please tell me your opinion...it a long story...?

Question

My neighbor is never home about a month ago his puppy started coming over..and not going home...this guy works all the time, and is never home..so after a few days of looking at this puppy..i started feeding him, i have named him "puppy" ....well about 3 weeks ago another puppy came up here *he is not the same guys dog" I don't know where he come from, he was so sick looking from not being fed i thought he was dead when i first saw him, i started feeding him and now he is the sweetest looking dog, i have named him "Snoopy" *yea, he really looks like snoopy* my problem is, i have become attached to these beautiful puppys...the neighbor is never at home, and i see no water/feed bowls for his puppy..I have been looking in the papers for anyone missing "snoopy" nothing is in there...so in my head i adopted these dogs...am i wrong? what am i suspose to do? please help

signed,
i love puppy and snoopy

Answer 1

Noble of you... and very common to feel so attached.

First, are you really ready to take on 2 pups completely? That's a lot of food, training and vet bills. And its something that lasts 8-16yrs.

If you are ready, and then i would say you have gone the right direction with Snoopy, but you may want to place a "found" ad in the local paper... he may not have been neglected, but lost. (sounds like he is yours already though)

Now, Puppy.... you should talk to the neighbor, tell him how fond you are of the pup, and how the pup visits you... let him know you'd be happy to take the pup.

Answer 2

I would keep them sence you have been feeding them but if the neighbor comes over to get puppy then i would say to him "well sence your not ever home i thought i would look after your dog and i have seem to come very attached to him, so if it is alright with you then i will him for you and you can come and visit him anytime you want.. if that doesnt work then take it up with the law cause after 2 or 3 weeks of no owner claiming the dogs then they are considered yours,,, I hope this helps and good luck with snoopy and puppy

Answer 3

Obviously your neighbor does not care about Puppy, or he would have come by and asked if you had seen him. To make sure that you do not find yourself on grounds of theft or dog napping, then I would suggest talking to your neighbor the next time you see him. Explain to him everything you have noticed and done. If he tries to take Puppy back then I would also suggest contacting your local SPCA and reporting him on the grounds of animal neglect. You can then adopt the puppy outright at that time. Hopefully your neighbor does the right thing and gives him up to you, it doesn't sound like he has time or is capable of the responsibilities. As far as Snoopy is concerned, he is yours. You are his angel and you might find one day that he is your angel too. Animals have ways of showing their appreciation in the most awesome ways. I personally would like to thank you for taking care of these forgotten beings and for having the heart to not let them go unrecognized. You are a blessing to these now fortunate creatures. Feel lucky that you have these little guys in your life, for they feel that way about you. Again, thank you.

Answer 4

I would have been feeding and paying attention to the dog your neighbor obviously isn't caring for, too! I say to ask your neighbor if you can take the dog in since he doesn't really seem to have time for it. If not, I'd call the local animal control on him then. If the seize the dog for neglect, you can still have the option to adopt the dog.

As for your stray... chances are no one is looking for him at this point, as it seems he's been on his own for a while considering the condition he was in. But I would suggest to at least make an effor to find his owners. It's likely you won't find them, but again, you tried to at least.

We just recently took a stray dog in and are currently looking to find the proper owners (5 days and no luck yet unfortunately), but here is a link to a question I asked about any other ideas to find the owner. It lists what we did and has some great suggestions as to anything else we could try to do. Found ads here in our town are free to run in the newspaper too, so it didn't cost anything to search but a little time. http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AmvGixsRPdBCIQkpgDNdsWfsy6IX?qid=20061025112021AAiFNo6

But I would guess you have a new companion now :)

Answer 5

I don't know what the laws are like in your area, but here, if neither of these dogs is licensed, they are yours for the taking. Just to cover myself, I would check with you local animal shelter. Since the neighbor will notice his dog being gone, you might try asking him if he would be willing to give the dog to you. If he doesn't, you could report it as an animal abuse case. Owners are required to provide shelter, food and a water source for their animals. Anything less is considered neglect and the animal can be taken away. At that point, you would be free to go to the shelter and adopt that dog.

Insofar as the stray, just take it to the vet, get it immunized and get a license. That dog was out wandering. Apparently noone is concerned about it....no lost ad...I would say you would have no problem just taking in that dog and making it yours.

Answer 6

All the advice seems reasonable, the only other thing you could do is to take Snoopy to the vet for a check up and while there have him scanned for a chip. As long as there is no chip, he is definitely yours.

With puppy, you have to talk to your neighbor. Even if your neighbor challenges you for ownership, you can prove that you have been caring for the pup where he has neglected it.

Answer 7

for puppy i think you shoudl ask the guy before to say that you "stole" his dog. as for snoopy put an ad in the paper or report the dogs lost and after two weeks keep them!

like someone said by right there yours after 2 weeks but you should cover yourself.GOOD LUCK and take care of them babies!

Answer 8

the law is that after 2 weeks of taking care of an animal you can legally take them as your own pets. good luck with snoopy and puppy.

Answer 9

In my opinion you're doing just what I would do,but would suggest that you contact your neighbor and ask if he would be willing to adopt his pet to you,otherwise If he isn't in agreement to do such,then he needs to be more responsible for his pet and provide it with food and fresh water.With the one called Snoopy,if you have tried unsuccessfully to find its' owner and failed,then if you want the dog,would consider it your's,as evidently it wasn't taken care of by its' former owner,or it wouldn't have been searching for you,or a new home.

Answer 10

Good for you!! I know where I am from, if you find a stray, or if they find you, if you keep the dog for 2 weeks and care for it, its yours. I would contact your local animal shelter to find out what your local laws are. As well as talk to your neighbor next time you see him and ask him if you could keep the dog, if not REPORT HIM to the local animal rescue. Good luck. I wish more people had a heart like yours.