Too many animal shelters seem to be engaged in a war against pet owners – insistent upon breaking families apart while demanding to be called “compassionate” and “humane” by critics.
Like many pet owners, Steve and Kathy Foster of Lapeer Co, MI consider their dogs family. They have pictures of their dogs on the family portrait wall in their home. And when they found a stray border collie in rough shape last month, they were willing to help.
The Fosters took the dog, whom they named Daisy, to the vet to get her the care she needed, including vaccinations and spay surgery. But then Daisy got lost. The Fosters searched the area, called neighbors and local vets and posted about Daisy on social media in an effort to find her. After a week, they learned Daisy had been impounded by Lapeer Co Animal Control. Kathy Foster called the pound and asked what she needed to do in order to redeem her dog:
She said she was told she had to pay $180 and she didn’t have much time. That’s because the shelter had two people ready to adopt Daisy.
Having just paid the vet $420 to fix Daisy up, the Fosters didn’t immediately have $180 to bail her out of the pound:
“I said I don’t have $180 right now. And she said well that’s the only way you can get her back,” said Kathy Foster.
Lapeer Co AC reportedly sold Daisy just minutes after Kathy Foster called and said she didn’t have the cash. Local news station WNEM asked the Lapeer Co pound director why Daisy wasn’t allowed to return to her family. The director cast blame on the Fosters, indicating they were at fault for failing to report the stray dog and failing to immediately license her. And steel yourself, because this next part is jarring:
TV5 spoke to Carla Frantz, the Lapeer County Animal Control chief, over the phone on Monday evening. She said the dog exhausted the county’s four day stray hold policy, and once it does that, it becomes county property. Because the Foster’s could not come up with the money, Daisy, who now goes by the name Bella, was adopted out to the highest bidder.
It sounds like the Lapeer Co pound saw dollar signs when they looked at freshly vetted, purebred Daisy. And they were so eager to collect those dollars, they wasted no time selling her “to the highest bidder” when they got the call that Daisy’s family couldn’t immediately pay the ransom.
The Fosters are heartbroken and want the pound to change its policy about breaking up families for profit. It’s too late for their family, but they hope to spare another family the same pain in future.
The Lapeer Co pound killed roughly half its animals last year. The state of Michigan does not require them to disclose how many families they broke up while auctioning owned pets so that number is unknown. But this year, we know it’s at least one. Oh and remember – don’t criticize, it’s a hard job and we all want the same thing and DOMFL.
(Thank you Clarice for the link.)