Opinions desired on the case of a stolen dog - Page 2

some of the people involved in dog rescue are almost psycho and get so anal they add to the problem vs fixing the problem. I knew one lady who had over thirty dogs and no one ever met her requirements and in her mind it was better for the dogs to live with her all cramed in a small kennel and if lucky got out to play for 10 minutes per day.

Yep and that's why I'm not in rescue anymore.  It wasn't the people dumping the dogs getting me down, it was the crazy rescuers.  And I definitely don't mean all of them!!!

As requested....being that I am at home and not in my office at work, where I have all of this at my finger tips, here is what I took from the NH RSA

Source. 1985, 72:1. 1998, 368:2, eff. Aug. 25, 1998.

437:19 Notice to Owner; Reclaiming of Animals.

The operator of an animal care center having custody of an animal, the owner of which has refused or neglected to reclaim the animal for a period of 7 days, or has refused or neglected to pay the just fees and charges due for boarding, grooming, surgical, medical or other care of the animal for a period of 7 days, shall notify the owner by certified mail of the intention of the operator to treat the animal as an abandoned animal within the meaning of this subdivision if the owner does not reclaim the animal or pay the charges and fees within 7 days after the mailing of the notification. Any cat not licensed in accordance with RSA 466:13-a and which is reclaimed from an animal care center shall be released to the owner only upon proof of a current, valid rabies vaccination or upon being vaccinated against rabies in accordance with RSA 436.

HISTORY

Source. 1985, 72:1. 1998, 368:5, eff. Aug. 25, 1998.

437:20 Disposition of Abandoned Animals.

Ownership of an animal shall vest in the operator of the animal care center having custody thereof upon determination that the animal has been abandoned under the provisions of this subdivision, and the operator may dispose of such abandoned animal in any lawful manner as if he were its rightful owner.

Craigs List is run by some wierd characters who dont do the norm.

strange bunch on there.

I had almost  the same thing happen to me in  December with a choc sable cocker spaniel.he was taken a year before. I get a call from a shelter in seattle saying they have my dog.It cost me $800.00 and they made me neuter him before i could get him back.I told them i didn't want to neuter him and i shouldn't have to he is my dog.They said i would not get him back then if i don't neuter him.So i neuter him and he is home now  and i lost him as a stud dog.I was going to take them to court  for the loss of a stud dog but i was told by a layer i would lose,shelter can do want they like.

The NH statute is extremely similar. As an ACO in CT, we find a stray, advertise within 24 hours and hold the required 7 days. After that, the dog belongs to the rescue or adopter to do as they please.

Now, being that I operate a GSD Rescue, I would wonder about the Rescue who placed this dog without it being neutered first anyway. Since they most likely have a contract between rescue and adopter that requires the dog be neutered or returned to the rescue I doubt the original owner would win the case.

If it was my rescue and the new owner wanted to give the dog back to the original owner, we would most likely return the dog to the original owner with the requiremnt that they can prove without a doubt that the dog was theirs and that the dog be microchipped to provent this from happening again (or something like that).

Tina

If the owner filed a police report when the dog was first stolen, then the original owner has proof the dog was stolen and ought to get the dog back intact. Dogs are property in most states; stolen property should be returned to the owner and local law enforcement (elected sherriffs are best) should help the owner repossess his property.

It doesn't surprise me that Craigslist denizens think the dog should be neutered. Whoever said they think people should be neutered is probably right; many animal rights nuts think people are the problem and animals would be just fine without us.

I actually lost a field trial Chessie when I was living in California.  This same thing happened.  The dog was 'owned' by a rescue group since they had found him and adopted him out.  I 'donated' a lot of money to the group and got the dog back intact.  My argument to them was that the money would help a lot of other dogs and also their program.  I was able to convince them and I payed the 'ransom'. 

Now I have every dog I own microchiped and tatooed.

Bruce Morrison

Someone needs a ball bat, and some very large ball's.

Thanks everyone!

This, of course was NOT my dog - I knew none of the parties involved, therefore I can't vouch for the facts of the case. That is why I prefaced my remarks by stating "assuming the following is true".

I was interested on a few levels.

1- I did want opinions on how it would it be judged - as far as the law goes. I thought that the person who turned the dog in to the shelter in the first place- did so ILLEGALLY because they did NOT have legal possession of the critter - therefore had no legal standing to transfer ownership to a shelter. Hence; the SHELTER did NOT take legal possession of the dog. It was also my belief that the rescue group therefore did not obtain a legal transfer of the dog. Afterall the dog was STOLEN, not found. Even though the shelter THOUGHT they obtained the dog legally - they did not. But, you never know with judges and municipalities being so different and idiosyncratic.

2- I was also interested in what I thought was a good test for the HONOR of a person.  Opinions on subjects like this tell what people would do if they had the POWER to act as a petty POTENTATE and could simply have their way. Just because a group has the legal POWER to coerce someone - it doesn't mean that it's HONORABLE. Just because someone's interest is in decreasing the population of homeless pets - it doesn't make it right to use POWER to get compliance in a case like this.

The unfortunate reality - for me - about "rescue" is that I have heard so many stories of pettiness, ignorance, abuse of power and lack of the application of rational thought - that I feel that I no longer can trust any of their motives without a serious inspection of all the facts. In other words: If a rescue worker makes a CLAIM - my initial feeling is "I'll believe it AFTER a full examination of the situation" - because I've come to believe that most rescue workers are short on integrity and OFTEN they are "allergic to the truth". At BEST - they are willing to FORCE people to comply with their wishes.

Further facts from the craigslist site: the dog is a champion  hunting dog which was bred 2 weeks before it was stolen. Puppies were just delivered last week. THAT is why the dog has not been spayed so far. Rescue is claiming possession of the dam AND all 10 champion -bred puppies. 

No one knows or has volunteered how far the dog turned up from it's original home. Original owner posted notices with all hunting trials in his area & surrouding areas assuming since dog was stolen someone would try to trial her. Of course it would be IMPOSSIBLE for anyone to check EVERY rescue organization, SPCA, etc. in the USA to find a lost dog.