How much is your dog worth? Onalaska family asking Supreme Court

Family seeking compensation beyond
insurance cost of “similar dog”

A court case involving injuries sustained by a dog in Onalaska may be headed to the Wisconsin Supreme Court.  

A court of appeals has rejected the claims of a family, who were trying to get full compensation for the bills they had to pay after Ella, their 11-year-old West Highland White Terrier, was attacked and mauled by a neighbor’s German Shepard. 

The medical bills from a Madison clinic – where the family had to travel multiple times – for Ella came to $12,000. 

Courts, however, say the family’s only entitled to the replacement insurance cost of a similar dog of $2,695.

The family had argued that their pet has sentimental and emotional value far beyond its market replacement value.