A veterinarian visiting Grand Rapids found a dog tied up and alone and took it home. Police reached out to say it belonged to a homeless man but she refused to return it.
Homeless People Often Have a Pet and a Cellphone
I saw a homeless man texting on his phone today, and it is not the first time. If the homeless person can pay the bill, then there is no reason why they shouldn’t have access to a phone. This could be their ticket to finding work, a place to stay, and no longer being homeless.
Occasionally, I will see a homeless person with a dog. Just because a person is homeless, doesn’t mean they can’t take care of a dog. Homeless people acquire dogs a variety of ways, including getting them from friends and family, adopting from shelters, but most often by finding strays or abandoned dogs.
No matter how a homeless person acquires a dog, if they are able to properly take care of the animal and follow the local laws, there is no reason they should not be allowed to enjoy man’s best friend; it may be the only friend they have.
Judge Sends Vet To Jail For Stealing Homeless Man’s Dog
According to WOOD TV, veterinarian Amanda Hergenreder has a practice that is located near Frankenmuth, Michigan. Hergenreder was visiting Grand Rapids last fall, when she noticed a pit bull tied up to a U-Haul truck near 28th Street and Eastern Avenue that appeared to be sick and alone. She decided to take the dog home, which on the surface seems innocent enough.
The U-Haul truck the dog was tied to was near a Biggby Coffee, and workers told Hergenreder the dog had an owner, and will be right back, but she took the animal anyway. She reached out to local police to ask for their input on how to handle the situation with the dog, but no one contacted her for weeks.
When the police finally got ahold of Hergenreder, and demanded she return the dog to its owner, she refused. The veterinarian changed the dog’s name to Bigby, provided the animal with medical care and moved it into her home. The woman cared for the dog for about eight months but it died at the age of sixteen.
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Hergenreder had to appear in court earlier this week and was found guilty of stealing the dog. The judge gave the veterinarian ten days in jail and ordered her to pay $1,000 in restitution. Unfortunately, the homeless man never got to see his dog again…