Distressed Doggo Owner Finds Out Friend Gave Her Dog Away, Sues the Friend for $10,000 in Canine Conundrum Court

Author image for Blake Seidel
Blake Seidel • Managing Editor & Brand Manager
May 20, 2024 12:00 PM EDT

Hey, animal enthusiasts and doggo lovers. We would do literally anything for our doggos, and we're sure you would too. We don't know what we would do if someone tried to take our fur babies away from us - and we hope we never have to find out! Unfortunately, though, life is messy, and sometimes things get in the way. For example, a coworker could try to sue you for your doggo "tripping them", or in this case, you get sick and your "friend" helps take care of your dogs, but decides it is too much work, so she gives one away without your permission.

This exact thing happened to the author of the post below - she got very sick, asked her friend to help take care of her dogs, and by the time she got better, she found out that her friend had given one of her dogs away and didn't know where they were. Naturally, the dog mother is trying to sue her for giving away her baby without her permission, and the internet has a lot to say about it. Scroll down to read the whole story below!

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to start your Caturday with the funniest felines on the internet!

Add as a preferred
source on Google
Advertisement
  • 01
    For Suing my Friend Because She Gave My Dog Away
    via u/Powerful-Ad8233
  • 02
    I (61F) was very ill about a year ago and no one knew what was wrong for a long time. I was falling a lot and unable to get around well. I had moved into a new apartment on the second floor. I have two dogs and at that point was unable to take them out, walk them, etc. Needless to say, their bathroom habits digressed. I kept down puppy pads and cleaned up multiple times a day.
    via u/Powerful-Ad8233
  • 03
    Fast forward a couple of months, I started passing out. I passed out, fell and broke my foot in multiple places. I was in the hospital and the rehab hospital for about a month. In the meantime, A friend had volunteered to watch my dogs. One of the dogs is a lot more work than the other. I've had him since 2017 when I adopted him from the humane society. She had a few cats as well as the dogs and decided that they were all too much, so she gave the dog to a friend to take care of. I did not know
    via u/Powerful-Ad8233

    This isn't a black-and-white scenario - we can't imagine how difficult it must have been for this dog mom and also her friend. We've never been so sick that we couldn't take care of our puppers, but it happens!

  • 04
    At that point, she brought the one dog back and a few weeks later, told me that the friend moved and she didn't know where and didn't want to give my dog back then blocked me. I filed a police report and the other day I filed a lawsuit for $10,000 or my dog back. That's the maximum in the low court here. This has fractured my friend group as some still believe I shouldn't have my dog back, regardless that I'm better now than I have been in a few years. I'm not going to say what I was diagnosed w
    via u/Powerful-Ad8233

    If someone gave one of our doggos away, we would do anything to get them back. They are literally our children and we love them more than anything in this world. To find out that our "friend" gave one of them away without our permission? Unforgivable!

  • 05
    Jessie Colt 4 days ago ΝΤΑ Enthusiast [7] If she was no longer able, or willing, to care for your dog, she should have notified you so that you could make other arrangements.
    via u/JessieColt
  • 06
    No_Confidence5235 4 days ago Aficionado [12] I'm willing to bet that she didn't give the dog away; she probably sold it to some random person. I hope you get your dog back. And I hope that nasty has to pay you the full amount. NTA
    via u/No_Confidence5235
  • 07
    applebum8807 4 days ago Certified Proctologist [20] NTA. Not even a little bit
    via u/applebum8807
  • 08
    . TheBewitchingWitch 4 days ago NTA she made a promise of care and did not fulfill it. If it was too much she should have spoken to you and connected you to the new foster before making other arrangements for care of your dog.
    via u/TheBewitchingWitch
  • 09
    loveabove 7 4 days ago • NTA I hope you win your case.
    via u/loveabove7
  • 10
    meat_uprising · 3 days ago it's almost guaranteed op is not going to win the case. not unless they can prove the dog has a MONETARY value of $10,000. emotional value is almost always irrelevant in these cases because animals are considered property
    via u/meat_uprising
  • 11
    dragonsandvamps . 4 days ago INFO How long total did you ask her to care for your dogs? I feel like you are leaving that information out. It took me a bit to get to the point I was able to take care of my dogs again. At that point, she brought the one dog back and a few weeks later, told me that the friend moved and she didn't know where and didn't want to give my dog back then blocked me.
    via u/dragonsandvamps
  • 12
    It seems like weeks going by and enough time passing that her friend moved away... implies that you may have abandoned the dogs with her for some time.
    via u/dragonsandvamps
  • 13
    Your "friend" should not have given the dog away. She should have contacted you and told you she was unable to care for the dog safely with her cats and asked that you find a different caretaker for the dog. But I also wonder if you just kind of dumped your dogs on her for a very long period. Were you not checking in with this friend every few days about the dogs' care? Were you not paying her on a weekly basis for their boarding and food and vet care? If you were not diligently
    via u/dragonsandvamps
  • 14
    keeping up with your dogs' care and needs (food, vet care, boarding costs even with a friend), then this kind of leans towards an ESH for me. She should have called you and told you to come get the dogs or she would take them to a shelter if she couldn't keep them any longer. But I kind of feel you are at fault too because to me it sounds like the only way you could have been blindsided by this is if you dumped the dogs, didn't pay for their food or care or vet bills, and never checked in
    via u/dragonsandvamps
  • 15
    on them for months. That's pretty lousy dog ownership right there...
    via u/dragonsandvamps
  • 16
    Powerful-Ad8233 OP 4 days ago I have text messages where I talked to her every few days about the dogs. I never asked her to take care of them. She jumped in and said she would. It was around 3 months total that I was unable to walk. At that point, I asked for them back numerous times. She finally told me that a friend had the one dog and gave me back the other one.
    via u/Powerful-Ad8233
  • 17
    At this point, my assumption (my fault for not pressing more) was that she was going to get him back from the other person since I didn't know her.
    via u/Powerful-Ad8233
  • 18
    • Mundane_Bike_912 4 days ago Nta. Have you thought about reporting that he's stolen? For when the dog gets check-ups and they scan his tag. Also, putting a post up on social media explains the situation that could help.
    via u/Mundane_Bike_912
  • 19
    AdaptiveVariance 4 days ago No you are NTA for taking legal measures to try to right a wrong. It sounds like you're appropriately standing up for yourself.
    via u/AdaptiveVariance
  • 20
    I'm a lawyer FWIW. Is the dog chipped? I don't know about the legal/practical issues in small claims, but if you sued in general civil jurisdiction you could take discovery to try to get an answer on what she did with the dog. A court could compel her to give you the dog back or (say) give you what she got from selling him/her. I don't know if small claims does that, though. They may well be able to, I just don't know. You might have better odds of getting the dog back via chip and/or police rep
    via u/AdaptiveVariance
  • 21
    via chip and/or police report. Small claims court requires you to make a demand for the money you're asking the court for too, so if you want a shot at the 10k you'd have to send a demand letter (which might get her to get you the dog back too).
    via u/AdaptiveVariance
  • 22
    Maybe look into it and see if injunctive relief seems likely through small claims. If not, you could dismiss that case WITHOUT PREJUDICE (very important, meaning you can re-file so long as you're still within any statute of limitations), send a demand letter (get a lawyer to do it if you can, I used to do this kind of thing for a flat fee) explaining the legal cause(s) of action (offhand I guess conversion, IIED may be a reach but seems non-frivolous, negligence as an alternative/catch-
    via u/AdaptiveVariance
  • 23
    all). If that doesn't get your dog back you can then sue in limited or general civil jurisdiction where you have more procedural/tactical options like written discovery or taking a deposition. Or if you then decide you don't want to go the "full litigation" route you can sue in small claims from a better position (in that you've fulfilled the prerequisite to recover money damages). Something to think about at least. Anyway it really sucks that your friend did that and I hope you're able to get j
    via u/AdaptiveVariance
  • 24
    short_fat_and_single 4 days ago Unless the dog is valuable, and it doesn't sound like it, you won't get 10K in court. You'd be better of having a lawyer send a strongly worded letter in the hope that she backs down and returns the dog.
    via u/short_fat_and_single
  • 25
    Human Ad7946 3 days ago • INFO: How much were you paying for her to board your dogs? Did you pay for food, grooming, vet visits? Did you have any discussion ever regarding how long you would be unavailable? Did your friend ever contact you for updates on your condition, and if so, did you respond?
    via u/Human_Ad7946
  • 26
    These answers would guide my decision. If you gave the impression that you would be indisposed for a short period of time, gave no money, and didn't keep in regular communication with your friend, then you all but abandoned the dogs. I know dog lovers out there might disagree with me, but a judge might not.
    via u/Human_Ad7946
  • 27
    Arminlegout1 4 days ago You come for my dog I come for you. I love her. No way. Sue! NTA
    via u/Arminlegout1

Want More? Follow Us and Add Us as a Preferred Source on Google.

Tags

sue dogs drama pupper dispute dog owner friends doggie doggos doggo animals dramatic
Scroll Down For The Next Article