Costa Mesa, CA asked in Animal / Dog Law for California

Q: While picking up my friends dog from the pound it was mandatory before release to have the dog chipped. My friend,the

Owner had no ID so we chipped the dog with my name etc. He is homeless ,the owner, and has got the dog impounded several times and ive helped recover her financially etc. He has now been in jail 5 months and I have kept her with me. I dont want to give her back due to his neglect. What rights do I have? He would of lost her many times if it werent for me

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1 Lawyer Answer
William John Light
William John Light
Answered
  • Animal & Dog Law Lawyer
  • Santa Ana, CA
  • Licensed in California

A: Nice of you to take care of the dog. You have no right to claim it as your own. You have induced reliance by the dog owner to your custody of the dog for her benefit. You now wish to take advantage of that reliance by claiming that the dog is yours. You don't get to own somebody else's dog because you have judged that they are bad owners. If the owner had known you were going to turn on them, she might have made other arrangements for custody of the dog while she was in jail.

If you don't want custody anymore, then notify the owner that you will surrender the dog to Orange County Animal Control within a week or some other period that would allow alternate arrangement to be made. If the owner has not made arrangements within that time, surrender the dog. If you want to become the owner, go through the adoption process like everyone else.

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