I run over a small dog and killed it.

[caringcarer]

We are on holiday in France. Yesterday i was driving along a busy main road at about 7pm evening when a very small dog ran out of a hedge in front of my car and I hit it. I was not driving up to 70km limit but about 60km. I pulled off of road at next junction about 200m down road and parked up and walked back to see if it was still alive. It was dead. I moved it to side of road. It had old collar on but no name or phone number. I walked back along road anout half a mile to 4 houses and knocked on doors and asked with my limited French if they had a small white dog but none of them did. I told them dog was dead. None of the people I spoke to seemed very interested. No other houses around. I did not know what else to do so eventually after about 1 hour I gave up. I just felt so sad but did not know what else I could do. Had dog still been alive I would have put in car and tried to find a vet still open. I can't stop thinking about it. what would you have done? I had my dh, 13 year old with learning disability and our two dogs in car with me at time.

Probably just the same as you.

If I were on social media and spoke French, I might do something there

It must have been very upsetting for you, but there was nothing more you could have done. A lot of French people have a laissez faire attitude to their animals. I have stopped & knocked several times in France to tell reunite dogs with their careless owners.... we gave a loving home to one dog we found years ago, start of hunting season and he was a youngster, his buddy lying dead in the road....
You did your best OP.

I did not sleep at all last night. I kept wondering if it belonged to a child or an elderly person and only companion. It was really small like a very miniature terrier. I keep wondering if I should have left a note with it with my name and phone number on but did not think of it at time.

Poor dog and poor you.

You could have taken the body to a vet to see if it was identified by chip but with your DD and dogs in the car it may not have been a practical thing to do.

A lot of dogs are allowed to roam in France and often get hit by cars because they run into the middle of the road. Two dogs have died like this in my hamlet the few years we have lived here.

Just want to say that similar has happened to me. I was trundling along at about 10-15 mph on my motorcycle in Greece and a large cat strolled out from between two parked cars just in front of me and I had no way of avoiding it(did try very hard) and ran it over. I can still feel the sensation. I looked for it immediately afterwards but it had disappeared. It must definitely have been very seriously injured and I just hope it died very quickly indeed. I have never forgotten it and it was years and years ago.

Awful all round but I don’t think that there was much more you could’ve done to find the owner of the dog, given the circumstances.

I think you did everything you could OP. I'm sorry it happened to you, it's very upsetting. I ran over a dog once and it was weeks before I could drive again.