'I found your dog. I love your dog and I'm not giving your dog back

[Liberal_in_LA]

Seven years ago, Mary Bollero's beloved dog Little Girl was stolen. So imagine her joy when a vet's clinic informed her that her pooch was at the office. Now imagine Bollero's horror when she was told...

Heartache for owner of stolen pooch

Seven years ago, Mary Bollero's beloved dog Little Girl was stolen. So imagine her joy when a vet's clinic informed her that her pooch was at the office. Now imagine Bollero's horror when she was told that she couldn't get Little Girl back because of a 30-day rule used by shelters. Not only that, but the clinic helped her get in touch with a South San Francisco man who reportedly has the dog. Bollero said the current "owner" told her over the phone:

"'I found your dog. I love your dog and I'm not giving your dog back.'"

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/scavenger/detail?entry_id=71569&tsp=1#ixzz0yUn6UqYu

more info

So when Bollero got to the clinic with the dog's license and papers, the police report from seven years ago, none of that mattered.

"My dog had been given to the person that brought the dog in. I was absolutely horrified," said Bollero.

The veterinary clinic did put the Bollero on the phone with the young man who took her dog.

"He said I found your dog. I love your dog and I'm not giving your dog back," said Bollero.

When asked why the clinic didn't just wait until the woman got there with the documents to prove that the dog was hers, Koeman replied, "Well again we were following the instructions we were given."

When Koeman was asked what about common sense in this case, he replied, "Well common sense is one thing, the law is another."

The watch commander at the San Mateo Police Department said he was not on duty when this happened, but he has never heard of a 30-day finders keepers law.

ABC7 tried to speak with the South San Francisco man who has the dog, but the clinic could give out his information or give his information to Bollero. For any information, the manager said Bollero would have to get a subpoena.

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local/peninsula&id=7647663

[hedgehog]

1. Does't this make this person a receiver of stolen goods?

[SoCalDem]

7. If he found the dog running loose, he did not steal it

The fact that he took it to the pound indicated to me that he was not the one who stole it.. why would someone steal a dog, only to turn it in at the pound? It may have gotten away from the one who "stole" it, and then was found by the second person..or maybe it was never stolen...maybe it escaped from a yard or an open door.

The pound should have kept the dog long enough for the original owner to at least be able to claim it...but after 7 years, I'm sure the dog has new bonds (although it probably does remember the first owner)..sad but other than complaining about it and maybe trying to sue, I don;t see an "easy" resolution..

At least the first owner has the peace of mind of knowing that her beloved dog die not die an anonymous death somewhere. Most people whose pets vanish, NEVER get to know "what happened to them"..

[Lasher]

87. You don't have to steal something to be a receiver of stolen goods.

If you are in possession of a stolen car, for example, you are violating the law - regardless of how you acquired it.

[Catherina]

2. Sorry. As a dog lover, I sympathize with both. I hope they can work it out but

I give priority here to the new owners who did nothing wrong.

The old owners should be overjoyed that Little Girl is alive and loved.

The new owners should show compassion for the original owners and return the dog but they should get first ownership rights.

[DireStrike]

5. never mind

[End Of The Road]

6. +1 After all, they've been caring for the dog for seven years now. nt

[redwitch]

16. As she IS the first owner why should they get first ownership rights?

Makes no sense.

[Green_Lantern]

30. dogs aren't necessarily property...if you dump a piece of property

In a trash can it's legal but dump a dog and you can be rightfully prosecuted.

[redwitch]

39. She didn't dump her dog. She lost her dog.

Microchipped and all.

[Green_Lantern]

41. my point was that property law isn't the issue much like the case

Of children. Their welfare is top priority.

[superduperfarleft]

42. Actually, unfortunately, under the law, animals ARE nothing more than property.

If this goes to court, the judge will treat the dog as nothing more than a piece of furniture.

[Green_Lantern]

44. if they were just property there'd be no animal cruelty laws...

Watch Animal Cops and you'll see judges forcing people to give up custody of pets.

[superduperfarleft]

45. Watch people try to recoup damages when their animals are injured.

I just saw an episode of Peoples Court where a woman sued the "owner" of the dog she hit for car damages, and won.

Nevermind the fact that cruelty laws are VERY different for "pets." Its perfectly legal to do things to farm animals that would land you in jail if done to a dog or cat.

[no_hypocrisy]

3. The dog was never abandoned. It belongs to her.

Property Law.

[Vehl]

4. I agree nt

[lillypaddle]

8. I have two rescue dogs

I've had one for 7 years, the other for 5 years. Heaven forbid if someone showed up and informed me one of them was theirs. These are MY dogs - I've cared for them (one had a $4000 surgery), fed them and loved them for a long time, and NOBODY is going to claim they aren't mine. I feel for the original owner, but she has had 7 years to move on.

[Liberal_in_LA]

10. I see your point.

[earth mom]

15. Sorry but you are wrong here. How can you feel good about keeping someone

else's pet that they loved and grieved over when it was lost?

Sorry, but that is pretty selfish and unfair of you.

[lillypaddle]

28. You never fail to amaze me

"earth" mom.

[earth mom]

52. I don't have a clue who the hell you are & frankly I don't care to know you after that comment!

If you don't see how selfish you are being that's your problem!

[jberryhill]

35. Who matters most to you in the story? The people or the dog?

[earth mom]

53. What matters to me is that someone stole a pet that someone loved and won't give it back.

That should outrage everyone here!

No matter how long that guy owned that dog it wasn't his in the first place! Simple as that!

[npk]

56. I agree with earth mom

All the shelter had to do was contact the police department, which is required in my state for any dog that is found by a shelter. If they had done this they would have discovered that the dog was reported stolen and the original owner would have been contacted, long before the dog was given a new home. I do love the quote in the story, "What about common sense." Yep it's gone, bye bye.

[jberryhill]

65. Also not responsive to the question

Last time - do the dog's feelings matter to you?

[LisaL]

78. Well the story says they did contact the police.

But police said to give the dog to whoever brought the dog in because whoever had the dog had it for more than 30 days.

[jberryhill]

64. First, the dog is not stolen

But you did not answer the question.

In between calling everyone selfish, could you fill us in on your thoughts about whether the dog's feelings are at all a factor in how you see this situation?

Calling me selfish is stupid - I don't want the dog, okay?

But I believe you have demonstrated that the dog's well being is nothing to you. And your treatment of other people is consistent with a lack of empathy - not just as it relates to the dog.

[earth mom]

84. Your treatment of me on this thread shows your total lack of compassion

look how you've tried to smear me several times now.

Where in the hell do you get off saying my treatment of other people shows a lack of empthy?! WTF! If anything, I have always been a total bleeding heart about all the pain and suffering I see on this planet every damn day! Pain and injustice is what I rail against everytime I come to DU!

But at the same time-Whenever I am attacked in any way shape or form, I will fight back! I'm not gonna let you or anyone try to mow me down for sport.

So take your sociopathic bullshit and shove it because you are NOT worth my time or energy!

I feel sorry for your pets-they deserve better.

[Abq_Sarah]

20. I have two dogs

Who showed up as strays on my property over the last 8 years. I checked with all of the vets, the shelter, the kennels, the lost dog ads on the radio and newspapers in the county and no one ever reported either of them missing. If someone showed up years later demanding their return, they'd be in for a fight.

[jberryhill]

24. I will bet you....

...that most of the "return the dog" contingent does not have a dog.

My dog was found abandoned and injured after a car accident in Philadelphia eight years ago. We brought her back to life from a shy, timid and scared wretch to a healthy happy loving dog who loves people, children, and pines for us in our absence.

The dog is bonded with our pack, and returning her to her "original owner" from eight years ago would simply be cruel to the dog.

[earth mom]

55. Wrong! I've had 3 dogs and the last dog I had died 3 years ago of old age at 12.

Best dog I've ever had and my best friend too.

Our family was heartbroken when she died and our home feels empty without her.

If someone had stolen her years ago, I would have lost it!

How in the hell is it cruel to return something that isn't really yours in the first place?! :wtf:

Your attitude is selfish and self serving and if you can't admit it that's your problem.

[jberryhill]

62. Good golly, thanks for the diagnosis

Your position is that it is okay to be cruel to an animal.

This dog is not a puppy and should not be taken from its pack.

And your attitude toward people suggests you lack the emotional capacity to care how the dog - or anyone else - feels.

Even in situations involving child custody, the standard is the bests interests of the child, not property law. And, I'm sorry, but I believe the dog is entitled to consideration of its emotional well being.

Whomever or whatever it is you lost or was taken from you in your life, you should find a way to deal with it without taking it out on other people.

Ciao.

[earth mom]

83. Where in the hell is your compassion for the woman who owned the dog in the first place?!

I'd say it is you who is lacking in compassion and emotional capacity to care for your fellow human being or animal.

And dragging my feelings about the loss of my dog through the mud is a low blow.

But you know that already.

Isn't that what sociopaths do-hit you when you're down?

[geek_sabre]

70. Lets say two children are switched at birth

After 7 years, the mistake is discovered. Would you support sending the children back to their birth parents? Or, would you do what is best for the kids, and leave the with the parents they had bonded with during the first 7 years of their life.

What if one of the children is kidnapped or dies during infancy, and the switch is discovered years later. Would you support sending the other child back to her biological parents?

[LisaL]

74. Well, one thing is certain-police isn't just going to show up

and switch the children to their bio parents.

[a la izquierda]

76. Us too...

three strays, as a matter of fact. First thing we did was check for chips. Then contacted local vets, put ads up all over the place, ads on Craigslist and gave photos and our information to the shelter. We let the shelter know we were happy to foster the dogs until their owners showed up. I would have been very happy to turn the dogs over to their original owners, but none ever materialized. In Oklahoma, the dog is considered yours after 7 days. We waited three weeks before we took the dogs to be neutered, just in case.

[Mojorabbit]

22. I totally agree

I have three rescue dogs and no way I would give them up after all these years.

[Bonhomme Richard]

9. A Solomon moment. n/t

[dixiegrrrrl]

11. "Well common sense is one thing, the law is another."

Sadly, true.

[npk]

57. Yes and laws can be changed

But again this country, intelligence to see injustice and how bad laws can hurt people, is lost on so many people.

(BTW, I am not talking about you dixiegrrrrl, I am talking about the general attitude in this country, especially of people that have a position of authority and the position to change things. )

[earth mom]

12. Wow, I can't believe some people justify what that guy did!

He should give the dog back to it's RIGHTFUL owner stat.

The dog was STOLEN. Anyone who keeps that dog is keeping STOLEN property.

And I don't like calling a dog "property" but that is the facts!

[Statistical]

27. Not true.

The dog was stolen, turned into a shelter, 30 days later it was unclaimed making it unclaimed property.

The man who found it claimed it, raised it, cared for it for 7 years. Yeah I support him. All three of our cats were abandoned/lost/stolen. We notified the shelter, had vet check them for a owner chip. Nothing.

We have loved them, cared for them, paid expensive bills (had to cancel a cruise for them) for years. The oldest one has been with us for 9 years now. Someone who showed up today and said "thats my cat" I would say I will see you in court.

[npk]

58. The shelter should have checked with the police

To see if the dog had been reported stolen or lost. Had they done that, it is likely that the original owner of the dog could have been notified long before 30 days passed.

[Green_Lantern]

31. the man in question didn't steal...

Maybe it just got loose.

[superduperfarleft]

43. What are you indignant about, the interest the "owner" has in her "property, or the welfare of the

dog?

Legally, you're correct. I think it's wholly unethical to treat a sentient creature like property, but that's unfortunately the way it is. I think most people are commenting on the morality of the situation, not the legality.

[jberryhill]

63. Some people think that law defines morality

The law is perfectly comfortable with moral monstrosity.

If I see you pass out and fall face down in a two inch puddle on the sidewalk, I can stand there, watch you drown, and then go get a cup of coffee at the Starbucks.

Remember that when you see someone propounding the law as if it were a guide to what is right.

[Curmudgeoness]

13. What is most amazing, and concerning to me it that there was

a microchip in this dog. The original owner had put a microchip in this dog, and it is really sad that it took seven years for anyone to check it. If I found a dog, this is the first thing that I would have checked before I decided to call it my own. I guess that says something for the uselessness of chips---which I always thought were excellent ideas.

[ejpoeta]

23. you have a great point. it's not like someone couldn't have found out who the dog's owner was.

would there be something on the dog so people would know htere was a microchip?

[Curmudgeoness]

46. It is my understanding that shelters will scan all strays brought in.

That means that if this dog was at a shelter, it should have been scanned. And since the vet clinic was able to find the owners after seven years, I would think that they were at the same residence as when the dog was microchipped. I wonder where that dog was all this time---doubt it was in a shelter or at a vet's office as a "found" dog. A vet would scan too if you took a dog you found and told them it was a stray. Hmmm.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

49. That's what I don't get about this story.

1) Why wasn't the chip scanned at the shelter 7 years ago? Perhaps it was relatively new technology at the time and the shelter didn't have a scanner or a compatible scanner?


2) Why was the new owner called after the original owner was contacted?


One of the morals of this story: NEVER take the collar off your dog and have current numbers on both the tags AND the chip companies.

[npk]

59. What do you mean, "where the dog was all this time..."

The dog was reported stolen by the original owner, at least according to the news article. It could be that the person who stole this dog kept the animal for unknown amount of time, and then, for whatever reason, decided to let the dog go. Who knows?

[csziggy]

50. I'm not current on hte technology but there used to be two types of microchips

The scanners for one type could not read the chips of the other type and vice versa. For many years while the technology was still expensive and not widely used, many shelters did not have scanners at all or only scanners of one type. So if the dog were chipped with a different one than the shelter had the scanners for, they may not have even realized that it had a chip.

The last time I checked a company was coming out with new scanners that could read both so more shelters were implementing chipping programs and getting scanners to read them. When I adopted my cat from the local shelter in 2001, there was still some question about reading the chips, but the shelter people told me that was being solved.

It could be that in the seven years since the dog in the OP story originally vanished, the scanning has become more universal and that is why it was identified now.

[LisaL]

75. But why did they even scan the dog?

That's the part of the story that doesn't make sense. If you bring the dog for treatment, and say its your dog, the vet isn't going to scan the dog to see if it belongs to someone else.
Something is missing from the story? Why was the dog scanned, why did they call the woman only to give the dog back to whoever brought it in?

[csziggy]

85. It may be routine for the clinic to do it

I don't know about our vet's office, but it is at the shelter. Every animal brought in is scanned. In fact, every animal adopted out is chipped. That way, if an adopted animal is lost or abandoned, they can contact the owner. And if someone abandons an adopted animal, they will not be allowed to adopt another one from the local shelter.

[Alenne]

72. Most animals didn't have a chip 7 years ago

So shelters and vets didn't check. Now if you bring a found animal in, a microchip check is the first thing done.
The chip isn't useless at all. When our shelter in the NE got Katrina dogs and cats, the animals with chips were reunited with their owner almost immediately.

[nashville_brook]

82. i bet the chip was scanned and the info wasn't acted upon.

[Blues Heron]

14. The reason the dog had an implanted microchip

Was so it could be returned to the rightful owner if it should get scanned by, say, a vet. There's no "30 day then you get to keep it" law.

[xultar]

32. Sounds like the parents knew the dog had been found and ignored the calls

now the Vet calls and the daughter answers the phone.

Parents are busted.

[SheilaT]

17. I'd like to see some support for the claim

that the dog was stolen in the first place.

And seven years, seven freaking years have gone by with the dog being well treated by its new owner. Yes, the first owner should have long since moved on. Shouldn't she simply be overjoyed that her Little Girl was in a good, loving home?

I found the TV report a bit confusing and possibly misleading. Apparently this was the first time that dog's chip had ever been scanned anywhere by any vet or shelter. It strikes me as more than odd that the emergency clinic would scan the dog's chip, then call the original owner, even though it was brought in by someone else.

I had a cat show up on my front doorstep about four years ago. Starving, flea-infested, she apparently decided we were her absolutely last hope. So I took her in, cleared up the fleas, fed her, and eventually concluded she was probably at least 15 years old when she showed up. I have absolutely no idea why she was on the street, or how long she'd been there. We had three good years together and she died suddenly about a year ago. I often wondered if she'd been deliberately abandoned or somehow simply went astray and never found her way back to her original family. I suppose if someone had shown up with good proof she was theirs, I'd have given her back, but within a couple of months she was mine.

[Rhiannon12866]

18. How sad. My vet told me a story with a much happier ending...

He told me about a cat he had treated that somehow escaped from her owner on the way out to her car. This woman searched all over, but could not find the cat. I think it was about three years later, when a man walked in to the same veterinary clinic with a cat that he said they could no longer keep because they were moving. *sigh* Typical story. However, my vet recognized the cat as the one that had gotten away from his client! He told me that this cat must have crossed a nearby mountain to find her way to the home of the man who brought her in. My vet called the woman who had lost her cat and she showed up immediately to claim her. Happy ending. I wish that there were more like this... :)

[retread]

19. Ask the dog! n/t

[ejpoeta]

21. that is just sad. imagine someone finding a child and just deciding to keep them. i understand it

was 7 years, but.... it doesn't make it right. if you love someone (or an animal) wouldn't you then give them to the original person they lived with? i don't know. i know we found a couple of dogs wandering outside. we brought them in the house and started looking immediately for their owners. they were cute dogs. well behaved. it was obvious they had a family. we ended up contacting the shelter and the owners were found. but i also think that the shelter can't keep every dog that gets out forever. but the new owner should understand and at least make the effort to work something out.

[jberryhill]

25. And what about the dog's perspective?

Sorry, a dog is not going to understand being taken from the pack in which it has lived for eight years. Period.

It was not someone's stuffed teddy bear, it is a living breathing thing with complex emotions and social relationships.

It would be cruel to the dog.

Humans have more sophisticated ways of addressing their emotional situations than dogs do.

[alphafemale]

34. Yeah. To a dog that would be like someone ripping you away from your family after 40 yrs

I really don't understand the original owner not just being overjoyed that the dog has had a great life rather than dying of starvation or being hit by a car 7 yrs prior.

[Green_Lantern]

36. if someone found a child wandering around they'd be required to

Turn the child over to the state child welfare service. If they adopted the child legally then no the birth parents couldn't just take the kid back.

If you turn the dog over to the state animal shelter it'd probably sit in a kennel or be euthanised. Unlike kids there aren't many resources to this.

[jberryhill]

38. This dog is an adult, btw /nt

[Statistical]

26. That is why you microchip your pets.

Hell in 30 years when I am old they likely will microchip me.

[xchrom]

29. The dog was microchipped. Nt

[xultar]

33. I think the parents got busted on this one. There is more to this story

[flvegan]

37. Which is why the shelter held the dog 30 days.

What I'm willing to bet is missing from the story?

Most shelters (unless "no kill") keep a stray a certain number of days before they can be adopted or put down. They also keep a tagged dog with some form of identification a little longer and will attempt to contact the owner. A dog with a chip is often kept much longer and they attempt to call and will mail notification that they have the dog to the last known address. The last two shelters I was involved with, that amount of time is 30 days.

I'm betting the shelter read the chip and tried to contact her. Upon being unable, they put the pet up for adoption.

[hedgehog]

40. The one detail missing from the story is how long the people who brought it

into the vet had had the dog. The dog was missing for 7 years, but that doesn't mean they had it for 7 years. In fact, I think the story implied that the people had just obtained the dog and brought it to that clinic for the first time.

Another question - why would the clinic check the dog's chip, instead of assuming the people who brought it in owned it?

The dog hadn't been at any shelter; the clinic called the shelter to find out who should get the dog and also called the police station to double check.

Around here, the rule is that if an unidentified dog is turned into the animal shelter and unclaimed for a week, it can go up for adoption. Apparently in the San Francisco area, you have 30 days to claim your dog.

I don't know if our local shelters check for chips, but if the dog has tags or other ID, the owner gets a call.

Two piece of advice: my dogs have their dog licenses and further ID- Guinness is large so his collar is embroidered with his name and our phone #. Pooka is small, so he has a tag with the same info. Our dog Lassie slipped her collar and ran off one time while my husband was walking her in the woods. She came back, but without a collar she had no ID. Guinness and Pooka have harnesses to wear whenever I use a leash. This way I don't have to worry about them slipping the collar.

[Statistical]

51. I can answer the "why did vet check chip"

Our vet checks the chip once a year to make sure it is still readable and information is accurate. Likely that is where vet realized the animal was "chipped" to someone else.

[LisaL]

77. I've never had any of my pets scanned by any of the vets

after they got chipped years ago. And even assuming the vet regularly scans for a chip to see if information was accurate, why would the vet assume he needed to contact the original owner, only to give the dog back to whoever brought the dog in?

[Statistical]

79. Maybe the vet thought the original owner would feel better.

Knowing that her dog was safe and being taken cared off as opposed to wondering if it waa dead, hurt, or scared.

[Renew Deal]

47. That's a tough one.

How do they know the dog was stolen? Maybe it was just lost. And after 7 years, is the dog really hers anymore? The dog may be happy with it's current owner.

[justinaforjustice]

48. What About Sharing Custody of the Dog?

If both parties live within visiting distance, perhaps the former family and the current family could work out an arrangement to share time with the dog, perhaps based on the relative years they each had had the dog. Perhaps one or two weekends a month, the original owners could care for the dog, or some other mutually agreeable arrangement, assuming the dog likes all the folks involved.

[Roon]

67. I have a friend who got visitation for her and her ex's german shepard

she has two huge shepards at home already, but every friday night on her way home from work, she stops by her ex's and picks up a third shepard. Both my friend and her ex are happy. The dog is happy. They have been doing this for years.

[Iggo]

54. Get a fucking subpoena.

[Book Lover]

60. Updated story: "...he found the dog more than a month ago..."

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local/peninsula&id=7649758#&cmp=twi-kgo-article-7649758

A 22-year-old from South San Francisco named Kenneth Andrew Griffin has the dog. He claims he found the dog more than a month ago and on Friday morning ABC7 spoke with his mother.

...

When ABC7 said that the original owner would like to have to dog back, Hernandez said, "I know. Well, the police is the one that said... he owns the dog now."

Griffin's mother says she understands the difference between someone finding a dog and someone owning a dog, but she won't say where her son lives or how to reach him.

The San Mateo city attorney told ABC7 there is no finders keepers law in San Mateo, but they say it's a civil matter. Mary Bollero is being told she has to go through the courts in order to get her dog back.

[npk]

61. Of course she wont say where he lives. Her son is a fucking thief

And a smug, arrogant one at that.

[gaiangreentree]

80. solution

The shelters could just simply euthanize every unclaimed animal at the thirty day mark instead of allowing a noble and loving "fucking thief" to give the dog a home.

[Hugabear]

66. We picked up a Bichon from our local animal shelter

Two years ago, my wife and I found a Bichon at our local animal shelter. The dog had been picked up as a stray. At the time, he was maybe nine months old. We often wonder about who his original owner was, what his original name was, what kind of life he had before he got picked up. It's still hard for us to believe that a Bichon would have been running around loose. That little dog has brought so much joy to us, and at this point most of his life has been spent with us. To be honest, I'm really not sure if I could give him up if someone came by claiming that he belonged to them.

[Silver Gaia]

68. I lost a dog years ago...

We lived out in the country in the Tennessee hills at the time. He was used to running in the hills during the day, and it had never been a problem. He loved his freedom, and having recently moved from the city, where he'd had to be chained or fenced all the time (nothing wrong with that, but it was different in the hills) to the country, we loved that he could be so free. We loved this dog so very, very much. He went everywhere with us, and was a part of our family. We had no children. He was our baby.

But one spring day when he was around 3 years old, it began to rain. And rain. And rain. There was a small gurgling creek down the road that turned into a raging torrent in a matter of hours. Our beloved dog, our sweet baby, never came home. We searched high and low, contacted all the neighbors, the vet clinics (there were only two nearby), and the local dog pound. No luck. I grieved for him for a very, very long, time. He was in my dreams and in my waking thoughts for years. Not knowing if he was dead or alive was the worst part. We feared the worst. But eventually, I healed from my grief, and so did my husband.

One day, many years later (maybe even 7, although probably closer to 5), my husband came home and told me that he'd found him. He was driving down a country road a few miles away and thought he saw him out in someone's front yard. He stopped and got out to take a closer look. It was definitely him, and he sensed even a glimmer of recognition in his eyes. As he was petting him over the fence, an elderly man and woman came out of the house. He smiled, told them what a beautiful dog they had, and talked with them for a bit. They were happy to talk about their dog, and told him the story of how they'd gotten him.

The said they'd found him many years ago, during a heavy rainstorm, lying next to the road unable to walk. He had a broken leg, they said. They took him to a vet they knew one county over, and had his leg set, then took him home and nursed him back to health. It was obvious that they loved him with all their hearts and that he loved them as well, my husband told me, and he could tell that they were kind to him. He had a good and loving home. I drove by a few days later, and confirmed it was our long-lost and much-missed dog. It was painful to see him again, but it made me happy, too. (We'd always feared that he'd drowned in the flood.) He looked healthy and happy, and the elderly couple obviously loved him.

We left him there -- because it was the best thing to do FOR HIM. I wouldn't have dreamed of trying to take him from them, even if I could have. We saw no sense in attempting to rip him away from the people who had rescued him, cared for him as he healed, and welcomed him into their lives and their home. We never even told them our side of the story. We were just relieved to finally know that he was still alive and was well-loved, and felt it would serve no purpose to uproot him from what he'd come to think of as his home and his family.

Having been in a similar situation -- different, yet similar emotionally -- I can easily say I would want what was in the best interest of the dog, for HIS well-being and happiness. Seven years (or even 5) is a very, very, very long time for a dog. Bonds of love had been formed in that time. We'd loved him FIRST, and loved him still, but they'd loved him longer. It would have done him more harm than good to try to take him back. It would have been cruel, both for him and for the kind couple who had taken him in when he'd needed their help. I have never regretted our decision. Not once.

[Chicago dyke]

81. thank you for that beautiful story

a couple of animals of mine disappeared. don't get me wrong, i'm a good owner/companion. the first time was a dog that showed up one day, and was clearly half wild. i trained and trained with him, but one day he slipped his collar and leash and he ran off. we lived in a huge forest and i think he was just too wolf-like to want to be a human's dog. it's so nice to hear stories like yours, and believe something similar happened to him.

i vote leave the dog with the new owner. some of the facts of the story don't quite add up, but the bottom line should be with the dog. if it's not being abused and it's been with this guy for a long time, he should keep it. otoh, if he's only had it 30 days, i can understand why the woman would want it back. where was the dog for all that time, it's not clear to me.

[Silver Gaia]

86. You're most welcome...

I'm glad that it touched you in some way, and gave you hope for what happened to your dog. Thanks for sharing your story, too.

[elehhhhna]

69. I have a jerkface relative who did this to someone years ago..

and although he was very young and ignorant at the time, we have kept our distance from him since then. How low can a person go? Stealing somebody's dog is just plain evil.

[LWolf]

71. 7 years. At least half that dog's life.

I love my dog enough to let her go, to allow her to stay in her known home, with the person she's bonded with, were this ever to happen.

[LisaL]

73. 7 years is a really long time.

At this time the dog probably doesn't even remember an original owner.