A dog hit my Toyota!

[areamike]

Well, long story even longer. I was driving home after running some errands. I was on a back neighborhood road doing about 20-25mph. My cell phone rang, I reached down in the console to grab it, looked back up and right in front of me is a medium sized dog. Little SOB came out of no where. I immediately hit the brakes and heard a dreaded "thunk" sound accompanied by a little "yelp" from the dog. I proceeded to idle forward, thinking he was stuck under the vehicle as I never saw him exit out the back in my rear view mirror. A few more feet traveled and still no dog. At this point,I'm getting nervous, so I pull over.

As I step out and look under the HL, I see nothing and then hear a person say "he ran off!" I look up and there is a couple getting out of their car that saw the whole thing. He says again. "He ran off over there", pointing at a pretty run-down house.

We proceed to go find the dog and approach the house with a "fenced-in" backyard. A lady comes out in a white tank top, no bra, smoking a cigarette, messed up hair, grey sweat pants pulled up to her knees and rolled down so you can see her muffin top. What a site! She finds her dog, does a quick exam and says" Oh, he's alright, just a little scared".

So now I go to assess the damages to the HL. Somehow the little SOB knocked the fog lamp cover out. In the process, it scuffed the front bumper pretty good, and put a small crack in it. Also one of the tabs that holds the fog lamp cover in is broken on one end. So, you can't put the fog lap cover back on without it possibly falling back out.

So, I take it to 4 different body shops for estimates.

1st - Toyota Collision repair. They say they can "fix it" without replacing the bumper. Total cost: 633.05

2nd - Jon's Body Shop. They say they need to replace the entire bumper, paint finish etc. Broken clip(s) are hard to repair. Total Cost: 659.78

3rd - Abbotts Precision Collision. They say they can "repair it" like Toyota said. Total cost: 382.21

4th - Twin City. They say they will replace entire bumper, paint finish etc. Total Cost: 881.17

My only concern is repairs. I would much rather have someone replace the entire bumper. I don't think those clips that hold the fog lamp cover in are going to hold. After that, my next xoncern is color matching. I fear I will be able to see a difference in the paint once it's done. My only hope is that since the vehicle is so new that very little if any paint fading has happened.

Here's some pics:








Any advice? I don't want to turn it into Insurance. My deductible is 500 bucks, so it's probably not worth running it through insurance.

[f1monkey]

So how exactly did the dog hit you again? Looks like he got hit pretty hard to do that much damage.

[TrailDust]

That's some hard luck, man, I feel for you! I've hit coyote's tails twice, and once almost blasted a dumb dog into the next world at 60 MPH, but luckily avoided a direct hit. For $600+ dollars to repair, I'll make sure to be more vigilant!

[areamike]

Originally Posted by f1monkey

So how exactly did the dog hit you again? Looks like he got hit pretty hard to do that much damage.

Yeah he did. I have no idea how he survived that, let alone walked away pretty much unhurt. He literally smacked the bumper then rolled under the entire length of the vehicle. I'm still amazed he missed the tires....or as it were...the tires missed him.

However, who walked away unscathed is the question here.
At the very least it's a comprehensive collision, meaning neither I nor the dog were responsible. However, in some States/Areas, it is the dog owner's responsibility for damages caused from an accident between a vehicle and his/her pet.

Needless to say, it is not a law in Indiana and even if it were, the dog owner didn't look like she had insurance on ANYTHING.

[aznstylez]

Originally Posted by f1monkey

So how exactly did the dog hit you again? Looks like he got hit pretty hard to do that much damage.

Dang it, did you have to asked the question first?

[Thunderchief]

Must have been an armored plated dog to break the car and walk away. Best bet, just suck this one up and don't contact insurance. Go with the shop that you feel most comfortable. A good shop will paint match so well that you will never know it happend.

[bobert1634]

I'm not seeing any pics or links.

[naturoses]

Originally Posted by areamike

Well, long story even longer. I was driving home after running some errands. I was on a back neighborhood road doing about 20-25mph. My cell phone rang, I reached down in the console to grab it, looked back up and right in front of me is a medium sized dog. Little SOB came out of no where. I immediately hit the brakes and heard a dreaded "thunk" sound accompanied by a little "yelp" from the dog. I proceeded to idle forward, thinking he was stuck under the vehicle as I never saw him exit out the back in my rear view mirror. A few more feet traveled and still no dog. At this point,I'm getting nervous, so I pull over.

As I step out and look under the HL, I see nothing and then hear a person say "he ran off!" I look up and there is a couple getting out of their car that saw the whole thing. He says again. "He ran off over there", pointing at a pretty run-down house.

We proceed to go find the dog and approach the house with a "fenced-in" backyard. A lady comes out in a white tank top, no bra, smoking a cigarette, messed up hair, grey sweat pants pulled up to her knees and rolled down so you can see her muffin top. What a site! She finds her dog, does a quick exam and says" Oh, he's alright, just a little scared".

So now I go to assess the damages to the HL. Somehow the little SOB knocked the fog lamp cover out. In the process, it scuffed the front bumper pretty good, and put a small crack in it. Also one of the tabs that holds the fog lamp cover in is broken on one end. So, you can't put the fog lap cover back on without it possibly falling back out.

So, I take it to 4 different body shops for estimates.

1st - Toyota Collision repair. They say they can "fix it" without replacing the bumper. Total cost: 633.05

2nd - Jon's Body Shop. They say they need to replace the entire bumper, paint finish etc. Broken clip(s) are hard to repair. Total Cost: 659.78

3rd - Abbotts Precision Collision. They say they can "repair it" like Toyota said. Total cost: 382.21

4th - Twin City. They say they will replace entire bumper, paint finish etc. Total Cost: 881.17

My only concern is repairs. I would much rather have someone replace the entire bumper. I don't think those clips that hold the fog lamp cover in are going to hold. After that, my next xoncern is color matching. I fear I will be able to see a difference in the paint once it's done. My only hope is that since the vehicle is so new that very little if any paint fading has happened.

Here's some pics:




Any advice? I don't want to turn it into Insurance. My deductible is 500 bucks, so it's probably not worth running it through insurance.

First of all, I am sorry to hear that. I feel your pain. That insert which you say is missing i like that on mine. see my picture

[areamike]

^^ Is that hole filled in on your RH side one?

[Yazon]

This is messed up. You hit a dog because you are distracted by a cell phone, you don't stop but keep on rolling when a live being could be stuck under your car. You go to check on a dog because people are watching and then describe the owner in clearly neagive light to make it sound like it is OK to hit dogs of people who who don't look their best.
And then still, you proceed to worry about a broken light?
Did you take a dog to the vet? The dog could be in shock and have fractured skull, broken teeth, broken bones, concussion and life long medical problems.

I know that dogs are not supposed to be off-leash and running in the streets, but you did hit a dog. It's like hitting a human - doesn't mater who is at fault, first things first - get medical help and get checked out.

I've had a dog that was hit so hard, she almost died. Her entire lower jaw was hanging on by the muscles. Her teeth were shattered and she had a crack in her scull. We had to have a vet reassemble her in the middle of the night at our house, while using common tools.
So pardon me if i sound harsh, but your worry about the car and lack of worries about the animal sounds wrong. Not to say that in order to crack bumper and knock out a light, you would have to move faster than 20mph, which is only slightly faster than a running human and dogs have no problems crossing the pathway of a human.

[84Cressida]

Reminds me of this commerical...

You Tube

You Tube

[areamike]

Originally Posted by Yazon

This is messed up. You hit a dog because you are distracted by a cell phone, you don't stop but keep on rolling when a live being could be stuck under your car. You go to check on a dog because people are watching and then describe the owner in clearly neagive light to make it sound like it is OK to hit dogs of people who who don't look their best.
And then still, you proceed to worry about a broken light?
Did you take a dog to the vet? The dog could be in shock and have fractured skull, broken teeth, broken bones, concussion and life long medical problems.

I know that dogs are not supposed to be off-leash and running in the streets, but you did hit a dog. It's like hitting a human - doesn't mater who is at fault, first things first - get medical help and get checked out.

I've had a dog that was hit so hard, she almost died. Her entire lower jaw was hanging on by the muscles. Her teeth were shattered and she had a crack in her scull. We had to have a vet reassemble her in the middle of the night at our house, while using common tools.
So pardon me if i sound harsh, but your worry about the car and lack of worries about the animal sounds wrong. Not to say that in order to crack bumper and knock out a light, you would have to move faster than 20mph, which is only slightly faster than a running human and dogs have no problems crossing the pathway of a human.

According to the owner's assessment, her dog was "just fine".

And you kind of do sound harsh. No need to apologize to justify your opinion.

Facts are facts. In the end, the dog lived to run another day. If I had hurt it badly or even killed it then, sure I'd feel terrible. But in hind-site, I don't feel any remorse.
And don't get me wrong. The owner's appearance and the fact that she looked the stereotype is not her fault. And the fact she had a gaping hole in her fence that you could drive a truck through is not her fault either. Must have all been my fault. Perhaps, I should go back over there and offer money to fix her fence so her dog can't get out and run in front of moving vehicles on a road? I'm sure in some way if her dog is ever hit again it will be my fault for not being more proactive to her situation and not being able to keep her dog within the perimeter of her property.

Also, I was not going one single mile over 20. That road is patrolled by police all the time. Mainly for the fact that it is a "shady" side of town. The dog just happened to hit the...errr. I mean, my vehicle just happened to hit the dog just perfect enough to cause the vehicle damage but not damage to the dog. Sounds like the Dog came out a winner in my story. You should be happy!

Lastly, There is no way I would have missed the dog even if I was not "distracted" by my cell phone. My choices were, telephone pole, tree, other car head-on or Dog. Is my life or another Human being's life worth more or less than a run-away dog? I've hit and missed many animals over my years of driving and the only times I've ever swerved to miss them is when I could.

[naturoses]

Originally Posted by areamike

According to the owner's assessment, her dog was "just fine".

And you kind of do sound harsh. No need to apologize to justify your opinion.

Facts are facts. In the end, the dog lived to run another day. If I had hurt it badly or even killed it then, sure I'd feel terrible. But in hind-site, I don't feel any remorse.
And don't get me wrong. The owner's appearance and the fact that she looked the stereotype is not her fault. And the fact she had a gaping hole in her fence that you could drive a truck through is not her fault either. Must have all been my fault. Perhaps, I should go back over there and offer money to fix her fence so her dog can't get out and run in front of moving vehicles on a road? I'm sure in some way if her dog is ever hit again it will be my fault for not being more proactive to her situation and not being able to keep her dog within the perimeter of her property.

Also, I was not going one single mile over 20. That road is patrolled by police all the time. Mainly for the fact that it is a "shady" side of town. The dog just happened to hit the...errr. I mean, my vehicle just happened to hit the dog just perfect enough to cause the vehicle damage but not damage to the dog. Sounds like the Dog came out a winner in my story. You should be happy!

Lastly, There is no way I would have missed the dog even if I was not "distracted" by my cell phone. My choices were, telephone pole, tree, other car head-on or Dog. Is my life or another Human being's life worth more or less than a run-away dog? I've hit and missed many animals over my years of driving and the only times I've ever swerved to miss them is when I could.

Areamike: Do not worry about some comments. Everybody has their opinion when it becomes public. If I look at your situation: you did not hit a dog on purpose, it is an accident. Since, you are kind you stopped and inquired about the dog. I also feel that you are very honest individual. Keep it up

Yazon: Do not get me wrong. If I have to comment, I completely agree with the dog's condition but there is so much he can do. In my eyes, the pet's owner should also be more worried. In this case, the pet's owner looks cool. If something like that happens to my dog, I would be shivering because we love our pets. When she is so cool, Areamike cannot take away her dog forcibly too. Also, the fact the pet's owner is so cool means that these sort of incidents have taken place in the past. No doubt about it and the dog should be given proper care and attention and NOT left out to roam on the streets. This is my opinion. Sorry, please do not get me wrong.

Coming to the fog light stuff: there is no filling or something on the Right side, It is as it is. The left is like that but filled. See the pic.

[areamike]

Originally Posted by naturoses

Areamike: Do not worry about some comments. Everybody has their opinion when it becomes public. If I look at your situation: you did not hit a dog on purpose, it is an accident. Since, you are kind you stopped and inquired about the dog. I also feel that you are very honest individual. Keep it up

Yazon: Do not get me wrong. If I have to comment, I completely agree with the dog's condition but there is so much he can do. In my eyes, the pet's owner should also be more worried. In this case, the pet's owner looks cool. If something like that happens to my dog, I would be shivering because we love our pets. When she is so cool, Areamike cannot take away her dog forcibly too. Also, the fact the pet's owner is so cool means that these sort of incidents have taken place in the past. No doubt about it and the dog should be given proper care and attention and NOT left out to roam on the streets. This is my opinion. Sorry, please do not get me wrong.

Coming to the fog light stuff: there is no filling or something on the Right side, It is as it is. The left is like that but filled. See the pic.

True. And I did not stop simply because someone else did. I had no idea where the dog was. If it weren't for those other people that stopped, I would have never known if the dog was okay or not or even which direction it ran. I could have spent the rest of the day knocking on doors and never found the dog or owner.

naturoses: Thanks for the verification and the picture. The only reason I could see why Toyota did not cover the hole on the LH(driver side) fog lamp cover is for ventilation into a duct throug that side. I think it has something to do with the tow prep packages. Through that opening on the LH side is actually a duct to a vent with a metal filter.

[naturoses]

Originally Posted by areamike

True. And I did not stop simply because someone else did. I had no idea where the dog was. If it weren't for those other people that stopped, I would have never known if the dog was okay or not or even which direction it ran. I could have spent the rest of the day knocking on doors and never found the dog or owner.

naturoses: Thanks for the verification and the picture. The only reason I could see why Toyota did not cover the hole on the LH(driver side) fog lamp cover is for ventilation into a duct throug that side. I think it has something to do with the tow prep packages. Through that opening on the LH side is actually a duct to a vent with a metal filter.

No problem, take care and Good luck, Please let us know how the repair went....