** Updated 8/30 - Annie's back home / Widower's lost dog Annie now embroiled in an ownership dispute
9/8: (final?) Postscript: Annie the Dog goes political.
8/31: Here's another story on the return of Annie the dog.
***8/30/10: Annie was returned to Chuck Hoage today. This may be the end of the immediate story that captured so much interest, far and wide. But I have a feeling the
incident will spark some ongoing dialogue on some of the issues that were raised through it all. Seems like there were lessons for all parties in this one, including those of us who were just watching from afar and not personally involved.
Here are a couple more shots that were posted on the "Friends of Annie" Facebook page. I love seeing the bright new red I.D. tag(s) hanging from Annie's collar. :-) She has also now been microchipped.
Remember folks, microchips and tags (and licenses) are really a must for all dogs these days -- the simple I.D. and license tags are often the first-line of defense when a dog goes missing.
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***8/29/10: Looks like a resolution is at hand. The adoptive family have indicated they will return Annie to Chuck Hoage.
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**8/28/10: More updates with a letter from the family that adopted Annie; in light of that -- and because of the growing volatility of this debate -- today's rally was (wisely, in my view) cancelled. Let's all hope this will be resolved amicably among the parties concerned.
**8/27/10 Update. Rally also being planned in San Luis Obispo for Saturday 8/28 (Cancelled).
And thanks to all of our readers here for the good comments, keep them coming. An interesting debate.
First, here's Annie, one of the most striking Australian shepherd dogs I've seen:
And now, her story from San Luis Obispo County on California's central coast.
The 8-year-old dog was raised from a puppy by Chuck Hoage of Arroyo Grande, who recently lost his wife and called the dog "his whole life."
On June 22, Annie was riding in the back of Hoage's truck ***(clarification: We now understand that she was sitting, unleashed, in the back of the truck on Chuck's ranch property as he fed his horses)*** when she was apparently startled by a noise. Annie bolted and Hoage spent the next couple days searching desperately for his friend.
He contacted the county animal shelter that had one dog that seemed to fit Annie's description. He left a message with the shelter.
Three weeks later, he received a call from the shelter saying the dog was there and asking him to come pick her up. Annie apparently had been found on the highway and kept for a week before taken to the San Luis Obispo County shelter. She turned up at the shelter on July 2 (the time gap remains something of a mystery).
One problem: The dog had already been adopted to new owners on July 9, two days before Hoage got the call to come get Annie.
And now, the new owners, who are attached to the dog, don't want to give Annie up.
Hoage's efforts to get Annie back have attracted quite a bit of attention in recent weeks, sparking a website and a Facebook page.
Read more by columnist Bob Cuddy at San LuisObispo.com.
And tell us: What do you think? Who should have Annie?
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About the Bloggers
Daily Breeze reporter Donna Littlejohn has shared her homes with a succession of wonderful, funny, and occasionally difficult canines -- Muffin, Fritz, Ellie, Mercy, Pilgrim and now Cowboy, an Australian shepherd-border collie, and Tess, a border collie. From strong-willed terriers to weirdly obsessed Australian shepherds, they've invaded her world with boundless energy, wet noses, muddy paws and soggy tennis balls. But they've really brought so much more than that -- like laughter and joy, some unexpected life lessons, and more than a few tears along the way.
E-mail Donna at donna.littlejohn@dailybreeze.com.
Josh Grossberg grew up with the usual array of animals: goldfish, dogs, hamsters, parakeets and turtles. He now owns the loudest dog in the South Bay(Video: Rocket the Dog) and is the least popular person on his block. He spends his free time in dog parks, pet shops and always has an extra plastic bag in his pocket just in case. He also has a cat.
E-mail Josh at josh.grossberg@dailybreeze.com.
PLEASE return Annie to Chuck!! I know you did a GOOD thing when you adopted an older dog- now you must continue to do a GOOD thing-the RIGHT thing -by returning her! Annie is his whole world. Don't be selfish-it was an ACCIDENT that she ran off-she BELONGS with Chuck. All of Missouri is watching your decision! I have faith that you will do the RIGHT thing!!
I Know that Chuck should have HIS dog Annie back, and the emphasis is on HIS DOG. NO questions about it. The adopters need to read the meaning of Integrity, Ethics, Morals, Neighborly. Remember most of the town know about this and they have to live amongst these people who want to have Annie and Chuck reunited. So adoptive family give Chuck back his daughter..... I am supporting him from Palm City Florida and there are people watching from all around the WORLD! the UK, Ireland, Canada just to name a FEW! The WHOLE world has their eyes on you and we are praying that you will see the wrong that you have done by not returning her right away.
THANK YOU for posting this story!
One clarification: Annie was sitting (not riding)in the back the truck when it was parked on his ranch while he was in the barn feeding his horses. She was frightened by neighbor gunshots.
I live in San Luis Obispo County Those who know Chuck and those of us who have met him recently -- find him to be a most humble and gentle soul. He is heartbroken.
PLEASE, all of you who empathize, join our Facebook page "Give Chuck Hoage his Dog Back." We also need letters/cards (respectful and heartfelt) urging these people to return the dog. Write to "The People Who Have Annie." c/o Supervisor Adam Hill
Room D-430
County Government Center
San Luis Obispo, Ca 93408
Thank you all!
Please, before this goes any further, let's get a better description of what actually happened.
First off, Annie wasn't riding down the road in the back of the truck. When riding, she sits in the cab with Chuck.
On this particular summer day, Chuck was on his property, feeding his horses. Annie, not having a job to do rounding up cattle, etc., was sitting in the back waiting for him, as opposed to being left in the hot cab.
When she was startled, she jumped out and ran. When Chuck got back to his truck, she was gone. He started looking for her, but in the meantime, someone stopped and picked her up. Instead of taking her to A.S., as they should have, they took her to another town. She was taken to A.S. over a week later.
In the meantime, Chuck had been calling daily to listen to the A.S.'s "hotline." None of the descriptions he heard fit his precious Annie. He, and a couple of other people, had filed reports with them, none of which can be found now that Annie is in the midst of this "unfortunate situation."
When the adoptive family was told about the mistake, they refused to give her back. Then, they went on vacation.
For all those who are advocates of putting chips in their dogs, please know this isn't always a 100% guarantee. I didn't know until this happened that the chips are made by different companies, the scanners don't always read all chips, not everyone has a universal scanner, and most of all, the chips can migrate to other parts of the body.
The focus is on getting Annie back to Chuck. The adoptive family has numerous offers awaiting their return (too many to name here), that range from a new dog, to many items and services to go with it.
Food for thought:
If the tables were turned, shouldn't the adoptive family get their dog back? I believe they should.
Much thanks for the added details. This helps fill in some blanks & answer some of the questions that I've heard about the incident.
Thank you, we'll insert that clarification in the original post.
Just wanted to clarify the fact that Chuck's truck was parked and he was feeding his horses. This misunderstanding caused all kinds of comments from people who said she should have been tethered in the truck.
Thank you for the clarifications.
Annie should be returned to Chuck as soon as possible.
To clear up a common misconception, Chuck was NOT ON THE STREET, OR IN TRAFFIC. Chuck’s truck was parked,on his ranch, with Annie in the back.
To Chuck: We are praying for you , and sending you much love.
We are hoping the family that has your dog Annie will give her back to you.
www.returnannie.com
Just to set 1 thing straight. Annie was leashed in the back of his truck while he was driving on his property taking care of his horses. She was unleashed when he got out of his truck. She heard a gunshot and it startled her and she ran off. Chuck would never drive with her in the back of his truck on roadways..it was just his property he was on.
Of course give the dog back. It is the right thing to do.
This is also a wake up call for those of us who like having our dogs in the car. First of all they should not be in the back of a truck! Second, they need to be in the back seat wearing a doggie seat belt.
I saw a fenderbender a couple weeks ago. A dog loose in the car died. So sad to have seen that.
My question is why would the shelter call him to pick up Annie when they had already adopted her out to another family? The new "owners" need to step up and do the right thing...give Annie back to Chuck! The shelter needs to get its act together and stop making mistakes like this.
Chuck Hoage should have Annie.
Karen, the Katrina situation came to my mind as well.
Oh, this is so sad. :-( It reminds me of the Katrina victims whose pets were adopted out, and who had to fight to get their beloved pets returned.
I do think the new family should return the dog to the original owner. It won't be easy, but it's the right thing to do.