Dog Custody Fight

[aduidarnenye]

I saw this in a local paper today and it's a major hot topic (nearly as important in Halifax as cat by-laws and harbour sewage). This guy had a house fire and his church friend offered to take care of his dog, but she wanted a bunch of money before returning the dog. He offered $1200 but it wasn't enough and now she's selling the dog.

A furry fight for custody - Nova Scotia News - TheChronicleHerald.ca

EARL SHADBOLT was shocked to hear that a notice of sale in Thursday’s paper featured his little mixed breed dog.

After learning about the ad from a reporter, the 75-year-old Eastern Passage man rested his chin in his hand and shook his head.

"I can’t understand what’s going on," he said.

Last April, fire gutted his house.

"I lost a lot of my possessions and the fire was just devastating," he said. "But I made it out with my cat and my little dog, Willie."

Unfortunately, his house was uninhabitable.

"The insurance company put me in an apartment, but the apartment wouldn’t let me keep the dog," he explained.

He said a neighbour who attends the same church as he does agreed to keep Willie, a six-kilogram, black and white terrier mix.

"Everyone thought Laura Naugler was doing it out of the kindness of her heart and I used to go and visit Willie and I’d take her flowers and bring treats for Willie — I thought she was so kind to help me out in this way," he said.

Ms. Naugler said she did agree to take the dog out of the kindness of her heart.

However, she said there is much more to the story.

"This really is a love story," Ms. Naugler said during a telephone interview Thursday night.

Willie and "a neighbour’s dog literally fell in love," she said. "They started connecting and they shared bones — one would get on top of the couch and roll the bone down to the other and it was so cute to watch them play."

Although Ms. Naugler said she intended to ask Mr. Shadbolt if he would allow the dogs to socialize occasionally, she said she didn’t get a chance to.

"After I gave him the bill there was no discussion of anything," she said.

Mr. Shadbolt moved back into his renovated house in August and asked Ms. Naugler to bring Willie back in time for his first birthday.

"I got him a brand new winter coat, a new bed and some treats for his birthday," he laughed.

He said Ms. Naugler refused to give the dog back.

Ms. Naugler said she called Mr. Shadbolt’s insurance company and was told they would be giving him a cheque for $1,200 and he would pay her.

Mr. Shadbolt said he offered the compensation.

"The insurance company said they’d pay $630 and I said I’d match that amount for a total of $1,260 but that wasn’t enough," he said. "She sent me a bill for $1,797 and it isn’t even itemized — I don’t know what it’s for."

Ms. Naugler said she was quite willing to give him the dog but she wanted to get paid first.

"He could have phoned and said look I’ve only got so much money but he didn’t."

Mr. Shadbolt said he’s had a series of small strokes and blames it on his distress over his dog.

When he sought help from police, he said he was advised it was a civil matter. He went to a bank for a loan so he could retain a lawyer.

The dog is supposed to go up for sale on Oct. 26, pursuant to the Warehousemen’s Lien Act, in the parking lot of 192 Wyse Rd. in Dartmouth.

Mr. Shadbolt said he has a date in small claims court in November. Ms. Naugler has been served with a notice of the court action, but said she still intends to go through with the sale.

"He can come and buy it if he wants — he needs to do the right thing," she said.

There's even a Facebook group about it now.

Give Earl Shadbolt His Dog Back! | Facebook


I do wonder about our local paper though. This story has nearly 400 comments on it while others usually only get a couple dozen.

[Vandalhart]

I think he's getting his dog back.

Is it just me or does the story seem to be written badly?

What are they talking about a love story for? She made no statement about not giving the dog back except about wanting to get paid.. which he offered and she said no.

[Mojo]

Agreed... what the hell does the 'love story' have to do with anything? Sounds like a greedy old cooch to me.

[Chun Liroy]

http://scrapetv.com/News/News%20Page...k-with-dog.jpg

Did someone say dog and fight?

[Jodwahh]

Fucking evil bitch whore skank, no-one should ever get between a man and his dog. Shit, I would have looked after that dog for free too.

[Athas]

This thing pretty badly written but I have this right?

House fire
Insurance cover temp housing in apartment
Apartment doesn't allow pets, friend watches dog
Come to pick up dog, handed an un-itemized bill for almost 1800
Offers almost 1300, refused, friend now selling dog to highest bidder

[Ksandra]

What a complete whore. I can't even remotely see why this would be okay. I can only hope something can be done before she does sell the dog, as I would imagine that could cause all kinds of complications.

[aduidarnenye]

The woman's name and address are bein posted all over the Internet and there are messages going about that someone should "go over and get the dog back". And so on. If anyone actually did that I am sure there will be many more interesting things about this story.

And yeah, that story is very badly written. Local newspaper with massive budget cuts and all that.

[Senoska]

If she sells the dog shes going to lose a lot more than $1,800 in court.

[Heavencloud]

Wow the guy had a series of small strokes over not having his dog? That's really sad actually.

[Kerberoz]

You don't fuck with another person's dog. Hope she gets harassed to death.

[Minions]

Pretty retarded, unless the friend told him up front they were going to charge him to keep the dog, he shouldn't have to pay anything.

[aduidarnenye]

New story in the paper this morning. Much better written. Pretty much same information.

Public picks up Willie’s scent - Nova Scotia News - TheChronicleHerald.ca

The Facebook group has exploded into a hilarious argument about legalities and whatnot though.

[Furtwangler]

I'm really surprised no one has taken the dog back or something yet.

[Waef]

Wow, what a bitch lol. Hope the guy gets his dog back soon.

[Nyx]

I'd definitely have to choke a bitch if she wouldn't give my dog back. Then again, if anyone tried to fight with me in front of my dog, they'd probably get mauled.

[aduidarnenye]

Latest news on this, if you're interested:

I got this PM from the Facebook group:

There has been mediation going on and Willy is returning to Earl like Netta said. This is a situation that just went off the rails even with good intentions behind them.

ARC (Animal Rescue Coalitions - Netta) and ARPO (Advocates for Responsible Pet Ownership - Me) have been working towards a successful resolve with co-operation on both sides.

Everyone has Willy's best interest at heart and early next week hopefully this will come to a happy conclusion for all.

It is a great reminder to have in place guardians for our pets, proof of ownership/microchipping, and a clear view of what our insurance will cover in the case of our pets.

It also shows the need for emergency temporary foster or care for animals who find themselves caught in a families temporary crisis.

It would be heartening to see the energy and emotion this case has drawn translate into actions through whatever network is chosen to support rescue and advocacy in animal welfare in this community, province, country, etc.

Much rejoicing ensued.


National news picked up the story too:

http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2...481386-cp.html



.

[MF Perm tha Fineass]

Bitch still needs tailpipe shoved up her moldy cunt.

[Kuya]

No bitch should ever get between a man and his bitch.

[aduidarnenye]

There was a story in the newspaper this morning. I have no idea why this story fascinates me so much. I think I might go to the court case on 10 November just to see.

Is Willie soon on way home? - Nova Scotia News - TheChronicleHerald.ca

It’s finger-crossing time for those who have been following the odyssey of Willie the dog.

While negotiations are sort of underway for the return of Earl Shadbolt’s little friend, his lawyer said Thursday night he is not as confident as those leading the negotiations.

"I’ve been in contact with lawyers (for the other side) and I’ve been told the negotiations are at an impasse," said Ritchie Wheeler.

"I’ve been told we’re going to court, so accordingly, I’m preparing for court."

One of the people who have been leading the discussions said nothing is carved in stone, but Willie, a terrier mix, should be back in the lap of luxury by early next week.

More to the point, the dog will hopefully be back in the lap of Mr. Shadbolt, the 75-year-old Eastern Passage man whose home was gutted by fire in April.

He had asked a member of his church to care for the little dog while his house was being repaired. He had to live in an apartment that didn’t allow dogs.

When the renovations were finished, he moved back into the home in August, but the woman who had been caring for Willie refused to return him.

Laura Naugler said unless she received over $1,700 for what she described as kennelling and other fees, she would not give him back his dog.

Furthermore, she told The Chronicle Herald the dog was in love with a neighbour’s dog and she thought it was not right to separate them.

In desperation, Mr. Shadbolt turned to his lawyer. An application to small claims court was made and a Nov. 10 court date was set.

Ms. Naugler advertised to sell Mr. Shadbolt’s dog at a location in Dartmouth on Oct. 26 under the Warehousemen’s Lien Act.

That caught the eye of animal protection groups.

Annette Armitage of Animal Rescue Coalition and Heather Morrison of Advocates for Responsible Pet Ownership have been trying to broker a deal to have Willie returned to Mr. Shadbolt.

"Willie is definitely going back to Earl, but the idea is to mend some fences and have things go smoothly," Ms. Morrison said in a telephone interview Thursday night.

"Mediation is taking place and if people would only be patient, they will see things will turn out all right."

Since the story appeared in this newspaper last week, a Facebook site has been set up called Give Earl Shadbolt His Dog Back. It has attracted about 800 members so far.

Ms. Morrison said the story of Willie the dog should serve as a warning to pet owners that they should have proper ownership papers for their pets and that they should determine in advance who will care for their pets in an emergency.