this is all hypothetical, of course

let's say your neighbors have had a dog for over a year...at first, they would chain her up with a short (10 feet, maybe?) chain to a stake in the ground, but then someone reported them (not you, really) to animal control (or whoever) and the dog was taken away while they were at work one day (or so you were told by them a couple of weeks after the fact)...they got her back, though, and the coalition to unchain dogs (http://www.unchaindogs.net/) came and built them a tiny enclosure that she stays in now

aside from the fact that you think it makes a person a dick to enclose their dog in a tiny fence (12x12 is your guess) and NEVER take it out to play, to the dog park, or even bring it in when there's bad weather, you figure it's better than being euthanized and you've not given it much thought

now, though, the dog (and possibly the house, you suppose) have been abandoned...you haven't seen the owners in almost a week, and you know for a fact that the dog was left out during the bad weather we had this past weekend...and, unless they've been coming home between midnight and 6am to take care of the dog, she's only been getting food and water because you've been going over there and making sure she has some...you even removed the large branches (and small tree) that were in tiny cage as a result of the storm because she had no room to move around

you've tried knocking (no answer) and you've tried calling (the cell phone number you have was disconnected a long time ago, but you gave it another try, anyway) and nothing

so what do you do? let's say you have no moral issue with taking the dog, but think the SPCA is a bunch of elitist douchebags who have unreasonable "standards" for the people who adopt their animals, but because this dog isn't a puppy (18 months to 2 years?) and it's of "undesirable" parentage (looks like a mix of chow and american pit and has a purple tongue), you're afraid she'll be euthanized if she goes to the county shelter...she is, though, extremely sweet and gentle and playful (when she gets out, which is fairly frequent, she plays well with your dogs)

[Edited on April 19, 2011 at 11:47 AM. Reason : .]

4/19/2011 11:44:54 AM

it never happened.

btw congrats on your new dog!

4/19/2011 11:49:26 AM

I really think the SPCA is your only choice. From what it sounds like you don't like their standards, but there's probably not another outlet that'll take the dog.

4/19/2011 11:50:16 AM

^^ hypothetically, of course, you wouldn't mind having her, but you DO live next door to them...might be awkward if they show up one day

^ that was my thought as well...lesser of two evils, i suppose

4/19/2011 11:59:24 AM

there was a thread very similar to this a while back. i don't remember what the results were or what it was called though

4/19/2011 12:02:26 PM

hypothetically, you called the SPCA holding facility and they said you'd have to foster her for 6-8 weeks

4/19/2011 12:12:28 PM

Hypothetically this dog could be pretty tasty.

The lounge

[Edited on April 19, 2011 at 12:23 PM. Reason : s]

4/19/2011 12:22:58 PM

hah

i suppose that the person in this scenario will simply continue to care for this dog by feeding and watering it, but also by leaving it in their neighbor's pen

at least until the person in this scenario can find someone who can adopt her immediately

4/19/2011 12:26:21 PM

Take it. That's what I did in a similar situation, at least, and I've had the dog for a couple of years now.

4/19/2011 12:28:05 PM

"why" is "rescuing" in "quotes"

4/19/2011 12:34:12 PM

So did SPCA pick up the dog? Or it is still over there?

Growing up we ended up with a cat under similar circumstances, but the owners/neighbors did not mind. I think my parents asked them about it after it started hanging at our house (looking for food in the beginning, and then the cat must have decided to change houses) they said we can have it.

The people may have some financial hardship or other issue

They started off with good intentions but did not keep food out for it. We also let it inside which I do not think they ever did.

4/19/2011 12:39:40 PM

Looks like there are a few rescue organizations in the triangle you could foster through:
http://www.secondchancenc.org/RP_WebDoc.asp?ttid=118

Call them up and ask them to post the dog for adoption on their website or something.

4/19/2011 12:53:12 PM

Call up the property owner and see what you can find out about the tenants. If they are gone, fuck it, take the dog in.

Also, I had (I believe) the similar thread. The owner came home, and the dog seems cared for. It still stays outside 90% of the day, but gets taken in at night.

4/19/2011 1:04:50 PM

hypothetically --- let's say your neighbors have had a dog for over a year.....

reality --- quagmire02 has had a dog for over a year.....

4/19/2011 1:50:19 PM

Quote :

""why" is "rescuing" in "quotes""

i'm acknowledging the subjectivity of the word...you may or may not be aware of the fact that "rescue" implies that there exists a situation endangering the subject's well being...i am allowing for the possibility that the subject is not in any actual danger, but i perceive it to be

i'd suggest that you go away unless you have anything of value to contribute (this is the lounge, after all), but we both know you're going to stick around with the sole purpose of attempting to assert some sort of virtual superiority so that you can feel "better" about "yourself," so let's just "pretend" that i "give" a rat's "ass" about your "opinion" so you can go "away" with a smile, eh?

Quote :

"So did SPCA pick up the dog? Or it is still over there?"

still over there...SPCA requests that the person turning in dog hold onto it until they can find a spot in one of their adoption facilities

Quote :

"Call up the property owner and see what you can find out about the tenants. If they are gone, fuck it, take the dog in."

tried...phone's disconnected and no one has been seen there since thursday

Quote :

"hypothetically --- let's say your neighbors have had a dog for over a year..... reality --- quagmire02 has had a dog for over a year....."

hah, in reality, quagmire02 has had his dog for more than 4 years

4/19/2011 1:56:27 PM

hypothetically speaking of course,

you should wait until the next time you see your neighbors while it's dark outside

don a ski mask and a baseball bat and run up behind them...a few well placed blows and while theyre writhing on the ground in pain you can remind them that they have a dog that need to take better care of...

/discussion

4/19/2011 2:01:19 PM

good deal! i love dogs, have 3 of my own (2 rescues), and am against any dog cruelty or abandonment

[Edited on April 19, 2011 at 2:02 PM. Reason : k]

4/19/2011 2:01:41 PM

Take the dog, leave a note explaining why on the cage, tell them to come pick it up when they get home if they want the dog back.

If they left it, Yay, new dog. If not, then you didn't try to steal someone's dog.

4/19/2011 2:05:43 PM

Quote :

"tried...phone's disconnected and no one has been seen there since thursday"

So did these people own the house? I was saying like, if there's a real estate agent who deals with the house, who may then be more in the know of who lives there.

My parents have someone in the neighborhood who has dogs who stay outside barking all day, so they did some investigating. The person living there was a hermit Korean lady whose husband was over in Iraq and she left the dogs out all day. I guess they were renting the place. Turns out a neighbor had found out who managed the property and called and complained, and several other surrounding people did too. The property manager was trying to find an area where the Korean woman could move to in order to remove the problem from the other houses, since she managed those houses and was risking having lots vacated due to the dog.

Though I suppose if there isn't any info on the house itself, I guess the road kinda stops there.

4/19/2011 2:17:44 PM

stuff white people like:

worrying about other motherfucker's dogs

4/19/2011 2:24:50 PM

^^ 95% sure they own it (though it looks kind of sad, given all the trees that fell this weekend)

^ RACIST

4/19/2011 2:27:36 PM

so does your pussy hurt all the time or does it come in waves

4/19/2011 2:28:53 PM

^^lol

im just kidding props to you tho, becareful with that stealin thats some [epithet] shit

4/19/2011 2:30:27 PM

^^ oh boy, you came back! we all missed your wisdom and insight

^ my luck someone's been home the entire time and they're gonna shoot me when i go to "rescue" the dog

Quote :

"Take the dog, leave a note explaining why on the cage, tell them to come pick it up when they get home if they want the dog back. If they left it, Yay, new dog. If not, then you didn't try to steal someone's dog."

yeah, there's this...i guess the hero of our story was trying to avoid the "yeah, i, uh, took your dog...you want her back? oh, okay...FEED AND WATER HER, THEN"

[Edited on April 19, 2011 at 2:40 PM. Reason : .]

4/19/2011 2:37:34 PM

The phone is disconnected, and they've been gone for almost a week, right?

I wouldn't sweat running into them that much.

But srs,


"Hey neighbor, I noticed nobody was home and your dog was out and he didn't have any food and whatnot, so I'm letting him crash at my place. Come on over and ring the doorbell when you read this and you can pick him up. I tried to call but your phone is disconnected.


XOXO,
Quags
"




The alternative is to walk over there and open the pen and just let him go wherever he wants to.


The other alternative is to call animal control and report him. He might get euthanized. It happens sometimes. It could be better than the alternative sometimes. I dunno enough to say whether it is or not.

4/19/2011 3:19:18 PM

Quote :

"you've tried knocking (no answer) and you've tried calling (the cell phone number you have was disconnected a long time ago, but you gave it another try, anyway) and nothing"

Quote :

"Take the dog, leave a note explaining why on the cage, tell them to come pick it up when they get home if they want the dog back."

I'm liking the "leave a note" thing minus the "take the dog" thing. Put the note on the front door or somewhere else that it is visible from your property/the street. At least when the note disappears you'll know they have received your communication. If it doesn't disappear you'll know the dog is officially abandoned. If the dog really isn't being fed/watered I'd call animal control and try to get charges pressed on them for negligence in addition to whatever you choose to do to help the dog (adopt it out, send it to a shelter, etc.)

4/19/2011 4:04:49 PM

I also like the "leave a note" option. There are lots of no-kill rescue orgs should you not want to keep the dog yourself but fear for the dogs well-being (and don't want it killed).

If I were in your shoes I'd take it in and foster it for a few weeks while leaving said note out for the homeowners/renters to find, and if they don't come back within an amount of time (few weeks - month? people may be on vacation, but they're still shitty owners IMHO) then I'd can explain the situation to the no-kill rescue org and see if they can place them with a foster/get an adoption process started.

4/19/2011 4:22:49 PM

In very simple terms, if you interfere with the property whether it's foreclosed / abandoned / or still owned and they're just on vacation, you could face the criminal charge of trespassing if you're going to interfere with their property even for the sake of what you perceive could be a neglected animal.

Your best recourse is to notify a rescue organization to avoid any criminal liability because there are sickos out there who will not only abuse a dog but will press charges against you for trespassing if you attempt to interfere with their abusive actions.

As a personal story,

I witnessed abuse to a dog and had the ability to step in right away but knew that it would be a legal quagmire, so I called the landlord, Linda Preiss, and she sits on the board of the SPCA chapter. Not only did the dog get rescued, but he got evicted for violation of his lease agreement, and the dog found a better home. Problem solved.
Linda will listen to you, and there are others who will too. If necessary, take a photo to document what you see and e-mail it to a receptive person at any number of rescue organizations.

[Edited on April 19, 2011 at 4:38 PM. Reason : ]

4/19/2011 4:27:53 PM

quagmire02

Check your pm's

And sorry for accidentally sending you a blank one to begin with

4/19/2011 9:16:17 PM

i appreciate all of the advice!

they came home for the first time last night and i went over to talk to them...the family apparently doesn't live there anymore (they moved in with the wife's father), but they SAID that the wife has been stopping by every morning to feed and water the dog

there are a number of reasons why i suspect they're lying, but i hope i made it very clear that they need to pay better attention to the dog (i specifically mentioned that it's been without water in the middle of the day when i go home for lunch) and that if they would like me to help them care for the dog or find another home for her, i'd be happy to do it

we'll see...though i don't think there's any excuse for having ignored the dog for several days, storm notwithstanding, it's less messy for me to give them a chance to either take care of the dog or come to realization that they need to give her up to a better home

again, thanks to all for the advice...and special thanks to PackBacker, i'll get back with you in a couple days

4/20/2011 8:21:38 AM