Q: How long would a dog have to be with you before you own it.
I has a person in my town with a dog and her two puppies living out of their car in the winter ask me to watch them as it was two cold for a small dog and 8 week old puppies. I was given them in October and the lady has not provided any food or help what so ever and has been very speratoc in communications. I am curious if there is any legal time frame where they well be considered mine as I do not want them to go back to her because I fear that she does not have the means to take care of them and want to make sure they go to a good home.
A: Technically, five years. But, not if you can argue that she essentially abandoned the dogs to your care, which could be argued because she left them with you with no provisions to take care of them. If she contacts you for return of the dog/puppies, contact an experienced animal attorney to discuss your options.
A:
There is no specific law that address the this question, however, the general rule for abandoned property is that it takes 5 years from the date the property is abandoned before the original owner can no longer claim ownership of the dogs. So, it might be worth it for you to reach out to the owner and see if she would be willing to sell or give the dogs to you, that way you can be sure her claim of ownership is severed.
In the meantime, you can take steps to increase the likelihood of winning in court for your own claim of ownership such as taking the dogs to get rabies and other vaccinations and registering the dogs with your county or municipality.
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