Did the dog have any identifying tags that had your contact information on it?
Your story basically boils down to this:
1. Dog runs away.
2. Lady finds dog.
3. Lady turns dog over to vet.
4. Vet performs what are most likely the required medical procedures on a stray dog prior to being put up for adoption.
5. Now vet wants to be reimbursed for his costs before turning the dog over.
Who do you want to sue in this case, and why?
my dog,a AKC Siberian Husky,got out my home,and ran away
This is negligence on your part, not anybody elses.
she was found by a lady,held at her home for 4 days,then taken to a local vet in my area.On June 10,2004,we found out where she was.We had put flyers up,ads in the local paper,and on a local TV station website.We got no replies,nor did we see any flyers from the family that picked her up till Thursday,6-10-04.We called the lady when we saw her ad,she told us where she was and that the vet had already "adopted" her out.
All of this is irrelevant, unless you can prove that the lady knew the dog was yours and wanted to keep it for herself. Of course, the fact that she turned it in kind of mitigates against that theory...
We called the vet only to be told that many medical procedures had been preformed,none that we authorized
Unless you had some kind of identifying tags on the dog, there was nothing for you to "authorize." As far as the vet knew, this was just a stray dog, and in every jurisdiction I am familiar with, a dog has to be spayed and given tests and shots before it can be put up for adoption.
We were also told that if we paid the bill we could pick her up.
Sounds fair.
The trouble is,we didnt agree to any procedures,my dog is now spayed,has a micro chip under her skin,and shots and meds administered that shes already recieved from our vet.
See above. This is almost certainly standard procedure for any stray dog.
Do I have a law suit here? Am I liable for the bills we didnt authorize? And can they "adopt" my dog out,and we are the legal owners?
No, yes and yes.
Look, the important thing to realize here is that this whole thing was started by YOUR negligence -- I know, huskys are notorius escape artists, but it is still YOUR responsibility to maintain control of your dog. And, if you have any inkling that the dog might get out, you need to have some sort of ID on the dog. Putting up flyers is fine and all, but obviously the person didn't see them.
The vet did nothing wrong, and is entitled to be reimbursed for his costs. Although you did not "authorize" the medical treatments given to the dog, you are not allowed to be "unjustly enriched" at the expense of the vet.
If you want your dog back, pay the man.
BTW, I understand that when stuff happens to a pet, it can be stressful and emotional. That's why my dogs are both chipped AND have tags with our phone number on them. My dogs have escaped once or twice, and we've always had a call shortly from whoever found them. A collar and tag would likely have solved this whole mess before it started.
