‘He's family to me now’: Kindhearted neighbor saves a golden retriever when the couple next door abandons it in the yard on moving day, when they come to reclaim the dog 6 months later, she refuses

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Jesse Kessenheimer • Writer and Editor
Oct 12, 2024 9:00 AM EDT

The bond between a hooman and their dog is unbreakable. So when this woman was told to give her dog back to their abusive owners, she stood her ground and protected her pooch. 

After observing the extensive moving process of the couple next door, the woman in our next story was shocked when she realized that her neglectful neighbors left behind a paw-ticularly precious piece of cargo: Their sweet golden retriever, Buddy. 

The woman discovered Buddy chained up in the backyard with nothing but a dog food bag and a big bowl of water to sustain him. Because the neighbors made it clear they didn't intend to return to this house to get their dog, the kindhearted lady brought home the beloved pooch and he became a part of her family. Months later though, the couple came back to reclaim the dog, thinking that after abandoning him and leaving him in the dust they still had a right to steal him back… But they messed with the wrong next-door neighbor.

Read on for all the details of this heroic dog rescue!

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    via cyberhawk - Getty Images Signature, via Canva

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 02
    AITA for refusing to let my neighbor take back the dog they abandoned? I (28F) live in a pretty quiet neighborhood and have always loved animals. About six months ago, my next-door neighbors,
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    "Mark" and "Julie," moved out of their house and completely abandoned their dog, "Buddy" (a 4-year-old Golden Retriever). They didn't say a word about it- just left him in the backyard with a bag of food and water.
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    When I realized what had happened, I was furious. Who leaves a dog behind like that? I immediately took Buddy in and made sure he was safe and fed. Over the next few days, I tried contacting Mark and Julie to find
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    out what was going on. They ignored all my calls and texts, so I figured they didn't care and had intentionally left Buddy behind. I ended up deciding to keep him. Buddy is the sweetest dog I've
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    ever met, and he quickly became a huge part of my life. I took him to the vet, got him vaccinated, and made sure he was healthy. It's been six months, and he's like family to me now. He's happy, healthy, and honestly living his best life.
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    Then, last week, Mark randomly showed up at my door, saying they "wanted Buddy back." Apparently, they had some personal issues and had to leave town quickly, but now that things had settled, they were ready to
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    bring him home. I was shocked. I told Mark there was no way I was giving Buddy back after they abandoned him for six months without any contact. Mark got really defensive, saying that Buddy was their dog, and I
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    had "stolen" him. He accused me of taking advantage of their situation and guilt-tripped me by saying that he and Julie had just been going through a tough time and needed a fresh start. He claimed that Buddy was "better off with them" since he's their dog, and they had raised him for years.
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    I told him straight up that Buddy was staying with me. If they cared so much about him, they wouldn't have left him behind like he was nothing. I reminded him that I had spent time and money taking care of Buddy when they couldn't be bothered to even let
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    me know what was going on. I told him that Buddy has a new home now and that I wasn't about to uproot him just because they suddenly decided they wanted to play the responsible pet owners again.
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    Now, Mark and Julie are furious. They've been going around the neighborhood, telling people I "stole" their dog and that I'm a terrible person for not giving him back. FYI they're living at a hotel and will leave sometime this week.
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    I feel like I'm doing the right thing by keeping Buddy, but AITAH? TL;DR: My neighbors abandoned their dog when they moved out, and I took him in, cared for him, and made him part of my family for six months. Now, they want the dog back. I refused.
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    KrofftSurvivor NTA - Tell anyone who comes to you with this nonsense that the dog would have died, chained up in the backyard if you hadn't rescued it and that you are now planning to report them to animal welfare, as they've
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    acknowledged that they left the dog there unattended, having given no notice to anyone - intentionally. You don't have to actually report them, but everyone else needs to know that they literally left the dog to die, and that there are consequences for that.
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    [deleted] OP There are witnesses to the abandonment. Our neighborhood likes to gossip, and everyone pretty much knew Buddy had been abandoned within 48 hrs, and my other immediate neighbors have seen him in that situation too. So there is no chance the ex neighbor will be escalating.
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    FauveSxMcW NTA Buddy would have been dead or rehomed at a shelter but for you. He's not been their dog for quite some time. Did you get him microchipped?
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    [deleted] OP Did you get him microchipped? No I haven't yet, but I'll do so at the earliest.
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    Back-to-HAT Sorry but one bag of food and a bowl of water wouldn't have lasted six month. I agree, they abandoned him and obviously you saved him. I don't care what excuse they had for
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    leaving him behind. You could have called animal control. They would have picked him up and god willing, he would have found a new family. I'd contact animal control or the police to ask what the
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    statute is for your area. I'm sure there is something that covers the situation. Then tell the that you are going to press charges for harassment and slander, unless he has been texting the
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    claim of theft which is libel. I might go as far as a short write up of the law & how you saved him for the neighbors. He is in the very least committing slander, which has to include the act has caused you harm,
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    here being your reputation with neighbors. I want to kick this guy where it would really hurt. He doesn't deserve a dog!
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