ELKHART, Ind. (WNDU/Gray News) – An Indiana mother says her 5-year-old son is left without his emotional support dog, claiming a shelter did not hold the missing pet for the time required before he was adopted.
Clarrissa Jacobs says her family has had their dog, Sonic, since he was 8 weeks old. She says her 5-year-old son took him to a friend’s house, and Sonic got loose, ending up at the Humane Society of Elkhart County.
“I’ve been calling them every day since then,” Jacobs said. “They told me it was a $100 fee to get him back. I didn’t have it at the time.”
She says she called the humane society Saturday once she had the money to see if the dog was still there. The operator on the phone confirmed he was.
She then says she made the person on the phone aware that her sister was on the way to pick up Sonic, but Jacobs says that 20 minutes before her sister arrived, the dog had been adopted.
Now, a little boy is left without his best friend.
“They are really close,” Jacobs said. “My son has a dresser in his room just of dog clothes to match him. He picked out matching Halloween costumes for them. They were both supposed to be skeletons.”
Though Jacobs claims otherwise, the humane society says their hold period policy was followed. Hold periods range from three days, five days and 10 days.
“Those are if an animal comes in not microchipped or no identifying marks, such as on the collar or a vet tag. We have to hold them for their stray period, which can be three or five depending on their jurisdiction. If they do have an ID and we can trace that microchip or a vet tag to an address or a number or even an email, we are required to hold the animal for 10 days,” said Ben Mathews, the Elkhart County Humane Society’s director of operations.
The humane society also offers a reclaim program, which gives you 48 hours to reclaim your pet free of charge if it’s the first time reclaiming them.
“The humane society met all the ordinances and laws that we’re required to,” Matthews said. “We are not out to deceive people. We’re not out to keep your animals. Contrary to that belief, we want animals to not be here.”
Unfortunately, Sonic was not microchipped when he got lost. Jacobs says her family has not only learned a lesson in all of this, but they want to advise other pet owners to microchip their animals so this doesn’t happen to them.
But most importantly, the family hopes the person who adopted Sonic is open to returning him.
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