Hunter, the black Lab who was mistakenly adopted by another family after going missing while his firefighter owner was away, has been reunited with his owner, according to the Humane Society for Southwest Washington.
The Humane Society said Battle Ground’s William Jones, Hunter’s owner, returned from a firefighting assignment earlier than expected, and was able to pick up his missing dog Tuesday.
The reunion marks the end to weeks of unease and tension.
Before leaving in late July to fight fires in Eastern Washington, Jones left Hunter with a friend. The dog jumped a fence, was picked up by animal control, brought to the Humane Society, and then adopted by a new family.
When Jones got back, he found that his dog belonged to a new family and he had little recourse. A post he left on the Humane Society’s Facebook page to lobby for his dog’s return kicked up a storm of online indignation at the Humane Society and Hunter’s new family.
The Humane Society kept the dog for 10 days and never received or found word that Hunter — who was not licensed, tagged or chipped — was reported as missing or was someone else’s dog. Licenses are required for dogs living in Vancouver, Battle Ground, Yacolt and unincorporated Clark County.
The Humane Society fixed Hunter, provided some basic medical care and did some behavioral tests to make sure he was ready for adoption during that time. After he was adopted, there was little, legally, the Humane Society said it could do.
The new family spent more than $1,000 on additional medical care for the dog, according to the Humane Society, and they declined to return him, saying they’d bonded with the animal.
Eventually the family agreed to return the dog, and the Humane Society has been holding on to Hunter since Aug. 21.
Jones has not returned messages from The Columbian, but said the week the Humane Society took back the dog that he was thankful for others’ support after what happened and for the help of the Humane Society. He also added he was upset about the online vitriol directed at the Humane Society and the family.
