In December 2011, I made an agreement with Little Friends Foundation, a no kill animal shelter in Las Vegas, NV to board my dog when, I had to move on a very short notice.
They said she could stay there as long as I paid for her expenses. I went to the shelter on a regular basis to drop off food, money and visit my dog. I also made material donations and stayed in contact with the staff who cared for the dogs and cats.
Once I got settled in and called the shelter I was assured my dog would be there when I came to pick her up. I then learned she was adopted out the very next day!
The shelter manager and staff claimed they had a contract that authorized them to put my dog up for adoption. The only paperwork I was given was questions about what my dog ate and her behavior. Neither I nor anyone in my family signed a surrender contract.
I’ve asked for a copy of the document they say they have on file but all demand letters and emails were ignored. Because of this, I strongly believe a signature was forged. Since then, I’ve printed flyers and talked with a lawyer. All demand letters have been completely ignored or I received empty threats via email or voice message. One demand letter written by a lawyer was also ignored and no reply was ever received.
Nine months ago, on Facebook I was bogged down with comments from the shelter staff and their associates trying to discourage me from looking for my dog.
This went on for a total of 11 hours. I’ve got my dog’s registration, pedigree and medical records as proof of ownership.
As of August 2013, the shelter's manager, James Williamson who was in charge at the time Rudy was boarded and later adopted out was terminated from his position and the facility itself closed in January.
Despite this, they will not give out any information regarding the whereabouts of my Beagle. I miss my dog and have suffered a lot of heartache because of this situation.
My reputation as a person and dog owner has been tarnished online. Not only that but Mr. Williamson has been circulating a phony surrender document on the internet, I believe he forged a signature as the document is three pages long but he has only shown two, none of which show a signature.
He also claims the reason why he wouldn't return my dog is because he didn't think my family could provide adequate care or a home for my beagle Rudy.
He lied to my landlord who had added my dog to the lease as a second pet. My dog was healthy and I had her for five years, Little Friends was also paid to take care of her and given food for her.
Both material and monetary donations were also dropped off and I visited Rudy on a regular basis and she was only supposed to stay temporarly until I moved to my new address.
I am hoping that sharing my story will raise awareness of not only the search for my dog but also a growing problem known as pet flipping. I've also discovered that there are many dog owners such as myself who have had similar experiences and several cases of animal rescue organizations and shelters who aren't what they claim to be.
I truely believe the real reason Little Friends did not want to return my dog is because she was a healthy purebred they wanted to sell. There's two other dog owners, one in Los Angeles, CA and another in Avon, Ohio who are also locked in a struggle like mine to get their dogs back.
I find what Little Friends Foundation did to be inexcusable and illegal.
I love Rudy, she is my friend and means a lot to me, I got her when she was a puppy with money I had saved up. She's also my therapy dog as she helped me recover from the death of my first dog.
I've suffered greatly from depression after an ongoing two year struggle. It is also having an effect on my health. All I'm asking is to have my dog back, nothing else. No amount of monetary compensation will satisify me.
Little Friends Foundation Reviews
In December 2011, I made an agreement with Little Friends Foundation, a no kill animal shelter in Las Vegas, NV to board my dog when, I had to move on a very short notice.
They said she could stay there as long as I paid for her expenses. I went to the shelter on a regular basis to drop off food, money and visit my dog. I also made material donations and stayed in contact with the staff who cared for the dogs and cats.
Once I got settled in and called the shelter I was assured my dog would be there when I came to pick her up. I then learned she was adopted out the very next day!
The shelter manager and staff claimed they had a contract that authorized them to put my dog up for adoption. The only paperwork I was given was questions about what my dog ate and her behavior. Neither I nor anyone in my family signed a surrender contract.
I’ve asked for a copy of the document they say they have on file but all demand letters and emails were ignored. Because of this, I strongly believe a signature was forged. Since then, I’ve printed flyers and talked with a lawyer. All demand letters have been completely ignored or I received empty threats via email or voice message. One demand letter written by a lawyer was also ignored and no reply was ever received.
Nine months ago, on Facebook I was bogged down with comments from the shelter staff and their associates trying to discourage me from looking for my dog.
This went on for a total of 11 hours. I’ve got my dog’s registration, pedigree and medical records as proof of ownership.
As of August 2013, the shelter's manager, James Williamson who was in charge at the time Rudy was boarded and later adopted out was terminated from his position and the facility itself closed in January.
Despite this, they will not give out any information regarding the whereabouts of my Beagle. I miss my dog and have suffered a lot of heartache because of this situation.
My reputation as a person and dog owner has been tarnished online. Not only that but Mr. Williamson has been circulating a phony surrender document on the internet, I believe he forged a signature as the document is three pages long but he has only shown two, none of which show a signature.
He also claims the reason why he wouldn't return my dog is because he didn't think my family could provide adequate care or a home for my beagle Rudy.
He lied to my landlord who had added my dog to the lease as a second pet. My dog was healthy and I had her for five years, Little Friends was also paid to take care of her and given food for her.
Both material and monetary donations were also dropped off and I visited Rudy on a regular basis and she was only supposed to stay temporarly until I moved to my new address.
I am hoping that sharing my story will raise awareness of not only the search for my dog but also a growing problem known as pet flipping. I've also discovered that there are many dog owners such as myself who have had similar experiences and several cases of animal rescue organizations and shelters who aren't what they claim to be.
I truely believe the real reason Little Friends did not want to return my dog is because she was a healthy purebred they wanted to sell. There's two other dog owners, one in Los Angeles, CA and another in Avon, Ohio who are also locked in a struggle like mine to get their dogs back.
I find what Little Friends Foundation did to be inexcusable and illegal.
I love Rudy, she is my friend and means a lot to me, I got her when she was a puppy with money I had saved up. She's also my therapy dog as she helped me recover from the death of my first dog.
I've suffered greatly from depression after an ongoing two year struggle. It is also having an effect on my health. All I'm asking is to have my dog back, nothing else. No amount of monetary compensation will satisify me.