Agencys to Keep DeGeneres' Dog:(
 

Agencys to Keep DeGeneres' Dog
By BETH HARRIS, Associated Press Writer
4 hours ago


Ellen DeGeneres is shown in this, Jan. 9, 2007, ...
LOS ANGELES - Ellen DeGeneres' doggy drama intensified Tuesday after her tearful plea on her talk show led to death threats against the rescue group that took back her adopted dog for violating the contract, according to a spokesman for the agency's owners.

DeGeneres explained on her show that the Brussels Griffon terrier mix didn't get along with her cats, so she gave it to her hairstylist's family. The owners of Mutts and Moms claimed that DeGeneres violated the adoption agreement by not informing them that she was giving the dog away and removed Iggy from the hairstylist's home Sunday.

As a result of the publicity, Marina Batkis and Vanessa Chekroun received voice mail and e-mail threats of death and arson and were besieged by the media, disrupting business at Paws Boutique store in Pasadena, where they handle the volunteer, nonprofit rescue agency, attorney Keith A. Fink said.

Batkis rejected DeGeneres' plea to give the dog back to her hairstylist's family.

"She (Batkis) doesn't think this is the type of family that should have the dog," said Fink, who is not legally representing the owners but is authorized to speak for them. "She is adamant that she is not going to be bullied around by the Ellen DeGenereses of the world ... They are using their power, position and wealth to try to get what it is they want."

DeGeneres' attorney, Kevin Yorn, did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

"It's very upsetting to hear that someone is getting those kind of calls," DeGeneres' publicist Kelly Bush said. "Ellen just wants the dog reunited with the family."

On her talk show taped Tuesday and airing Wednesday, a serious DeGeneres reiterated to her audience that "the dog needs to go to the family."

It "just needs to be in a good home," she continued, according to a transcript given to The Associated Press. "All that you're supposed to do is put a dog in a loving home."

DeGeneres had said her hairdresser's daughters, ages 11 and 12, had bonded with Iggy and were heartbroken when the dog was taken away.

Fink said Moms and Mutts has a rule that families with children under 14 are not allowed to adopt small dogs.

"It's for the protection of the dog," he said.

I hadn't heard that! I really thought (and hoped) that they would return the dog to the family. :( I didn't realize they had the policy of no children under the age of 14 with small dogs. Mine are 10 and almost 8 and are FANTASTIC with Bella. They might spoil her too much, though! ;) How small is the dog? Does anyone know?

that is so sad i saw it last night and this morning on the news, i know a contract is a contract and although celebrities should not get special treatment. At least she wanted the dog to go to a good home you know poor puppy going through all that.

That makes me upset. and also infuriates me. I honestly can't stand shelters. AT ALL. What do you want to bet a number of their workers have kids under 14 & have dogs. I think it's better to give a dog to a family with younger kids, so they can LEARN to be nice, than to give a dog to a family with a bunch of teenagers who've never been around a dog. and speaking as a 14 year old, MOST of us who haven't grown up with dogs would be playing catch with it or something like that. It's just stupid.

No children under 14?? Are they crazy, children would never have dogs. I don't like to see yorkies with children under 5 but this is absolutely wild.

That is insane.

I'm all for the best interest of the animals, but these darn rescues are keeping SO many animals out of loving homes.

My family/home doesn't meet many of the requirements of most rescues either, and let me tell you, our dogs are SO tremendously loved and spoiled and happy. It's sad to think about how many animals are deprived that, because of some stupid ecsessive RULES!

How sad that this shelter does not understand how compatabile a child
and his/her dog can be. There is nothing in the entire world that's better
than the love between a child and dog.
If these children and family are proved to be mature, loving and take
the responsiblity of dog ownership seriously then shame on this shelter!
More dogs could be placed into loving homes if the shelter's were not
so crazed with getting the perfect home. There are no perfect's homes.
Nothing in this world is perfect. The shelter's IMO should have people
to go to different homes and evaluate them. Not having a fenced in yard
does not mean you can't provide a loving home for a homeless animal.
Ask anyone of my three previous dogs and BUDDY. I have such respect
for the people who do animal rescue but they just have to relax their
way of thinking. Each inquiry should be handled individually. I wonder have
many wonderful homes get turned down while these dogs just lay around
a foster home waiting to be placed. Makes no sence at all.
No wonder the shelter's and rescues are over loaded.

That is absolutely ridiculous! It is a shame it's escalated to death threats but you'd think she's just go ahead and give back the dog to make this go away. She seems to be taking this on as a personal cause and not being able to make an exception to her 14 yr. and older rule is a silly cause.

That's aweful! Rescues are definitely too strict sometimes! I know they have to be strict and am glad they are for the dogs' sakes but sometimes they can be rediculous! I can understand having a policy for no children with small dogs but 11 and 12 are old enough to know how to treat a small dog! I can understand like 8 and under but come on...11 and 12??? And obviously they'd had the dog for a couple weeks and they dog was still alive wasn't it??? I understand policies but sometimes exceptions can be made..especially when the dog could have been in a loving home. This rescue is pathetic :mad:

I think the 14 year old rule is unfair in this situation. I could maybe see if the kids were 2 and 3 put they're old enough to know how to handle a dog.

Noah is 4 and he and Kalina get along fine. I am very careful, believe me, but there's no reason why it can't work. Some of these agencies are just a little to full of themselves and the power they have to make rules.

I suspect Mutts and Moms depends on public donations to maintain itself. I'll tell you, this kind of publicity is not the way to procure donations or fund raise for the continued existence of your organization.

i feel so bad for this pup :(

exactly

What's sad is that it's all the other homeless pups in this shelter's care who will suffer because this organization feels it has a point to make.

It was so sad to see Ellen crying her eyes out over this... Its absolutely crazy to me that the agency can be so strict about it. And as for children under 14 not allowed around small dogs... My daughter is 5 and is wonderful with Meka! Thats a crazy rule and I see why we have sooo many pups in the world with no homes... With agencies like this, that would rather keep them homeless, than to place them with a loving family :(

Same thing here. My kids are 8 and 5 and they are wonderful w/Autumn. More people would probably rescue dogs if there rules were not so up tight! Whats next, can't adopt a dog if you have a cat!

moms and mutts.
Petfinder Statement
Mutts and Mom has chosen to temporarily inactivate their website on Petfinder.com because their email inbox and voice mail are overwhelmed. Petfinder has 11,000 shelters and rescue groups posting over 260,000 pets that need homes. We do not dictate the adoption policies of our members. We do work with them to educate their volunteers and hope to professionalize the industry as a whole, providing a positive experience for adopters. Petfinder advocates for all parties: the pets, the adopters, and the shelter and rescue group workers and volunteers.

Pet Return Policies
Many shelters and rescue groups insist, through their adoption agreements, that if a pet cannot stay with his adoptive family, the adopters must return him to the group. Why do they do this?

Between 500,000 and 1 million pets adopted from shelters and rescue groups find themselves homeless and in the shelter once again.

One foster mom said it best, "I found the dog on the street, starving. I nursed her back to health. She slept in my bed. I sang her back to sleep when she had nightmares when she first came to me. Then I adopted her to a wonderful family. A year later, I got a call from animal control because she was at the shelter and she was going to be euthanized. The family had gotten divorced and she ended up on death row!"

This too-common experience leads rescue groups and shelter to put strict policies in place governing what happens if the adoption doesn't work out. In effect, the rescue group and shelters are promising to always be there as a safety net for the pets. This can be very comforting to adopters.

Finding a New Home for Your Pet
Some pet parents, who have the best intentions for their pets, feel that they can do a better job of finding a new home for their beloved pet than a shelter or rescue group. Their rationale is that they know their pet best, they can keep it in their home until the perfect new home is found, and they can help ease the transition for the pet. Often times, this is a natural transition - a family member, trusted friend, or a colleague gets to know the pet, falls in love, and the ownership of the pet is unofficially transferred to them.

This is a controversial point of view, even amongst shelters and rescue groups who may feel that they have more experience identifying pitfalls and risk factors when identifying new families. Research, however, suggests that there is no difference in the success rates of the adoptions between organizations that screen heavily versus those that have more open adoption policies.

It also bears noting that shelters and rescue groups, understandably, want to keep in contact with new families to be able to lend their support and continue to get updates about the pets they cared for. So we have two groups, the shelter and the pet parents, who both want what is best for the pet, but who may have very different points of view. The silver lining is that everyone really wants the best home possible for the pet. If we could ensure that same future for all the pets available on Petfinder.com, our job would be accomplished.

According to TMZ.com, Ellen never even had to go through the usual rescue application and home inspection process. If this is true, then this rescue organization just ASSUMED that by being a celebrity, that Ellen would be suitable to be a rescue parent. What does that say about this rescue organization?

http://www.tmz.com/2007/10/17/dont-screw-the-pooch/3

I'm on the fence though, awaiting validation of the truth of this information.

I have heard of this before. But, its her own fault for not reading what she signed. If she had, should could have easily lied to the people. I mean, It wouldn't have been that hard.

:thumbdown That is rediculous. They are just going after that dog because of the celebrity connection. I very much so doubt that they follow every single dog ever adopted from there agency. So does that mean that is a two people adopt a dog from this agency and then get pregnant or adopt a child they have to give up their dog or the child. That is ridiculous. I am 100% sure that these were good people that Ellen gave the dog to not just someone off the street. I pray that they get their dog back.

a gloomy day in LA
 

This is outrageously wrong ...
children over 8-10 years old benefit immensely from having a puppy
and the responsibilities inherent with a pet ...
This is so WRONG.:cry:

Point well taken ... BRAVO!!!

That is so ridiculous, obviously she (Ellen)didn't read the contract and now because of her stupid actions,the poor dog, the rescue organization and the hair dresser's family are paying the consequences of Ellen's negligence.:thumbdown

That is exactly right! Very well said! :thumbup:

I had not even heard about this until now. This just irritates me to NO END. This whole thing just isn't right. I mean I don't even know what else to say. M&M's ought to be ASHAMED of themselves! :mad: :thumbdown Too bad they OBVIOUSLY don't care about anything other than their stupid and ridiculous "policies" and "rules" :mad: :thumbdown

It is sad to see that people cannot adopt dogs with children under certain ages...now don't get me wrong, i can see with a baby, or a toddler b/c they would maybe fall and hurt the dog, but lets not be unrealistic...kids love pets, and if you dont' teach them about being humane to animals, they will never learn. I tried to adopt a rescue pet last year....they told me that i had too many dogs and kids...i had two dogs then, my female and male yorkies, and i have kept them up to date on all shots and so forth, my kids are excellent with my animals....they argue with me over who's pets they really are!! And the last commentor was right, if they didn't have such tight rules, then i also believe more would come to the aid of pets that need to be placed in loving homes. I would love to give more animals a home, and the rescued ones are most generally the ones who need homes the worst....:animal-pa
yorkiemomma7

She was being responsible and telling the truth. I'm absolutly shocked that someone thinks she should've lied. She did the right thing.

I really think that kids of all ages, once they can understand the difference between right and wrong, should be able to have a dog. They are so great for teaching responsibility and love.

That is a bit harsh, don't you think? She had good intentions ....
:2omg:

I know this is hard to believe, but most people don't read contracts that they sign. I just bought a car and signed all the paperwork (while chit chatting with the finance manager of the dealership), only realizing once I got home that I "signed off" on a 72 month finance when he and I had agreed to a 60 month finance. I'm &*!# outta luck now. But, no, most people don't. Just like they don't read the manual for their car....or read privacy statements they sign....or read the 60 page long "Terms and Agreements" when they click "agree" in order to view or register for a website.

Let's not act like we haven't made the same mistake as Ellen, by not reading something we sign, at least once in our life.

Thats crazy!! I can understand not wanting to put a dog with small children if the dog has aggression issues or something like that, but this situation is crazy!! My kids are 3 and 1 1/2 and have been raised around dogs and could take better care of dogs better than most adults, and im sure the rest of you on here with small children could say the same.