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Woman Refuses To Return Dog To Neighbors Who Abandoned It For Six Months Without Calling

Woman hugging her dog while they on a jetty, rear view.
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Animals have deep feelings. They know love, and they know pain.

And abandoning animals is very painful for them.

In many places of the world, animal abandonment is also criminal.

But some people just don’t seem to care.

Thankfully, there are a lot of people who do.

A deleted Redditor wanted to discuss her experience and get some feedback. So naturally, she came to visit the “Am I The A**hole” (AITA) subReddit.

She asked:

“AITA for refusing to let my neighbor take back the dog they abandoned?”

The Original Poster (OP) explained:

“My neighbors abandoned their dog when they moved out, and I took him in, cared for him, and made him part of my family for six months.”

“Now, they want the dog back. I refused.”

“I (28 F[emale]) live in a pretty quiet neighborhood and have always loved animals.”

“About six months ago, my next-door neighbors, ‘Mark’ and ‘Julie,’ moved out of their house and completely abandoned their dog, ‘Buddy’ (a 4-year-old Golden Retriever).”

“They didn’t say a word about it—just left him tied up in the backyard with a bag of food and water.”

“When I realized what had happened, I was furious.”

“Who leaves a dog behind like that?”

“I immediately took Buddy in and made sure he was safe and fed.”

“Over the next few days, I tried contacting Mark and Julie to find out what was going on.”

“They ignored all my calls and texts, so I figured they didn’t care and had intentionally left Buddy behind.”

“I ended up deciding to keep him.”

“Buddy is the sweetest dog I’ve ever met, and he quickly became a huge part of my life.”

“I took him to the vet, got him vaccinated, and made sure he was healthy.”

“It’s been six months, and he’s like family to me now.”

“He’s happy, healthy, and honestly living his best life.”

“Then, last week, Mark randomly showed up at my door, saying they ‘wanted Buddy back.'”

“Apparently, they had some personal issues and had to leave town quickly, but now that things had settled, they were ready to bring him home.”

“I was shocked.”

“I told Mark there was no way I was giving Buddy back after they abandoned him for six months without any contact.”

“Mark got really defensive, saying that Buddy was their dog and I had ‘stolen’ him.”

“He accused me of taking advantage of their situation and guilt-tripped me by saying that he and Julie had just been going through a tough time and needed a fresh start.”

“He claimed that Buddy was ‘better off with them’ since he’s their dog, and they had raised him for years.”

“I told him straight up that Buddy was staying with me.”

“If they cared so much about him, they wouldn’t have left him behind like he was nothing.”

“I reminded him that I had spent time and money taking care of Buddy when they couldn’t be bothered to even let me know what was going on.”

“I told him that Buddy has a new home now and that I wasn’t about to uproot him just because they suddenly decided they wanted to play the responsible pet owners again.”

“Now, Mark and Julie are furious.”

“They’ve been going around the neighborhood, telling people I ‘stole’ their dog and that I’m a terrible person for not giving him back.”

“FYI they’re living at a hotel and will leave sometime this week.”

“There are witnesses to the abandonment.”

“Our neighborhood likes to gossip, and everyone pretty much knew Buddy had been abandoned within 48 hours, and my other immediate neighbors have seen him in that situation too.”

“So there is no chance the ex-neighbor will be escalating.”

The OP was left to wonder:

“I feel like I’m doing the right thing by keeping Buddy, but AITAH?”

Redditors shared their thoughts on this matter and weighed some options to the question AITA:

  • NTA – Not The A**hole
  • YTA – You’re The A**hole
  • NAH – No A**holes Here
  • ESH – Everyone Sucks Here

Many Redditors declared OP was NOT the A**hole.

“NTA – Tell anyone who comes to you with this nonsense that the dog would have died, chained up in the backyard if you hadn’t rescued it and that you are now planning to report them to animal welfare, as they’ve acknowledged that they left the dog there unattended, having given no notice to anyone – intentionally.”

“You don’t have to actually report them, but everyone else needs to know that they literally left the dog to die and that there are consequences for that.” ~ KrofftSurvivor

“NTA… screw them and what the hell did they think happened to their dog like would if you didn’t have him what would they have done?”

“I hope you took photos of how they left him as evidence there lucky you didn’t call the police.” ~ Electrical-Sleep-853

“Do yourself a favor and get Buddy micro-chipped with your information.”

“Until they leave town, you need to be very careful not to leave him alone where these people could potentially take him.”

“These sound like the kind of people that may even consider breaking into your home.”

“When you abandon property, and most places, you give up ownership.”

“Legally speaking I’m not sure about the outcome here because I don’t know where you are and all the individual facts.”

“Nevertheless never give legal advice over the Internet lol.”

“Make sure you keep those text messages where you tried to contact them.”

“Keep a record. “

“If you feel comfortable, ask the neighbors to write a statement and sign it about Buddy being abandoned.”

“Keep all the vet bills, expenses, and things to show that you’ve been caring for him.”

“If you buy his dog food from a specific store, they might even have a record of your purchases.”

“And if it comes down to it, and there is a confrontation, definitely report them.”

“Abusing an animal by leaving them outside for six months with no food and water chained up in a backyard?”

“If you can prove that, it is unlikely that these people will get that animal back.”

“Obviously NTA. Thank you for saving him!” ~ Pippet_4

“And have the statements notarized if it becomes necessary to take them to court?”

“Get their license plate number.”

“NTA. And kudos to you for taking good care of Buddy.” ~ Humble-Network5796

“NTA… do a Google search.”

“You can buy a microchip reader that you can scan over a pet and you’ll know if there’s one there!”

“Then just contact the company and tell them that you’re the new owner, etc., etc.” ~ —Anne—

“NTA and OP need to contact the local animal control office and report what happened.”

“If OP had not taken that dog in, it would have been dead due to the abandonment and starvation, no if, and, then, or buts.”

“These people need to be put in the system that they are animal abusers.”

“Also, by reporting it (with statements from neighbors for backup), OP can likely get the dog legally licensed (either as the original owner or transferred from neighbors) so that they have legal recognition of ownership.”

“And OP would definitely NTA by reporting because these neighbors are inherently evil and sketchy as crap with the ‘they had personal issues,’ more like they owed a bookie or loan shark or drug dealer.” ~ chudan_dorik

“You can also send snapshots of you reaching out to them and the no replies from them.”

“Had they actually cared and loved their dog, they’d have asked neighbors/friends to temporarily home their dog and given dog support money for food, etc.”

“You can also tell them if they don’t stop slandering you, you’ll get an attorney for defamation of character. NTA.” ~ Outrageous-forest

“Have you taken any steps to establish your legal ownership?”

“Considering the number of witnesses you’ve got, you’re probably in a good place should this come to court, but the more evidence of them abandoning the dog, the better.”

“Also, keep a close eye on him for the next few months.”

“You don’t know what lengths they will go to to get him back. NTA.” ~ TogarSucks

“NTA. They abandoned Buddy, for six whole months, and they ignored your attempts to communicate with them.”

“They left him tied up and didn’t come back, for six months.”

“You didn’t steal Buddy, you literally saved his life.” ~ ExistenceRaisin

“NTA. They abandoned that dog to die.”

“However, they likely could assert ownership.”

“The law might well still consider Buddy their property.”

“Unless they can afford to sue (unlikely) it’ll probably come down to whatever the cop who comes to your door decides.”

“If he likes your story better, Buddy’s your dog.”

“If they call the cops.” ~ _s1m0n_s3z

“Nah, our next-door neighbor had her dog stolen by her adult daughter (who was nuts, but I digress).”

“When she went to report it, the police told her that dogs were considered property and the fact that they now had the dog and there was no evidence that she hadn’t given it to her, there was nothing they could do.”

“The dog was in a locked and fenced yard, the daughter’s boyfriend must have climbed the fence to get him.”

“If the police weren’t interested in that, they’re not going to listen to these people when the so-called theft is at least 6 months old.”

“That dog belongs to OP now.” ~ GorgeousGracious

“NTA. After six months, they show up out of nowhere wanting him back.”

“Nah, that’s not how it works.”

“They had their chance to be decent pet owners, and they blew it. “

“You’ve given Buddy a loving home, and he’s clearly happy with you.”

“It’s on them for not keeping in touch or taking care of him.” ~ LauraMartin288

“NTA and if you hadn’t ‘stolen’ Buddy, he would be dead.”

“His previous owners would have ended his life without your intervention.”

“He is absolutely not ‘better off with them.'”

“He would literally be dead if it was up to them.”

“People like them make me sick.” ~ lordmwahaha

“NTA, but… you should have contacted the police right away and told them why you were going to take the dog home.”

“They would have agreed with you and would have made an animal cruelty charge on them, that way you would have saved yourself a lot of drama.” ~ adonishappy

“NTA!!! That’s literally abuse.”

“Leaving a dog tied up and attended.”

“Tell them you have pictures and footage and would show it to the police if they continue saying that you stole their dog.”

“Do not give them buddy back.”

“They might again abandon him the next time they have a rough patch, and unfortunately, he might not end up in a new home like yours.”

“PS: had it been me and I couldn’t adopt him, I would have rehomed him to a good home and never told them about buddy.”

“Glad that he got someone like you who would stand up for him. 🙂 “ ~ saphira_bluedragon

“NTA. Thank you for taking care of Buddy and giving him the home and care he deserves. 💜” ~ Schlobidobido

“NTA they are monsters.”

“Thank you for saving him.”

“Please make sure he is microchipped if not already!!!” ~ taqjsi

Reddit is with you, OP.

Your neighbors did something horrible, and you saved Buddy’s life.

He’s a part of your family now.

It may be time to involve the police.

These people sound a little “off.”

Be careful, and good luck.