[Boleyn]

[First, I searched and browsed the forums to see if this had been discussed already and didn't find anything. Forgive me if I missed it! ]

In Oregon right now there is a controversy over a dog (Chase) who escaped his owner's yard and disappeared. The owner said he did everything to find him, no luck. Fast forward a little over a year later, and while at a drive-thru coffee shop, he sees the dog in a woman's vehicle. She claims she found the dog and tried to find the original owner. After a time she named the dog Bear and says she trained the dog to alert her to asthma attacks. Initially she agreed to give the dog back but then got a lawyer.

Here are two articles with the details:

Portland Man Loses Dog, Finds Dog

Stray Dog Dispute Heads to Court


Newest article, with updated info such as police reports and the fact that the dog had been bred

The article comments are pretty intense. Thoughts?

 

[sassafras]

My thoughts are... she needs to give him his dog back.

 

[Kayota]

I'm very skeptical of the need for a service dog for asthma. It's possible but it seems unlikely. I'm also skeptical that the dog could know when she's about to have an asthma attack before she has one. It's not like seizures. And you have to keep in mind that a doctor has to recommend a service animal before a person could have one--correct me if I'm wrong though? Not to mention the last article points out that she could have gotten that vest anywhere. I think it's a ploy to pull his heart strings. Also-- "Biggs considers the dog to be a service animal" doesn't mean it IS a service animal. It doesn't work that way. Whether he bred Chase or not, he still deserves to have his dog back.

 

[NozOnyCalAur]

I agree with Sassafras. She should give the dog back and he should've had the dog microchipped. My pup will be microchipped in about a month, vet wants to do it with her spay.

 

[melundie]

I'm very skeptical of the need for a service dog for asthma. It's possible but it seems unlikely. I'm also skeptical that the dog could know when she's about to have an asthma attack before she has one. It's not like seizures. And you have to keep in mind that a doctor has to recommend a service animal before a person could have one--correct me if I'm wrong though? Not to mention the last article points out that she could have gotten that vest anywhere. I think it's a ploy to pull his heart strings. Also-- "Biggs considers the dog to be a service animal" doesn't mean it IS a service animal. It doesn't work that way. Whether he bred Chase or not, he still deserves to have his dog back.

So, the dog is going to alert her to her own asthma attacks? That sounds like a ploy to me, too.

Anyway, He should have had the dog micro-chipped, but ultimately I think she needs to give him his dog back.

 

[Kayota]

Yeah... I had a friend who had asthma in junior high and she always knew when she was about to have an attack and took meds accordingly... No dog required.

 

[kafkabeetle]

Woah, Sydney is getting microchipped ASAP. I would be so heartbroken if I found my dog that had been missing for so long and couldn't get him back.

 

[Boleyn]

It was pointed out in a comment that the "service dog" vest in the photo was the generic type that can be purchased by anyone.
I have asthma and I can't imagine a doctor suggesting a therapy dog for it, esp a Sibe mix. As it is my pulmonologist isn't pleased that I have dogs.

 

[NozOnyCalAur]

I have asthma and I can't imagine a doctor suggesting a therapy dog for it, esp a Sibe mix. As it is my pulmonologist isn't pleased that I have dogs.

I was going to point out that isn't asthma usually an excuse not to keep a dog?

 

[Daenerys]

I think that whether or not the dog has been bred and whether or not Biggs considers the dog a "service animal", the dog should be returned to his rightful owner. Maybe this guy isn't the most knowledgeable dog owner (since he has been bred and wasn't microchipped), but clearly the guy loves his dog or else he wouldn't be putting up such a fight to try and get him back.

Though a completely different situation, this reminds me of the documentary "Mine" about dogs that were separated from their owners in Hurricane Katrina when they had to be sent to shelters and rescues and were later adopted and then the owners managed to track them down and find them in their new homes, yet the adopters refused to return the dogs to them. Its just so heartbreaking...

 

[Titan84]

Yeah, she should give the dog back to the original, rightful owner. I mean, I do feel bad for the girl in a way. She obviously loves the dog and has become very attached. But at the end of the day none of that matters. The mature, moral thing to do is to give the dog back.

Also, am I alone in thinking that whether or not she trained him to be a "service dog" has little to no bearing on the situation? That doesn't change the fact that this dog does NOT belong to her. Why could she not just get another service dog, if that's what this is really all about?

IMO this sounds like a case of an immature young woman willing to lie and manipulate in order to get her way and avoid having to do the right thing.

 

[Amaryllis]

I guess it's possible the dog could alert to asthma attacks (maybe he hears the change in breathing), but I haven't met any asthmatics (and I have 2 in my immediate family) who can't tell when an attack is coming on.

She either needs to give him back his dog or pay him for his dog. Throwing out "I have asthma, feel sorry for me!" is not a solution to a very clear cut problem. (Dogs are property under the law. Property laws are very well established.)

 

[Crantastic]

I hope the guy wins in court. He should, with all of the evidence -- the dog's license, the lost dog flyer, all of the photos. The girl admits she found the dog wandering! I'm sure she got attached to the dog, but it doesn't sound like she tried very hard to find his owner in the first place (I mean, calling local shelters is pretty much common sense, isn't it?), so I don't feel bad for her.

Casper is microchipped, but Crystal isn't, just tattooed. Maybe I should get her chipped just in case of some weird situation like this.

 

[HollowHeaven]

On the one hand, you can't say that situations like this are sad for BOTH parties. Of course the guy misses his dog and would want him back, but this girl has had the dog for over a year and is clearly quite attached or she would just give him back. Imagine how her heart must be breaking.
I know if someone showed up at my door and tried to take Diesel from me, I would go insane. And I'll admit right now I didn't put too much effort into looking for an owner because he was in a spot where dogs are abandoned all the time, he was wedged between trash. I considered him a dump job as he was in poor shape and scared out of his mind.

On the other hand, if one of my dogs were to get lost then turn up a year later, I would be begging on hand and knee for my dog back.

I suppose I walk the fence on this one. I can imagine being the shoes of both people and it's not going to end well for one or the other.

 

[Hambonez]

A service dog for asthma? Really? With a seizure, if you don't know it's coming on and can move to a safe place, then you could get hurt. So I can see how a dog would be useful in making sure you're safe. Asthma is completely different. You start feeling symptoms, you treat accordingly. Does he fetch her inhaler?

I get that she's attached to the dog, and I think if she didn't let it get this far, the original owner would have probably still let her visit and spend time with the dog. I know I would if it happened to me. Now though? Just give the dog back.

 

[InkedMarie]

I don;t care about the asthma thing, IMO being a service dog shouldn't have anything to do with it. I am on the fence but leaning into the girls yard more. Say one of my dogs jumped the fence. They're chipped but say they weren't. I'd place ads, flyers, call all the places I should be calling. Dog never comes home. A year later, I see the dog somewhere. While I'd want the dog back of course, I'm not sure if I would be entitled to the dog. Just because you're the owner, are you the owner forever if something like this happens?
Paws/pause for thought!

 

[Rescued]

I hope the guy wins in court. He should, with all of the evidence -- the dog's license, the lost dog flyer, all of the photos. The girl admits she found the dog wandering! I'm sure she got attached to the dog, but it doesn't sound like she tried very hard to find his owner in the first place (I mean, calling local shelters is pretty much common sense, isn't it?), so I don't feel bad for her.

Casper is microchipped, but Crystal isn't, just tattooed. Maybe I should get her chipped just in case of some weird situation like this.

My current assistance dog in-training foster is tattooed (and microchipped) with his ID/litter number from the organization. When "private" breeders tattoo their dogs, what do you tattoo? The whole kennel name? Or just something random?

 

[aiw]

Its very possible that this girl didnt really want to find the owner. I think someone here is lying, its not very likely that they both took all the steps they claim to locate the dog/owner and didnt somehow run across one another. How is it possible that she went door to door and he posted flyers all over the neighbourhood and she never saw one? Or that they both called animal services and posted on craigslist and they never saw each other? Its especially sad since kids are missing their family dog. Its a tough situation for the girl to be sure but the right thing to do would be to give the family back their dog.

 

[Crantastic]

My current assistance dog in-training foster is tattooed (and microchipped) with his ID/litter number from the organization. When "private" breeders tattoo their dogs, what do you tattoo? The whole kennel name? Or just something random?

The first three letters of the tattoo are my breeder's specific prefix (issued by the Canadian Kennel Club). Any dogs with a tattoo starting with those three letters are from her kennel. The last letter of the tattoo is also assigned by the CKC, and it denotes a particular year. The number in the middle is where Crystal ranked in pups registered by the breeder that year. As my breeder explained it, "If the number is 35, you know that breeder is producing a heck of a lot of pups in a year!"

So Crystal's looks like: XXX5S

Because she was the fifth pup registered to my breeder in that particular year.

 

[Rescued]

The first three letters of the tattoo are my breeder's specific prefix (issued by the Canadian Kennel Club). Any dogs with a tattoo starting with those three letters are from her kennel. The last letter of the tattoo is also assigned by the CKC, and it denotes a particular year. The number in the middle is where Crystal ranked in pups registered by the breeder that year. As my breeder explained it, "If the number is 35, you know that breeder is producing a heck of a lot of pups in a year!"

So Crystal's looks like: XXX5S

Because she was the fifth pup registered to my breeder in that particular year.

Makes sense! I completely forgot AKC/CKC gave out reg. numbers/letters.

How old does a pap have to be for their ear to be big enough? Or is hers on her inner "thigh"? I know my org. does ears when they're less than a week old, but lab puppies are considerably bigger than paps at that age.