'I just wanted a little girl not to think all people are bad'
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TUKWILA, Wash. - It was one week ago when a dog attack in Tukwila turned deadly, and a child saw her beloved chihuahua, Champ, killed by another bigger dog. The owner of the other dog then allegedly walked away without so much as an apology.
But the story doesn't end there.
Diana Ratsamee learned during that horrible ordeal what it's like to lose a best friend.
"Someone that will always be there for you, who you look forward to seeing when you come home, and someone who looks forward to seeing you when you get home," she says.
Diana told the KOMO News Problem Solvers about her quest to find the man whose dog killed Champ in Foster Memorial Park last Sunday when she took the little chihuahua for a walk there.
Champ was one of Diana's best friends. The little chihuahua was also a best friend to Diana's young niece, Melina Quach, who was walking Champ when he was killed.
"The guy kept saying, 'Your dog is dead. Your dog is dead.' I think he said it three times. And when the other dog let go, he just walked away and just left me," says Melina.
Champ died on the way to the veterinarian. But thanks to the help of a stranger, that's not where the story ends.
Eric Bertlesen read Champ's story on KOMO News and contacted the Problem Solvers.
His dogs, Pepper and Pedro, just had a litter of five - and little Bleach was looking for a home.
Eric knows that Bleach, who is half chihuahua, can't replace Champ - but he says handing her over sends a message of hope.
"I just wanted a little girl not to think all people are bad," he says. "So you just have to do as much good as you can to offset the evil."
He saw it as a chance to honor one best friend through the life of another.
"It's good to have my faith in humanity restored," says Diana.
Diana told KOMO News she felt disappointed the other dog owner didn't take responsibility when Champ was killed. But she says - this new dog helps heal those wounds.
But the story doesn't end there.
Diana Ratsamee learned during that horrible ordeal what it's like to lose a best friend.
"Someone that will always be there for you, who you look forward to seeing when you come home, and someone who looks forward to seeing you when you get home," she says.
Diana told the KOMO News Problem Solvers about her quest to find the man whose dog killed Champ in Foster Memorial Park last Sunday when she took the little chihuahua for a walk there.
Champ was one of Diana's best friends. The little chihuahua was also a best friend to Diana's young niece, Melina Quach, who was walking Champ when he was killed.
"The guy kept saying, 'Your dog is dead. Your dog is dead.' I think he said it three times. And when the other dog let go, he just walked away and just left me," says Melina.
Champ died on the way to the veterinarian. But thanks to the help of a stranger, that's not where the story ends.
Eric Bertlesen read Champ's story on KOMO News and contacted the Problem Solvers.
His dogs, Pepper and Pedro, just had a litter of five - and little Bleach was looking for a home.
Eric knows that Bleach, who is half chihuahua, can't replace Champ - but he says handing her over sends a message of hope.
"I just wanted a little girl not to think all people are bad," he says. "So you just have to do as much good as you can to offset the evil."
He saw it as a chance to honor one best friend through the life of another.
"It's good to have my faith in humanity restored," says Diana.
Diana told KOMO News she felt disappointed the other dog owner didn't take responsibility when Champ was killed. But she says - this new dog helps heal those wounds.
May this new puppy bring much joy to this family's life after enduring such heartache... Champ is looking down from a very good place. That much, I'm sure.
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To my knowledge , the dog and owner have been identified , and the dog is in animal controls hands , and the owner is going to be held responsible . Â
Eric, Jesus will pay you back 10 fold. I hope that if they don't catch the person with the other dog, that he gets run over by a car and lays there on the side of the road dieing a slow death. That's how strong I feel.
Eric, you are great!! Nice work. There are good people out there, we just have to remember there are more of you than them, and you reminded us all that "good" is alive and well.
Thank you for doing this for Diana.Â
Hello everyone. This is Diana. Before we state anything, I just want to say first and foremost to everyone who's commented, read our story, reached out, called in, and cared to hear our story, thank you. Because of your tips, we were able to ID the owner and the dog. The dog has now been taken by animal control and is out of our neighborhood. Thank you for bringing joy back into our household. Baby puppy is sweet and adorable, and very much like Champ. He will always be remembered through her. I had no idea that this story would affect so many others when I wrote in, and the outreach of the community just astonishes me. Thank you for bringing justice for Champ. Thank you for making this world a better place. While healing becomes a little bit easier, we are still a bit torn at the fact that the owner himself could not be taken away as easy as his dog was. It's easy to place all the blame on the dog, but honestly, the dog was just being a dog. It was the owner who failed to act human by properly raising his dog, allowing his animal to roam a public park, and leaving the scene. We hope that our story raises awareness to the many dog lovers out there. Always be wary, keep a close eye on your pet, and if you know of a dangerous animal, please warn animal control or confront the owner. When the dog was captured, we were told that the animal apparently had 4 other attacks in its record. The owner had no intention of being responsible for the animal, a clear red flag for another inpending attack.This could have been prevented. Champ didn't have to die, but if in his death we are able to make our neighborhood a little bit safer from now on, then we at least can be comforted. Thank you all again and please know to never lose hope when times get rough. People may surprise you.
 @Diana I'm so sorry about what happened - it won't bring Champ back, but if it was a public park I'm sure there's a leash law - I would definitely take the dog's owner to court over it. My mom died as a result of an unleashed dog going after her - I sued and won. I hope that justice will be served and that owner will be held accountable. I wish you all the best, and again, I'm sorry about Champ :(
 @libertygirl777  @Diana Thank you so much libertygirl, I am sorry for your loss. I am glad you were able to get justice for your mother. We are looking into the matter with the owner. I would personally like to see community service or a fine, but I am not sure of what the district has to say on matters with animals. I'm hoping he does finally get to be held accountable for his actions.Â
The article says that Diana is 12, I'm confused?
 @nomad Melina is 12, Diana is her aunt.  I think KOMO made a slight mistake. Â
 @Diana Diana, you brought tears to my eyes! What a wonderful young woman you are. Take care, heal well and fast. The same thing happened to my mom and I. We didn't lose any animals but we were scared for a while. Then we were able to have the OWNERS cited by animal control.
Again, know we are thinking of you and Champ and your family.
Love your new friend.
That guy will get his someday..
 @Yeah_and Thank you. We hope so, so far its just taking time
KOMO, a commenter claims to know the owner of the dog that attacked. I assume that you, being committed to the public, will respond by turning that information over to the police.
Adorable puppy that will surely be loved by this family--I hope it helps the healing process.
I was so saddened to hear about this and the owner's irresponsible behavior. We tragically lost our little 3.4 pound Chihuahua on Wednesday (10/3) when "Shi" was pulled out of our yard and killed by two pitbulls that escaped from inside a nearby neighbor's house. They forced our gate open and drug our dog through (leaving gouges in the gate) and broke his back and neck-his blood still stains my driveway. My teen son witnessed and carried his bloody body to the vet. The dogs are now designated as "dangerous," but returned to the house in a close neighborhood (HorizonPointe, Lacey). They now have a warning poster in the window among the other "scary" Halloween decor on their front porch. My children were traumatized and had to say goodbye to a much beloved pet. The dog owners vehemently professed the dogs' lack of aggression and theirs dogs live . . . and I was left with $150 vet bill to pay before being able to take my crying children home (no offers of reimbursement yet and I informed them I had to borrow to pay before I could leave). We were not even given the courtesy of being notified by Animal Services of the decision to gamble with other lives in our neighborhood. My boys will alter their path home from the school bus so they no longer have to be lunged at over the fence by the dogs who tore apart their pet. I pray we don't hear of others suffering the same fate from these two. My deepest sympathy to your family and hope the memory and heartbreak will fade for Melina over time.Â
Kristin
 @Krisjen Hi Krisjen, sorry for using your actual name in other posts. So, took me a while but what I was told by animal control is you should request a copy of their investigation. You can call and have it mailed to you. If there has been ANY irresponsible behavior on the owner's part since your first report..report it. She said for you to call and keep up with what happened.
I'm sure you already know all of this and it takes time and is horrible to go through, but in the end constant vigilance is sometimes the answer.
take care and stay safe. I hope you get some answers you need!
That was the only way we were able to get done what had to be done with our situation a few years ago. It took time and many phone calls, but finally they listened and the owner was fined, had to fix his fence, and paid for our medical and vet bills.
 @Krisjen Kristen. I had better luck when I was attacked by a neighbors dog when I stayed all over animal control. I called them at least once a week and made a new friend. How long ago did this happen? I was always as friendly as possible when I called..you get more bees with honey.
You can still get a copy of all of the reports, you were involved. Also, filing a civil suit is fairly easy and cost is not too bad, about $50-$100, that includes service delivery to the owners. You can also have the courts waive the fees due to financial situations. You can also ask that if you win, the other party pays all fees. Are you afraid of the owners at all? I mean of the people themselves?
I know if I even call my insurance company that my homeowner's may go up, but you could just call and ask some "what if" questions. The damages are a lot of money to you, to me also right now, but the homeowners may cost you more in the long run..so I'm thinking that's not the best route.
OK, I'll get back to you.
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 @Yeah_and This just happened Wednesday (10/3). I had to borrow from my grandmother or apply for their credit card before leaving the vet. They were very kind, but require payment at the time of service. I knew I couldn't afford anything at the time so I asked they not do anything unnecessary because the doctor had explained that given his injuries the chances of helping him without causing more suffering were very low. He exhibited classic symptoms for broken neck and back, which were consistent with the puncture wounds. Therefore, I did not even order an x-ray to confirm but asked that my children and I be permitted a few moments to be with him and say good-bye before doing what we determined was most humane. Our home is so empty these past few days. We have another pet who very closely resembles Champ from this story, she too is lonely. He was a very submissive little guy-our "Shy" guy. The profile icon is of him from Christmas. I'm trying to pursue additional information, but the dog owners rent and the home owner is not answering calls at the best number I could locate and Animal Service has not returned calls since they returned the dogs - I assume for them this matter is considered "Case Closed." I may at least pursue filing a claim or complaint for reimbursement, but I work full time, am a single parent, take night and online classes, and am trying to work part-time in addition to meet my other obligations as it is so time and money are the usual obstacles. I am a legal assistant by profession so I can prepare the documents. I would rather litigation not be a necessary step - I was hoping merely for common decency and responsibility. Thank you for the input and information. I think most people just react with outrage and disbelief when we are struck with such situations and have enough difficulty just processing the tragedy. Expressions of support are appreciated. Thank you.
 @Krisjen Wow. This makes me think. Warmfrost is right. I'm actually going to ask around, some friends in good places :) and see what I come up with. If I can figure something out, I promise I will get back to you on this page.
Take care and stay safe Kristen.
Who is your vet? I will donate $$ for you if you would like. I don't have a lot, but I can help a bit.
I'm more concerned for you and your children. I know I'm not a detective anymore, but I can still help and will get back to you one way or another.
Let me know how you are doing, if you would like, and I'll get on this today.
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@KrisjenReport it to their home owners insurance. Â I had a neighbor's dog chase me back to my house from the road, and I fell and took my knee out. Â I called the animal shelter to get the dog contained, and it was a friendly suggestion by the animal control person to just call their home owners insurance, and they would take care of the rest: Â A new fence went up in their yard fairly quickly, and the dog was gone within the year.
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Magic!
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 @Warmfrost  @Krisjen Warmfrost, could you describe briefly to Kristen how you obtained the info for their homeowner's policy? Did you go through your own? I will work the owner's side of negligence.
Thank you for your insight. That should help her.
Eric,
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Again I write you and this time I am a happier person knowing that she has another friend to have for life.
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I am truely sorry about what happened. I know the owner of the other dog and the other dog, to my knowledge, had always been nice and happy. I even let him play with my dog, but, alas, it seems nice was not on his mind when he killed Champ.
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But now Melina has a second chance. A chance to have a happy childhood, a chance to grow stronger from his and a chance to know that Angels do truely exist.
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Thank you, Eric. Thank you for also making my heart happier knowing she's happy and now I can go to sleep and not fear darkness in this world.
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Signing this,
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Once Crying, Now Happier About Angels Being True.
@Grey Wolfe If in fact, you know the owner of that dog, please turn him in - make a call to the police. He displayed an obscene lack of humanity when he allowed his dog off leash in a public park to attack and kill another dog.Â
How do we know that the dog won't attack a small child or how many other dogs he may have already killed?
The owner is clearly irresponsible and needs to face the consequences.
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"All that is required for evil to prevail is for good men to do nothing."
 @Grey Wolfe I don't understand how you can know what dog killed the chihuahua, let alone its owner, unless you either witnessed the attack or you are actually the owner of the dog yourself. This was not only a horrific event, but a crime, and the owner needs to be held responsible. I hope you will come forward with information on who the owner is, and if you do not, I hope the owners of the dog pursue this with the authorities.  Hopefully you did not post from an internet cafe, and there is an electronic trail that will lead back to you. At the very least you know who the owner of the dangerous dog is, you know who the irresponsible and heartless owner is, and you can be encouraged to do the right thing and come forward with this information.Â
 @Grey Wolfe If you know the owner of the other dog you should turn their miserable ass over to the proper authorities. The owner sounds like a real gem of a person. What's stopping him or his dog from doing this again? Obviously not you.
KARMA happens, ...don't believe me? Try doing something nice for someone, without expecting anything in return, and Bam. It revisits you. Same when you do something bad. Don't believe me? Keep going on that road you're on; you will see. People who do not know this, are fools.
Where were the other dog owners? Were they the only two people there? Why didn't someone follow him and get his license plate number? This is one reason I walk my dog in the woods.Â
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There needs to be a high priority put on catching that guy, he's obviously twisted. Who knows what he will do next.
If I run into that guy with the big dog, it won't be the dog that ends up dead.
I am very emotional about animal things. I know little dogs can bite. I have a rescue Bijon who has bitten a couple of times. Somehow, I don't think Champ did anything wrong. The owner of the larger dog was absolutely responsible of his dog. The owner is not only a killer but a sadist as well. He should have kept his mourh shut and done what he could to help Champ. The owner should be put town. Thank you Mr. Bertleson for restoring Diana's faith in other humans. Bleach will show her again how loving a dog can be.
I am so sorry this little girl had to lose her dog, Champ, in such a traumatic fashion, it is never easy to lose a loved animal, but for a little girl to have to witness such an attack is just unimaginable. I am also very thankful that there are good people in this world like, Eric Bertlesen, who will try to right what wrongs the can in whatever way they can. Well done, sir, well done.
I was quite frankly too choked up to read this to my wife, but I somehow managed to. I really sometimes, can't believe how good some people can be. This is an amazingly heartbreaking story with an equally happy ending.
Sorry for your loss little one. Take your mommy and daddy to the park every chance you get to see if you can see this bad man again. Then have mommy and daddy call the police.
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He doesn't deserve a dog.
I am sorry this little girl lost her beloved dog. I think this story is missing some information though. Was this an off-leash park? Was the larger dog leashed? Was the chihuaua off leash or on?  It doesn't say. My own experiences while walking my leashed golden way too often have a small breed dog racing (off leash) out of nowhere and flying into my retrievers face and drawing blood for no reason at all. My golden is goofy and passive and never hurt a flea. But some of those small breeds attack for no reason. I'm wondering what the circumstances where in this story.Â
 @achoo2 From the original story, it sounded like both dogs were leashed in a regular park, but the big dog broke out of his collar somehow.  I have one of those small dogs who are psycho toward big dogs, so I get what you mean though.
@Doxie  Thanks. I missed the original I guess.Â
why do you hope he gets his dogs fixed? Seems a pretty judgemental and unnecessary comment to make
 @achoo2 Sure - it was just a couple days ago.  This man did a wonderful  thing for this little girl and her family, but I hope he gets one or both of his dogs fixed. Â
I wish kindness like this was the norm rather than the exception. Â Thanks to Mr. Bertlesen for showing this little girl that not all the anonymous adults out there are monsters.
What a wonderful sweet thing for Mr. Bertlesen to do. Terribly sad to hear about Champ and that the little girl had to witness such a horrible thing, shame on the dog owner for being so heartless. I hope that Bleach will help with the grieving process.
A sad story, with a good ending. Too bad the little girl had to witness such violence. She will be haunted by it the rest of her life. I hope the jerk who owns the other dog is also haunted the rest of his life for being such a Coward and not at least taking responsibility.
There is a dog that needs to be put down and owner that needs to be put in jail.
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Thank you Mr. Bertlesen for your kindness. You are a hero to a little girl and a shining example of humanity to us all.
The dog is probably retrainable, the owner should be put down. @leftcenterright
Eric? This world truly NEEDS more people like you. Thank you for your thoughtful act of kindness, and I hope others learn from it, and keep the trend going. As far as the guy who's dog killed Champ? Well, I won't go into what I feel about him right now. You are the Yin to his Yang. Thanks for the best story of the week.