08/22/2026
Hanson Hill Farm wants to share some information about a heartbreaking incident that occurred with a dog under our care, Bella.
First and most importantly, we are absolutely devastated over the loss of Bella. We know how terrible it is to lose a dog you love, and our hearts go out to Bella’s family. We have cared for dogs for many years and have never experienced anything like this.
Because we know there may be questions about what happened, we also want to be transparent about the circumstances.
Bella and her sibling were dropped off with us on the afternoon of August 20. At drop-off, we discussed the sibling dog's behavior and were asked to keep them together and separated from the other dogs. We documented those instructions at that time and followed them.
On August 21, the two dogs were outside together in our shaded play area with access to water and a pool during their 45-minute outdoor rotation. The outside temperature at the time was 79 degrees. We were unaware this was too long and too warm for Bella. We were not given explicit instructions to limit her outdoor time to 5 minutes. We were also watching the dogs on our camera and they were walking around and interacting normally. Bella laid down in the shade about 10 minutes before we brought her in. She was moving at this time and appeared normal.
When we went to bring them back inside, we recognized that Bella was in distress. We immediately provided first aid cooling measures, contacted the local emergency veterinary clinic, notified her owner, and transported Bella to the clinic for treatment. We remained at the veterinary clinic with Bella until her family arrived and kept them updated with the information we were receiving. In the end, the owner decided to euthanize the dog as she was 12 years old.
This has been very difficult for everyone involved. We take what happened extremely seriously and are carefully reviewing the circumstances surrounding Bella’s loss. We are incredibly heartbroken.
