Former prosecutor euthanizes dog after city order

Diane Wheeler, a former Franklin County deputy prosecutor, has euthanized her dog Moose. The decision follows a euthanization order issued last month by Burlington’s Animal Control Committee. The committee stated that Wheeler engaged in repeated violations of prior orders designed to manage the dog’s aggressive behavior.

Wheeler told Vermont Public that she contacted her veterinarian shortly after the committee issued its order. She said she made the decision to put Moose down herself to prevent him from being taken away and left alone. A cremation certificate reviewed by Vermont Public shows the 65-pound brindle mix was cremated several days after the city issued its order.

The committee had previously ordered Wheeler to turn Moose over to one of two designated kennels. Under that plan, the Burlington Police animal control unit was to facilitate the process with the Chittenden County Humane Society. Wheeler said she has not informed Burlington Police that Moose is dead and does not plan to do so.

“All the information about Moose's vet and where they could call is right on the rabies information,” Wheeler said. “They just want it handed to them on a silver platter, and you know what? I ran out of silver platters and red bows.” Interim Burlington Police Chief Shawn Burke and the city attorney’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Records submitted to the Animal Control Committee and previous news reports indicate that Moose attacked other dogs and people over the past three years. The board issued orders requiring Wheeler to provide Moose with more training and banning him from her neighborhood in the New North End. The committee wrote that Wheeler failed to follow those directives.

Burlington Police received multiple complaints that Moose was seen in the neighborhood despite the ban. One police report from this summer noted that Moose was off-leash at Hunt Middle School. Wheeler acknowledged she had Moose at the school but said she was testing an electronic collar. She noted that a trainer had recommended against using such a device.

“That might have been a recommendation, but I was attempting to try it to see if it was effective for him,” Wheeler said. She also admitted to bringing Moose to her mother’s house in Burlington between two and four times, a violation of the committee’s orders. Wheeler argued she needed to retrieve her insulin and that Moose was secured in her car during those visits.

Wheeler claimed that in some instances, Moose was not actually in the car. She said she placed a black plastic bag over the headrest to create the appearance of a dog for her neighbors. “I decided to put the black plastic bag over the headrest in my car,” she said. “Let them think they were seeing something they weren't seeing.”

The animal control board cited Wheeler’s failure to follow trainers’ recommendations and her bringing Moose into the New North End as reasons for the final order. The decision also noted an April incident in which Moose bit attorney Betsy Hibbitts in the face. Hibbitts told the committee in August that her upper lip was hanging from her face when she went to the hospital.

“This is a problem that should have been solved before I went to the hospital with my upper lip hanging from my face,” Hibbitts said. “I’m sorry for Moose, but Moose is not a safe dog, and I don’t know how he could be made safe.” Wheeler blamed Hibbitts for getting too close to Moose. Wheeler said she has never denied her actions and argues she did what she believed was necessary.