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Family dog held by pound until they pay $300.00
#1
A family pet dog slipped out by accident and ended up at the pound. They know where the dog is, but they must pay $300.00 by Friday or he will be adopted out to another family.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...-fees.html

This is terrible. Bella is a beloved pet and the family is upset by her absence. They  found out where she is and they want to take her home. They have to pay the $300.00 first. Not everyone has money to spare. It is Christmas and they have a household to run. Money should never be a reason for holding someone's pet and for selling it to another family. The dog wants to go home. 

It is unreasonable and it feels a bit like blackmail. "pay or we  sell your dog to someone else" They have started a go fund me page. I hope it works. Bella should be home with her beloved family for Christmas, not living with strangers.
The city needs to review its policies. It seems very harsh and certainly not in the best interests of the animal involved. It is certainly not in the best interests of the children either.
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Catherine

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#2
I doubt if the "pay up within five days or we sell your dog" strategy would be allowed in most countries. That amounts to holding the dog as a ransom. However, it clearly is legal in Australia and it is a distressing situation.

I did note from the article, however, that the $129 fee is not payable if the dog is microchipped. This is not the right way to go about persuading people to have their dogs microchipped. Holding dogs for ransom is a hostile act and the emphasis should be on persuading humans of the benefits of microchipping their dogs and cats, or making the procedure compulsory.

I am very happy that Puce was microchipped when she was with us and that Forgy was microchipped as part of the adoption procedure before he joined us. It gives great peace of mind, as a quick click on a small hand-held device can identify the caretaker immediately. It is always wise to have this done and here in France it is compulsory.
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#3
Even if holding the dog "for ransom" is legal, it certainly isn't kind. It puts the family in a terrible position. They want their dog back. They may end up doing without something they really need just to get the dog back. How are parents supposed to tell their children that they can't afford to buy their dog back. I really hope they are able to get enough money to bring Bella home.

Good point about the microchip. Charging a fee for a dog without a microchip  is not the best way to encourage people to have their pet microchipped. The should waive all fees if the family microchips the dog. They will win more people over if they encourage microchipping rather than threatening to keep the dog  because of a fee.

Microchips bring pets home safely. It is so easy to have it done and it must bring tremendous peace of mind. You know that if Forgy somehow goes missing he will find his way home as soon as they check his chip.

I didn't realize that microchipping was compulsory in France. That seems like a good idea. Too many family pets end up in shelters and there is no way to find the owners. Is the rule common to all of Europe or is it just some countries.
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Catherine

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#4
I agree with microchipping. Misty wasn't microchipped. I realise that even though she was a total "velcro dog" she should have been.
Microchipping is the easy fast way to get a dog back to its family if by any chance they get separated.

But to hold a dog for ransom because it isn't microchipped ?

$300 wouldn't be much to some people, but an awful lot for others wo don't have money like that to spare. To face losing your dog because of $300 is horrible. The pound should never have done that. They should have asked for a donation. That would have been fair. Yes they had to work in one way or another with that dog, and there will be expenses of boarding the dog, but a donation would be sufficient.

It is horribly cold hearted and cruel, both to the dog and its family.

Has anyone heard the outcome of this yet? I really hope the dog does get back home.

However....I would be willing to sacrifice Christmas completely and pay to get my dog back if that's what it took.
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#5
I can't find any follow up articles to this story. I will keep looking. I hope they got enough donations to help bring Bella home.
For people with children, money is often scarce. Maybe Bella wasn't microchipped because they didn't have the money.
I certainly seems cruel to keep the dog from her family because of money. Surely they could set up a payment plan to let them pay a little each month. 

Microchipping has made it so easy to return pets to their families. More needs to be done to encourage it. When Misty was with you, Microchipping wasn't as common. Back in the old days they actually tattooed pets with a number in the ear. I was able to return a cat who was far from home because of his tattoo. There is no way they would have looked for him that far from home.

There are stories now of microchipped cats coming home after 10 years.
The pound could have turned the story around and helped the family to micro chip Bella and make her safe from getting lost again. The best way to get people to do things is to be nice about it and to make them want to do it.  There are still a lot of people who are unsure of microchipping a pet. Bella could have been a teaching moment.
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Catherine

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