running over it. I told her "no, I'm sure you could stop the car or just slightly avoid it", but now I see it's really not that easy and she's always been right.

I'm glad you and your baby are fine!

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