4 ms·

I have friends in the countryside in North America, and I can corroborate that: as development has encroached, the new subdivisions have filled with former city

by alwa 2y ago

I have friends in the countryside in North America, and I can corroborate that: as development has encroached, the new subdivisions have filled with former city-dwellers. Three times in a single month, do-gooder passers-by trespassed past a prominent fence to nab my friends’ dog, who would snooze innocently in the front pasture in the afternoon, and “rescue” him to the county lockup. The animal control people know him by name now, but they can’t do much to waive the mandatory “re-adoption fee”…

ant6n 2y ago
Wait so random people steal this person’s property, hand off to some (presumably) public agency, and the agency is charging a fee to have said property released? Sometimes it seems the US is a strange place. (Maybe the dog is missing dog tags?)
- alwa 2y ago
  That’s correct! Nothing punitive, just “admin fees,” I guess to cover the cost of a kennel for the afternoon and of reading his microchip to confirm his vaccination status. They’re really big on “user fees” around there—they even charge prisoners a nightly fee for “using” the cells they were imprisoned in [0] I’d venture that there’s grey area there that’s relevant here: to you and me, the animal probably registers as “property,” where to the people doing the “rescuing” it must look more like a precious innocent soul cast out into the cruel harsh world (like the kids they repossess as “neglected” for walking around their block untethered to a parent or nanny [1]). I figure too many superhero movies and crime shows, and not enough exposure to the natural world. The dog did have collar and name tag; his tags have since been expanded and clarified, and large signs erected at the edge of the property with a photo of the dog and “I LIVE HERE”… so far much better results. And yet. [0] https://www.npr.org/2022/03/04/1084452251/the-vast-majority-of-states-allow-people-to-be-charged-for-time-behind-bars https://www.npr.org/2022/03/04/1084452251/the-vast-majority-... [1] e.g. https://reason.com/2024/11/11/mom-jailed-for-letting-10-year-old-walk-alone-to-town/ https://reason.com/2024/11/11/mom-jailed-for-letting-10-year... and https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/free-range-parents-found-responsible-child-neglect-allowing/story?id=29363859 https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/free-range-parents-found-re...

by alwa 2y ago

ant6n 2y ago

Wait so random people steal this person’s property, hand off to some (presumably) public agency, and the agency is charging a fee to have said property released? Sometimes it seems the US is a strange place. (Maybe the dog is missing dog tags?)

alwa 2y ago
That’s correct! Nothing punitive, just “admin fees,” I guess to cover the cost of a kennel for the afternoon and of reading his microchip to confirm his vaccination status. They’re really big on “user fees” around there—they even charge prisoners a nightly fee for “using” the cells they were imprisoned in [0] I’d venture that there’s grey area there that’s relevant here: to you and me, the animal probably registers as “property,” where to the people doing the “rescuing” it must look more like a precious innocent soul cast out into the cruel harsh world (like the kids they repossess as “neglected” for walking around their block untethered to a parent or nanny [1]). I figure too many superhero movies and crime shows, and not enough exposure to the natural world. The dog did have collar and name tag; his tags have since been expanded and clarified, and large signs erected at the edge of the property with a photo of the dog and “I LIVE HERE”… so far much better results. And yet. [0] https://www.npr.org/2022/03/04/1084452251/the-vast-majority-of-states-allow-people-to-be-charged-for-time-behind-bars https://www.npr.org/2022/03/04/1084452251/the-vast-majority-... [1] e.g. https://reason.com/2024/11/11/mom-jailed-for-letting-10-year-old-walk-alone-to-town/ https://reason.com/2024/11/11/mom-jailed-for-letting-10-year... and https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/free-range-parents-found-responsible-child-neglect-allowing/story?id=29363859 https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/free-range-parents-found-re...