Arcadia, FL asked in Animal / Dog Law, Personal Injury and Wrongful Death for Florida

Q: I had 2 dogs that I rescued kept them at a my mothers house for over 2yrs I rescued them 7-8 yrs ago I lived with my fa

family member called animal control had dogs removed without notifying me... they are gone. im54 don't have kids I live in arcadia florida went to sheriffs office they said I cannot press charges against them I have over 3,000 dollars invested in them shots ,food and the time I spent with them.. now I have nothing

1 Lawyer Answer
Charles M.  Baron
Charles M. Baron
Answered
  • Animal & Dog Law Lawyer
  • Hollywood, FL
  • Licensed in Florida

A: Animal control, in most jurisdictions, won't pick up pets unless they've been abused or neglected, not simply because someone calls and says, "I don't want my pets anymore." Don't know if that's the case here, but your first step is to contact animal control to ask the reason for the pick-up and for any written reports made about it. If it wasn't due to abuse or neglect, then you should be able to adopt the pets from the shelter, assuming you have a home to keep them in.

Also, it sounds like you never registered the dogs in your name, because if you had, animal control would have to notify you of pick up - at least right afterwards. If the dogs were registered in someone else's name, it is presumed that the dogs are owned by that someone else, and you probably would not prevail in any legal action against that person.

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