I had to call the animal shelter

[Shell Beau]

on my mom's neighbors. I have watched a beautiful yellow lab slowly deteriorate. My mother doesn't live in my town, so every time I go to visit her, I have played with her neighbor's dog. When she was a pup, they gave her a decent life. But as she has gotten older and bigger(only a year older), she has been forgotten about. I guess they feed her and give her water. They claim too. But she is chained up to a tree and sometimes can't reach her water bowl. Her collar is so tight, she can hardly breathe. Each time I have seen her when I have visited my mom, she has looked worse and worse and I am always almost brought to tears. I offered to take this dog from them and bring it into my home. They wouldn't let me. This is their first dog to ever have as they have been deathly afraid of even small puppies before. This weekend, it was the final straw. I didn't even recognize the dog she was so frail. She is barely even 2 years old. Ribs and every other bone sticking out. Her face is sunk in. She probably has heart-worms as I am sure she doesn't get treatment. I was afraid to call the shelter b/c I don't want to dog to get put down. But she is certainly suffering now and I can't stand it. My mom is afraid they will think she called b/c she and my father have said something to them several times about her being so thin and feeding her and giving her water. I'll find out today if the shelter people went to get the dog or talk to them or whatever. It is so sad. This dog would have been a wonderful pet for someone only if she were given the chance. I did the right thing, right? I don't think these people are bad people, but they are definitely bad pet owners. They just don't even have a clue what it takes to have a pet. Some people just do not need pets.

[Samurai_Writer]

1. You definitely did the right thing...

and if you really want that dog, call the shelter and then go down and adopt her. My last dog was picked up as a stray and was heartworm positive. The Humane Society was going to put him to sleep, but allowed me to adopt him if I promised to get him the heartworm treatments. I did, and the treatment was successful. He had 1 1/2 extra years with me, before dying of pancreatic cancer this June. I miss him terribly, but am so glad I had a chance to make his life a better one.

[Shell Beau]

3. That is so wonderful.

I really did want the dog, but since then I have gone out and adopted another one which means I now have 3 dogs (2 are adopted). My husband told me no more dogs. 3 was plenty! Trust me, if I could, I would take the dog in a heartbeat!

[hyphenate]

2. Yes, you did.

It's awful what some people do to the animals. The SPCA will file criminal charges if they feel it has been willful and deliberate neglect or abuse.

I don't know if your neighbors will retaliate against your mom, but if the threats escalate, it is wise to let the police handle the situation, NOT to handle it alone.

[Shell Beau]

4. Well, my parents didn't call. I volunteered to tell them it was me.

There were workers working on trees out there the day I called. I hope she thinks it was them who called. They really didn't want the dog to begin with. They got it for their 15 year old son, who pays no attention to it. Had it not been for him, they would have gladly given the dog to me.

[philosophie_en_rose]

5. Good for you!

People shouldn't have pets if they refuse to take care of them. Dogs are not toys.

[Shell Beau]

6. No, they aren't. They need food, water, and just

as importantly love and affection. I feel scared the dog will get put down. I hope she will be able to be saved.

[auntAgonist]

7. You did the right thing.

I hope they find a good home for the dog ..

[Shell Beau]

8. Me too! Thanks!

[MissMillie]

9. Well, they could have avoided trouble

if they had just done right by the dog.

The only people they have a right to be mad at are themselves.

[Shell Beau]

10. I agree with you 100%. They

could have also saved themselves some trouble by giving me the dog when I volunteered to take her from them. But I guess they'd rather see her die a slow miserable death. :mad: I am so pissed. But again, they don't seem to be bad people, but they have never had a pet before. They have always been petrified of animals. Small kittens, puppies, you name it, they were scared to death. I was really shocked when they got the dog. They should be banned from having pets again.

[jobycom]

11. A brave, difficult, and very right thing to do.

If they won't listen to you, maybe they'll listen to the authorities.

[Shell Beau]

14. Thanks! I hope the dog is okay after all of this!

[RebelOne]

17. No, the dog will not be OK.

If it goes to the shelter, it will be put down unless some rescue group takes it. The shelters don't bother to keep emaciated animals for long. They are not in the business of rehabilitating them.

[Shell Beau]

18. That was a huge concern of mine.

I asked the lady I talked to about that. She said if it is a case of heartworms and everything else looks okay, they will insist that they take it to the vet or they will and the owners can pick her up. Only if all else is okay. But I debated for a while whether to call. If she gets put down, I will be heartbroken. I will feel responsible, but if I didn't call, I would feel responsible for the dogs suffering. Damned if you do and damned if you don't. I am trying to be optimistic about it. A lot of people would love a full blooded yellow lab.

[RebelOne]

29. Go to YahooGroups.com.

You will have to sign up. But then you can search for Lab rescue groups in your area. A rescue group can pull the dog from the shelter.

[Shell Beau]

30. Awesome idea!! Thanks!

[China_cat]

33. They do keep them and work to keep them alive

if they're going to be part of a criminal prosecution.

[skygazer]

12. You certainly did the right thing

Ignorance is no excuse and you and your family have spoken to them about it. I'm always so saddened to see a dog treated this way - why in the world have a dog if it's not going to be a member of the family?

Criminal neglect. I will keep that poor doggie in my thoughts. :cry:

[Shell Beau]

13. Thanks! I am glad y'all agree. I feel even better about my decision!

[Zuni]

15. absolutely call animal control or the SPCA or the humane society

mistreating pets is reprehensible. If you cannot take good care of a pet, do not get one.

This makes me very, very sad

[Shell Beau]

19. Me too. I can't stand to look at the poor dog.

But I refused to ignore the situation any further.

[flvegan]

16. You did the right thing. What will you do if animal control doesn't

respond or take care of the matter?

[Shell Beau]

20. Well, I live 2 hours away.

I am going to call my mom this afternoon to see if anything has happened. The lady at the shelter sounded pretty adamant about checking this out. If they see the dog, there is no way they couldn't respond. I think it is heartworms. My parents feed the dog enough to keep her from being emaciated like this. I don't know. It is so sad.

[Taverner]

21. Glad youre back and safe SB!

:hi:

[Shell Beau]

22. Thanks! I am so glad to be back!

It has been rough, but I've been very fortunate. I am so grateful! :hug:

[Lilyhoney]

23. I had a neighbor that did not take care of their dog

and called the animal welfare. After they investigated, nothing changed. I had a friend who wanted the dog, so he came over and took the dog in the middle of the night. Dog has good home now. The neighbors did not even ask us if we saw the dog. They did'nt post fliers or anything. Oh, did I mention that this was chicago in the middle of the winter? Well it was so cold the water in the bowl was frozen solid.

People do this all the time. They get a cute little puppy, they don't train it so the dog has to go live tied to the tree. Theese dogs always get a death sentence, after they go thru a living hell.

Thank you for you actions.

[Shell Beau]

24. I have actually thought

about doing just what your friend did, but my conscience against stealing told me not to, but I know that the dog would have a loving home now. If nothing is done, then I will call every single day. The dog used to deal with the weather the same way except it was unbearable heat instead of cold. Finally after my mom complained, they bought the dog a dog house so it could get some shade from the sun and some shelter from the pouring rain.

[flvegan]

25. It's not stealing.

It's a liberation. In this case, you're ending suffering. If this dog IS slowly succumbing to heartworms as you suspect, you would be stepping in to save this dog from a very ugly, painful death.

You have to do what your conscience tells you. Mine tells me to keep boltcutters in my trunk.

If you choose to, I'll bet you dollars to doughnuts you won't regret it.

[Shell Beau]

26. She used to get herself loose from the chain.

There were so many times I just wanted to grab her and take her. But unfortunately I never did. I just hope now she is helped and hopefully gets a real home. I know several people who would love to have her. I am one of those, but my husband told me I couldn't have any more dogs. We only have 3, but it is a lot of work and he thinks we should stick to 3. I agree with him, but I just want to save the world I guess and it is impossible.

[flvegan]

27. You obviously have a big heart.

I'm sure that if you thought you needed to step in for her, that you could find a friend that she could stay with until a perm. home was found.

It is impossible to save everyone, but what a difference it makes to the ones you can save.

[Shell Beau]

28. Absolutely! That is why I only adopt now!

Every stray I see, I want to take in. It is impossible, but I wish I could. One day, I want to open an animal shelter. It has always been a dream of mine, but I know it would be a tough tough job. Maybe one day....

[Habibi]

31. We had a couple of DUers a while back scheme

to take a similarly mistreated dog. One "stole" the dog, the other adopted it. It was a great story--maybe something similar could happen with your mom's neighbor's pup if the local authorities don't take care of the situation. Whereabouts does your mom live?

[Shell Beau]

32. In Mississippi. I've tried calling her, but the phone lines

are screwed up due to Katrina. I'll try again soon to see what happened. I refuse to stand by and do nothing.

[Liberalynn]

37. I have a similar dream.

I want to run a German Shepard rescue. I don't have the money to do it now but hopefully one day it will come true. I hope your dream comes true too.

You did the right and brave thing.

[chaska]

34. WTF did you wait so long?

[Shell Beau]

35. B/c before now, they hadn't technically done

anything wrong. The dog wasn't emaciated although she could've stood to put on a few pounds. But in summer time in the MS delta, dogs lose weight b/c of the heat. I hated to see her chained up, and every time I would try to give her water, they would come outside and feed her and fill up her water bowl. They said she always knocked it over. I didn't want to send the dog to its possible death if I were wrong about the situation. This time I couldn't allow myself not to call. I have wanted to, but if they are doing nothing wrong "technically", then the shelter will probably never take me serious again and maybe never go back there. I had to be sure. Trust me, I have went over this in my head several times.

[Wcross]

36. I wouldn't care what these people thought of me.

This dog is chained to a tree and slowly starving to death. How could someone just stand by and watch any living thing starved to death on purpose?
You did the only logical thing you could do other than stealing the animal. I would rather see you get law enforcement involved because what they did is a crime. You made it clear to them that the dogs condition concerned you. They just don't care.

You did the right thing- they wil know who called the cops but it wouldn't concern me in the slightest.

Explain doing nothing to these three guys.

[Shell Beau]

38. That is a precious pic!

What is crazy is that a cop lives right across the street from them. I don't think he really pays much attention to the dog b/c she is hard to see from the street b/c she's chained up. Plus there is so much crime in this town that animals would probably be at the very bottom of their list. :(