Minnesota: Cat named Freddie safe after 15 months on his own thanks to two animal lovers - and a microchip

MINNESOTA -- Forgive us the stale nine lives storyline, but a Minneapolis cat is safe and warm after spending more than a year out on his own in the big bad world... and he didn't even have to use one of those lives up, thanks to some selfless animal lovers and a small piece of technology.

Char Gruber had just left work January 5 and was driving on Interstate 35W near Black Dog Road in Burnsville when she spotted something sitting on the side of the highway.

She turned around and found it was a skinny black cat just sitting there watching the cars whiz by.

As Char said on her Facebook page, "No where to go, river to the north, freeway to the west, a huge wetland to the east. He lifted one cold paw, then the other. I went up to him and he dove into a 25' long drainage pipe and was living under the off ramp."

 

Char drove off, but knew she couldn't just leave the little cat out there. The temp at the time was 2 degrees above zero, and the image of him lifting his frigid paws in the air pushed her into action.

She called her friend Carolyn Kirstine (skilled at catching cats in live traps) and the two of them hiked down a steep embankment and set a pair of traps.

Within minutes the skinny black cat was caught in one of them.

 

The ladies called their friend Anne Cieko, who agreed to give the wayward pet shelter.

Anne soon found that the cat had a chip in him, his name was Freddie, he belonged to a man who lived in south Minneapolis, and had been reported missing September 20, 2015.

The ladies contacted Justin Frey, who was overjoyed at the news his friend was still alive one year, three months, and 17 days after he slipped out of the house.

"If it weren’t for these three, and microchipping, Freddie would not be home today. He saw the vet this morning and the vet had no major concerns," Frey reported on his Facebook page.

"He is a good weight with a pretty healthy coat. Freddie jumped right onto my bed last night as if nothing had changed, and remains there this morning basking in the winter sun.

"Thanks again to Char, Anne and Carolyn! My heart is full today."

The lesson of the day, according to Char: It takes team work, never turn your back on a wily cat, and CHIP your animals!

(KARE - Jan 9, 2017)

Florida: Man believes woman involved in rescue had his lost dog's microchip surgically removed and then dumped the dog in the parking lot of a PetSmart

Florida: Missing dog's microchip surgically removed while lost. Owner says someone was trying to keep his collie

FLORIDA -- Prince the collie was missing for five days last week after escaping from his home’s screened porch during a thunderstorm.

When his owner, Dr. Bob Fier finally got Prince back, he found the dog woozy from anesthesia with two stapled incisions on his upper back. Someone had surgically removed Prince’s microchip.

 

“They certainly [did not plan to give my] dog back to me,” Fier said.

Fier said a neighbor found Prince a few hours after he escaped Monday, and took him to a nearby veterinarian’s office. The vet scanned Prince’s chip, but Fier had neglected to register himself as the new owner.

Instead, Fier said the chip was mysteriously registered to a former volunteer at the rescue agency where he adopted Prince over a year ago.

That former volunteer admitted to WPBF 25 News that she got a call about Prince, and sent someone to pick him up from the vet’s.

And that’s where the story gets murky.

“She called me Monday night and left a message. When I called back Tuesday morning, she said she had good news and bad news. The good news was she picked up Prince. The bad news was he was lost again,” said Fier.

Fier said the former volunteer told him his dog escaped from her boyfriend’s yard in West Palm Beach, but Fier said she refused to say where that was, so he had no idea where to look. Fier said he was anxious and angry.

 

“Not knowing what will happen, will I find a dead dog? Will I find him at all?” Fier said.

Fier posted flyers and searched all week, and meantime his plight was posted on a Facebook Page called Pet Haven’s Critters at Crossroads, where angry and concerned pet lovers were weighing in.

On Friday, Fier got a call from a local PetSmart. An employee who’d seen his flyer said a woman had just shoved a Collie that looked like Prince inside the store, claimed she’d found him in traffic, and took off running.

In the video clip, the reporter is at PetSmart and calls this woman who denied having anything to do with it.

Fier raced to the store and said he found Prince woozy from anesthesia, with surgical ointment in his eyes, and two different incisions on his back.

“I think they didn’t have a chip scanner and were just doing exploratory surgery in the sites where the chips usually are,” said Fier.

Fier had filed a theft report with the Martin County Sheriff’s Office when he couldn’t get information on where Prince was.

He said he is still going to follow up because someone performed surgery on his dog without permission, and he believes they were going to sell his dog once the identifying chip was removed.

(WPBF - Sept 29, 2016)

Illinois: Missing cat found living just down the block for over 2 years, but finders refuse to hand him over

ILLINOIS -- One cat. Two families. And a whole lot of mystery about what happened over the past two and a half years.

One woman says her cat went missing in September of 2013.

Another woman says a cat was begging to come into her home at exactly the same time. She and her husband let it in and kept the cat for two and a half years claiming they couldn't locate the owner.

 

Meanwhile, the original owner has been living three doors away from the cat and never knew it all this time

Joey is the Himalayan cat at the center of this tale and he is tugging at the heart strings of two Bloomingdale families.

Joey was adopted by Nichole Milone in March of 2011. With taxes, she paid $1100 for him and has the papers to prove he was micro chipped.

But Shawnie and Steve Godke have been caring for Joey for the last two and half years after the white cat darkened their door day after day, they claim.

Shawnie says the cat was abused, neglected and unwanted. 2013 photos show Joey when his fur was matted, dirty and he was filled with burrs.

That cat, she and her husband contend, found them.

"He was trying to come in for months upon months upon months,” she says. “And we said, ‘Here is food and water, now go home kitty cat. You need to go home to your owners.’"

But he kept coming back, she says.

Meanwhile, just three doors down in September of 2013, Nichole Milone filed a police report, contacted her microchip manufacturer PetKey and posted a hundred or so of these fliers all over town at animal shelters, the police station, even local grocery stores looking for her indoor/outdoor cat Joey. Nothing.

"I assumed he was probably taken by a coyote or something,” Nichole says.

Fast forward two and a half years later to April 29, 2016.

Nichole was entering her yard from the back and happened to glance up at her neighbor’s home where she says she saw her own cat.

“What is the possibility that my cat is three doors down from my house this whole time?"

Pretty good apparently.

Nichole called police, had his microchip scanned and it was indeed Joey.

Police won't press charges and the Godkes refuse to give up their prized pet. They admit they never reached out to police or any animal shelters when they took Joey in. They relied solely on the microchip system to reunite this cat with its rightful owner.

One problem: Their vet looked up the chip number on just one website: RFID-USA Microchip Registry - USA. It showed "microchip unregistered". If you plug in that same 10-digit number on the American Animal Hospital Association site, missing cat Joey comes right up and links you with the PetKey people.

And when you simply Google "Joey missing cat Bloomingdale Illinois,” PetKey's link is the first one listed.

Also, the Godkes have been calling the cat Joey from almost the start. How is that possible if they never knew the animal before it showed up at their home? They say a neighbor in the same subdivision told them about the name. So they went with it.

Shawnie says, "This neighbor that told our neighbor said that this cat must be from somewhere in the subdivision and that woman heard his name must somehow be Joey. … My focus was on what was best for this animal. And if this person that decided to give it that type of life wanted it back, then that person was going to have to come and make themself available."

Nichole says she has tried.

"I have a cat that has a chip and I can't get it back. So what's the point of the chip? I'm not furious. I’m not mad at them. I think it's sad how they are handling the situation. I feel the same way that they did. He was part of my family."

 

So what now? Police say there is no criminal intent in this case. They refuse to press charges. Both sides have hired lawyers.

They both want Joey the Cat. In fact, the Godkes have even requested a no-trespass order from police so the Milone family risks arrest if they try to go to the Godke home.

A "for sale" sign already sits in the Godkes front yard. Shared cat custody not a likely resolution.

So there was no "criminal intent"... but they did NOTHING to find the owner, never notified the shelter that they had this stray cat in their possession, didn't post any flyers in the neighborhood. This is theft and they need to be prosecuted. If you found a car sitting on the side of the road, could you simply tow it home and keep it???

 (720 ILCS 5/16-1) (from Ch. 38, par. 16-1)
    Sec. 16-1. Theft.
    (a) A person commits theft when he or she knowingly:
        (1) Obtains or exerts unauthorized control over property of the owner; or
        (2) Obtains by deception control over property of the owner; or
        (3) Obtains by threat control over property of the owner; or
        (4) Obtains control over stolen property knowing the property to have been stolen or under such circumstances as would reasonably induce him or her to believe that the property was stolen; or
        (5) Obtains or exerts control over property in the custody of any law enforcement agency which any law enforcement officer or any individual acting in behalf of a law enforcement agency explicitly represents to the person as being stolen or represents to the person such circumstances as would reasonably induce the person to believe that the property was stolen, and
            (A) Intends to deprive the owner permanently of the use or benefit of the property; or
            (B) Knowingly uses, conceals or abandons the property in such manner as to deprive the owner permanently of such use or benefit; or
            (C) Uses, conceals, or abandons the property knowing such use, concealment or abandonment probably will deprive the owner permanently of such use or benefit.

(WGN - June 28, 2016)

Sheltie Missing for 6 Years Found and Reunited With Family in Las Vegas in Time for Christmas

NEVADA -- A beloved dog missing for six years has been found and reunited with his family in Las Vegas just in time for the holidays.

David Marks told ABC News today that he and his wife, Alison Marks, were "overjoyed" and "grateful" to be spending Christmas again with Willie, their Shetland sheepdog, now 11 years old.

The couple hadn't seen the Sheltie since he went missing in April of 2009 while they were all vacationing in the Pioche Hills, a mountain range in southeastern Nevada.

"While we were up in the mountains, Willie and his brother picked up on a rabbit or something and took off," David Marks explained. "Willie's brother Waylon came back, but he did not. We searched all weekend in a snowstorm in the mountains of Nevada, but we never saw any evidence that Willie was anywhere around."

David Marks said he and his wife put up fliers and asked around the area, but they "never heard back" from anyone -- until now.

 

"About two weeks ago, we got a call from an animal shelter in Elko, Nevada, and they said they picked up a stray, checked his microchip and found us," he said. "I couldn't believe it. It was an absolute surprise, and the perfect Christmas gift."

Get all of your pets microchipped!

David Marks added that Willie "recognized us right away" and that he "immediately came right over, wagging his tail."

After a local TV station ran their story, the Marks heard from a family in Elko that apparently had been caring for him for the past six years before he recently ran off again.

"The individual caring for him said that Willie somehow got to Eureka, Nevada, which is over 300 miles from Las Vegas," David Marks said.

"The sheriff over there picked him after they found him in bad shape. He took care of Willie and nursed him back to health, so he gave him to a lady in Jackpot, Nevada, and then she moved to Elko, and he recently ran off."

  

David Marks joked that he's sure Willie told his Sheltie brother the whole story of his adventures the past six years and that he and his wife are curious to learn what happened.

The family said that since Willie has been home, everything feels "complete again."

"We've been introducing him again to everybody,” David Marks said, “but it's just like he never left.”

(ABC News - Dec 25, 2015)

New York: Tamara Copeland, accused of dumping her abused (and stolen) dog at vet clinic, arrested

NEW YORK -- A woman accused of abandoning a severely abused and stolen dog outside a veterinary clinic in Hempstead was arrested Thursday.

The poodle-mix, named Nino, was reported missing nearly two years ago before workers found him Tuesday.

Tamara Copeland, 56, of Hempstead, was arrested by district attorney investigators and is charged with misdemeanor animal neglect and animal abandonment.

Nino was given to the owner as a birthday present by her daughter in April 2000, but went missing two years ago from the owner's yard.

 

 

Veterinary officials reported him to be in terrible condition, suffering from bacterial infections, skin lesions, trauma and other injuries of unknown origin.

Video showed two women, one of whom police say is Copeland, walking slowly past the vet clinic together. Then after a few seconds they disappear from the screen and Copeland, in the orange jacket, returns carrying Nino in a cardboard box. She dumps him outside the clinic and flees.

 

 

"This beloved dog went missing from his owner and more than a year later was found discarded and in horrifying condition on a Hempstead street," Acting District Attorney Madeline Singas said.

"Those who harm innocent animals, often hurt people, and we're seeking the public's help to find the criminal who stole and abused this innocent animal."

After Nino received stabilizing medical care, he was transferred to a private veterinary facility where he will be reunited with his owner.

SURVEILLANCE VIDEO


NEWS STORY

(ABC7NY - October 15, 2015)

Earlier:

• New York: Dog reported missing 2 years ago dumped by Tamara Copeland at Hempstead clinic in abused state

New Zealand: Woman cuts out her Bull Terrier's microchip and hides dog after it rips woman's lip off

NEW ZEALAND -- To the end, Gretel Fairbrother was her dog's best friend, staying with him as he was put down for a vicious attack on a woman.

The former Wellington lawyer fought for nearly two years to clear bull terrier Stanley Boy of the attack, in Porirua, but was found guilty on December 19 of failing to keep a dog under control, obstructing a dog control officer, and owning a dog that attacked a person.

Stanley Boy was due to be destroyed after Fairbrother's sentencing next week, but she rang Porirua City Council on Christmas Eve and asked that he be put down early.

She was with him at the vet when he was put to death, council general manager of environment and regulatory services David Rolfe said.

  

"It would have been upsetting. It was her dog and she had been looking after it. She was a regular visitor to the pound to visit him. I'm sure she didn't make the decision lightly."

It was likely she had finally realised she could not save the dog, Rolfe said.

"There had been a judgment, a decision, and it was pretty damning as to where the fault lay. Maybe she had some time to mull over that decision."

Stanley Boy was being walked near the Camborne boat sheds in Porirua on February 22, 2013, when he lunged at veterinary technician Linda Harrison-Pugh, who had stopped to admire him. The resulting bite ripped Harrison-Pugh's lower lip off.

In court, Fairbrother argued through her lawyer, Mike Antunovic, that the bite was a "kiss gone wrong" and that Harrison-Pugh bit off her own lip when the dog lunged against it.

After the attack, Stanley Boy had his microchip cut out and was hidden from authorities. 

He was finally seized in August last year when a member of the public spotted him in a parked car in Wellington.

Judge Tony Zohrab will sentence Fairbrother on Tuesday. She faces a jail sentence of up to three years, or a fine of up to $20,000, on the charge of owning a dog that attacked and seriously injured a person.

Porirua City Council has spent more than $106,000 on legal fees alone to prosecute the case, but it was worth the cost, Rolfe said.

"That was an absolute no-brainer. When you see the damage that was done, it really didn't take a lot of thinking about. It's in the community's interest that such dog attacks are punished. Our main concern was to make sure it didn't happen again."

The hiding of Stanley Boy, and Fairbrother's aggressive defence, prolonged the case, but the court system was frustratingly slow too, he said.

"In the end it took two years, which I think most people would say is totally unacceptable."

The council was consulting with its lawyers over what damages it would try to win in Fairbrother's sentencing, he said.

Harrison-Pugh said she felt sorry for Fairbrother, even though the dog's death was good for the public interest.

 "I've had to put down dogs for lesser sins, and it's tragic. I feel remorse for Gretel, but that's the responsibility of owning a dog."

"If she had been let off or found not guilty, that would have set a precedent for all of New Zealand for further leniency with dog offences."

Fairbrother declined to comment, saying it was not appropriate to do so while the matter was still before the courts.

(The Dominion Post - Jan 26, 2015)