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What an odd story.
At first, authorities here said Adams, a disabled military veteran, was the cause of a harassment call to the township animal shelter.
Allen Lee of the Ewing Health Department, which oversees the animal shelter, explained that Adams’ golden retriever had been picked up running loose on Clement Avenue on Oct. 29, by police, who summoned the part-time animal control officer.
The next day, the dog’s owner called in and left a voice mail, and they got back to him and told him to bring over proof of ownership, and $18 to pay for the dog’s first day’s stay.
"So apparently, he got very incensed, and according to the animal shelter attendant, told her to bleep off and hung up the phone," Lee said. (Lee denies that.)
Now, the shelter holds an animal for 7 days, and then it goes up for adoption, or is euthanized. And on Nov. 3, Pet Rescue took the Damien to the an animal hospital for rabies and heartworm, and so on.
"They had to do that before they could show it on Adoption Day on Saturday at PetSmart on Route 1 in the Mercer Mall area," Mr. Lee explained.
"So they took it over and got 10 applications," he said. "They took it back to the shelter; seven days was up on the 6th, I believe. So on Wednesday, Nov. 8th, the dog had been at the shelter for 10 days, so we then released him to Pet Rescue of Mercer. The dog has a shelter name of Toby
"According to Pet Rescue," Lee said a few days ago, "Toby is scheduled to be neutered, and start a trial adoption this week."
The same day the dog was released to Pet Rescue for adoption, "our animal control officer, Richard Hutchinson, happened to be at the shelter, and the phone rang, and he picked it up, and was talking back and forth, and apparently it got heated -- it was the owner calling, wanting to know, ‘Where’s my dog?!’
"And she said, ‘Well you know, you hung up on us, and 10 days go by, and now you’re calling for your dog. Your dog’s basically been put up for adoption!’
"And he I guess got belligerent, and cussed her out and hung up," Lee said.
Two more phone calls were made. Then police were called.
On the other side of this story, of course, is Alf Adams, who said this is the third time his pup has come into the clutches of Animal Control.
"The first time it happened, the dog was small," he said. "When I got my dog back, the officer brought me all kinds of food for the dog, because he’d made a mistake. Now this time we came home, the gate was wide open."
Why hadn’t he gone to the shelter and gotten his dog?
"We went up to the animal shelter; we rung the bell, but nobody answered the door," Mr. Adams said. "I guess it was Election Day. And they never got back in touch with me.
"I kept calling, and I’d get a fax machine. I didn’t get the right number until I called the Ewing Police. So I called, and I asked them about my dog, and they said my dog was adopted.
"I said, ‘Adopted?! I paid $400 for that dog! You don’t give my dog away in a few days, you don’t do that! That’s my dog!’"
He said he never cussed anybody out at the shelter or made any threats.
"There was no harassment," he said. "I didn’t say one bad word. I asked him what happened to my dog -- is he still there? He said, ‘We adopted the dog out.’ I said, ‘What the hell do you mean, you adopted him out?!’ And that was it.
"The man said, ‘We adopted the dog out, what do you want to do, kill me for it?’ That’s what he said."
What did you say? Alf Adams was asked.
"I hung up the phone."
The Trentonian wondered if there was any way the adoption could be reversed, and Alf Adams, the true owner, could get Damien back again.
Then last week, a quick visit was made to Alf’s house. And the strange story had a sudden, happy ending. A golden retriever came bounding out of the house.
"They brought my dog back," Adams said. "But look here." He lifted Damien’s leg. There were the neutering incisions.
"I’ll never have puppies by him," Alf said. "But I don’t care. I’m just glad to have him back again."
