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Original poster

What to do with a 'found' dog that's clearly been neglected?

80 replies

Bettyhatesavocados · 29/08/2021 16:45

Friend and I found a dog wandering the road a few miles away from where my friend lives. No collar, a bit timid at first but then super friendly. Took the dog back to my friend's (who has two dogs already...so not ideal but getting on okay).
The dog is gorgeous, a bitch, seems young as she is very playful (playing a lot with friend's younger dog who is almost 11 months old and also a bitch). Also picked up dog rope toy. Jumps up on the sofa and snuggles in. Drank lots of water but refused food. Has peed three times in the house, thankfully not on carpet. Friend has taken her for a walk and said she walks well on the lead.
Little dog ate a bit of dog sausage treat so maybe just fussy. Doesn't appear to be underweight, teeth seem good. The problem is that she is severely matted from half way down her back to the tail, backside and underbelly, and back legs. Oddly, no matting on head, front legs and chest... It's like the front end is one dog and the back end is another dog! There is also a 'greasy' are in the middle of her back which, strangely, smells like she's been sprayed with air freshener or something! No visible fleas but seems itchy...possibly the matted areas bothering her.
My friend probably can't keep her and neither can I :( But, if we take her to a vet and she is chipped we are both more than reluctant to hand her back over to whoever let the poor thing get into this state. I don't think this is something that has happened to her in the course of being lost... The matted parts are just too established.
Friend and I have called a groomer and explained the situation. She has kindly said she will shave her on after the BH. We have asked her if she can bag the matted fur she cuts off so my friend can present it to his vet when he takes her to get checked for a microchip...
Would love some advice on what to do, especially if she is chipped. I can't bear the thought of her going back to a life of neglect :( She is a beautiful little Shih Tzu with a lot of years ahead of her, I'm guessing.
Whether to contact the RSPCA (because of the neglect)...though I know they get a bad rap on here.. Or give her to Dogs' Trust or contact local charities for help?
Can anyone offer any advice? She is adorable and I want the best for her. Friend has agreed to keep her over the BH, get her shaved and take it from there...
Thanks!

OP posts:
bobandhisburgers · 29/08/2021 19:20

The dog is in the best place for her, with professionals in animal care and access to any medication she needs as well as being taken care of/fed/clean/dry/safe. She's very lucky! She's not your dog OP and the vets will do their best to find her family.

Original poster
Bettyhatesavocados · 29/08/2021 19:20

Random789

The difference is that my friend is a 'Tom, Dick or Harry' who bothered his arse to pick the poor dog up, take it home, attempt to make her more comfortable, gave her water, took her on a walk, and try to do the right thing by the dog. Hardly the action of a cruel or neglectful person... I'm wondering how they can be sure the 'owner' if one comes forward is 'the owner' and not some unscrupulous liar.

My friend has now said he will do all he can to adopt the dog. He has had dogs before (both rescues). And, two now: one he bought who had been kept in a cage for 8 hours a day and is no living the life of Riley and another he bought for ridiculous money so he could rescue her from a life of breeding (after she'd served her purpose many times over, of course! :( ) The little dog he found got on fairly well with one dog and the ex-breeding dog just ignored her really...so no tensions or anything.
My friend is retired and lives near a country park. He wasn't looking for another dog but would like to give her a good home.
Would anyone know where he goes from here wrt to adopting should they not find the owner (I am doubtful they will with no chip or tag)?
Does a finder have first call, so to speak, as long as they can offer a good home? Thanks.
Ps. To the poster who asked about stolen dogs, the dog is none of those featured in that newspaper article.

OP posts:
Hellocatshome · 29/08/2021 19:24

He can let the vet know that he would like to be considered if no owner is found. Its not a case of finders keepers though, whoever arranges the rehoming will go through their normal procedures and she will go to the home that is considered best for her.

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Dogs
hedgehogger1 · 29/08/2021 19:24

Didn't you say in the OP that neither of you could keep it anyway?

Original poster
Bettyhatesavocados · 29/08/2021 19:26

Hellocatshome Do you know if my friend will be able to adopt her? If so, how he goes about it? He is willing to offer her a very good home with his other two girls. They got on with the little found dog (see post above please). My friend insures his dogs, takes them regularly to the vet's, feeds them well, gets them groomed, walks them in the local country park twice a day and is home a lot of the time, being retired. He really gives them a wonderful life. He is willing to add one more to the brood! He said he wasn't planning on another dog but would take her and give her a happy life if the owner can't be traced... Would you or anyone else here know how best to go about that? Contact the RSPCA (who I think the vet's will contact in due course, though they were very evasive in what they intended on doing)...? Any info would be appreciated!

OP posts:
Original poster
Bettyhatesavocados · 29/08/2021 19:28

hedgehoger1 Please see the above two posts. I couldn't possibly but my friend's was a bit of a kneejerk reaction. He has two dogs already. He said when she came back as not being chipped he felt he should try to get her. He has the time and resources to add a third.

OP posts:
icedcoffees · 29/08/2021 19:29

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

icedcoffees · 29/08/2021 19:30

Would anyone know where he goes from here wrt to adopting should they not find the owner (I am doubtful they will with no chip or tag)? Does a finder have first call, so to speak, as long as they can offer a good home? Thanks.

No - the vet should give the dog to a charity who will perform all the relevant health and temperament checks, before putting the dog forward for rehoming.

It would be highly irresponsible of the vet to just hand the dog over to someone who says "I can give them a good home!".

Someone needs to make sure the dog is healthy, passes various temperament tests etc. The behaviour the dog displayed in your friends' home doesn't show that it's calm dog, as dogs can display calm behaviour when they're shut down due to trauma.

The dog should be rehomed with someone who has been checked by a charity as being able to provide a suitable home for her.

Original poster
Bettyhatesavocados · 29/08/2021 19:32

Thanks Hellocatshome The vet's nurse at least said she will pass on my friend's details. I suppose we just have to hope that if he's meant to have her, it will happen. If not, I just hope she goes somewhere where she will be loved and well-treated. She really was a dream dog for the few hours he had her. I honestly thought - after someone suggested it here - that she might be stolen as, apart from the matting, she seemed well and happy in herself.
The vet's nurse said she thought she'd been living outside for a while...but she seemed a good weight to me and my friend. My friend offered her good quality wet food and she turned her nose up at it. She ate a sausage treat a short while later though so she wasn't ravenous. The vet's nurse said stress can put a dog off eating but, honestly, the dog didn't seem stressed. She was licking me and playing like a daft thing with my friend's 11 month old puppy!

OP posts:
Hellocatshome · 29/08/2021 19:34

Do you know if my friend will be able to adopt her? If so, how he goes about it?

He just needs to ask the vet which charity the dog will go to for rehoming and contact them expressing his interest. He will get no special consideration because he is the one that found her.

NotYourCupOfTea · 29/08/2021 19:35

I work at a vets and we have a form for people to complete who bring in strays
They state on that if they would be willing to rehome and from our vets they go to local pound
We would tell someone this, they can then contact them if the want to adopt. The pound does 14 days to see if an owner is found before rejoining
The vets either found a chip an didn’t want to say or are being weird. I’d call back and ask what will happen to strays brought in Smile

NotYourCupOfTea · 29/08/2021 19:35

Rehoming not rejoining

icedcoffees · 29/08/2021 19:46

The vet's nurse said she thought she'd been living outside for a while...but she seemed a good weight to me and my friend. My friend offered her good quality wet food and she turned her nose up at it. She ate a sausage treat a short while later though so she wasn't ravenous. The vet's nurse said stress can put a dog off eating but, honestly, the dog didn't seem stressed. She was licking me and playing like a daft thing with my friend's 11 month old puppy

None of that means she wasn't stressed, though.

Stress can mean dogs lose their appetite. Licking is also a way of relieving stress, and urinating indoors (which she did several times) is also a sign of stress.

Playing with the other dog could just mean she's good with other dogs, or has lived with others before.

icedcoffees · 29/08/2021 19:48

The vets either found a chip an didn’t want to say or are being weird

Maybe the chip revealed the dog was stolen and they didn't say for privacy reasons?

HarkeyQuim · 29/08/2021 19:58

“He will get no special consideration because he is the one that found her.”

My friend has adopted a dog that she found whilst she was walking her own dog. She had to wait 14 days during which time the owners were not able to be found and she was allowed to apply to adopt him during those 14 days and then after the 14 days she took him home.

Nobody else was ‘considered’.

sueelleker · 29/08/2021 20:08

The dog should be rehomed with someone who has been checked by a charity as being able to provide a suitable home for her.
When we adopted from a rescue, they contacted our vet, who had looked after our previous dogs, to confirm that we were careful owners.

Original poster
Bettyhatesavocados · 29/08/2021 20:22

icedcoffees The two nurses each tried her all over with two separate scanners and confirmed no chip.

NotYourCupOfTea They took my friend's name, address and mobile number and said they would 'pass it on' along with the dog. Hopefully, my friend will get a call. He's currently emailing RSPCA and Animal Wardens for our city to express his interest in the little dog.

Thanks HarkeyQuim that's reassuring.

Sueelleker My friend said he wishes he'd kept her till Tuesday and taken her to his own vet (where his previous dog and current 2 dogs are registered). After posters here said she might be stolen he took her to an emergency vet. They couldn't speak for him like his own vet could. I'm hoping if it's meant to be my friend will end up with the lovely dog. I'll keep you updated. Thanks all.

OP posts:
GettingItOutThere · 29/08/2021 20:57

phone the dog warden and let them know you are happy to keep the dog until an owner has come forward

you cannot just keep the dog.!! what if she is stolen? or owners on holiday and its gone missing?

a lot of dogs are going missing, you cannot make the call to keep her

NeverDropYourMoonCup · 29/08/2021 21:15

Could be that they know the dog and the circumstances around it appearing/disappearing (Such as an elderly owner being taken to hospital and the dog being lost in the rush).

Newuser82 · 30/08/2021 07:05

@Bettyhatesavocados

My friend already cut some 'clumps' off (which he's kept and bagged). He gave up because there are so many and they are so close to the skin. So vet's before groomer's? I just wanted to get her out of any pain or discomfort she is in asap but maybe your recommendation is better... Thanks. Ps. When you say the vet makes the call, would they let my friend keep her till a course of action is decided upon. I really don't want her to end up in RSPCA kennels or something :(
Hi, can I ask where abouts you are as I’ve seen people advertising for a lost shih tzu near where my parents live. I think it’s been missing a little while.
countrygirl99 · 30/08/2021 07:14

There are a lot of dogs being stolen. Chips are sometimes hard to find. Some stolen dogs are dumped/get away. It could be someone's much loved and missed pet.

icedcoffees · 30/08/2021 08:25

Another thought I've had - sometimes stolen dogs have their chips cut out so they can't be traced back to the original owner.

I wonder if one of the nurses recognised the dog even though it wasn't chipped (it could have had another identifying feature) and just didn't want to say anything to you.

Many vets won't give details of original owners when you hand in a lost dog - they'll take your info and the owner can make contact if they wish.

MrsBobDylan · 30/08/2021 10:04

Just wanted to say op that I think you and your friend have been wonderful. I live in fear of one of my dogs getting lost or stolen and the thought they could be found by people like you is very comforting.

I hope the dogs gets returned to owners who care or goes to your friend.

TheVolturi · 30/08/2021 10:11

A dog wandered into dh work last week. A member of staff took it to the local vets to be scanned and it was not chipped. Then they took it to the local shelter. No one had claimed the dog after 3 or 4 days so the staff member went back and the shelter let him take the dog. He is keeping the dog, she was full of fleas and had broken teeth, although was quite young, and large teats like she had just given birth.

TheVolturi · 30/08/2021 10:15

Posted before I was finished, I was going to say that the vets have not got any right to keep the dog, if not chipped then you as the finder should be able to decide if you want to hang onto the dog or not I thought?

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