If your son asks to keep the dog, and the owner agrees, then the law is certainly on his side. If son doesn't ask and keeps the dog, then owner can always come get the dog with the law on his side.

Have your son ask to keep the dog. Sounds like he wants to, and maybe the owner wants him too. I have 3 of my dogs now because I offered to take them when owners couldn't care for them. The owners were happy to let me have them in my situation. Win for the dog, win for me, win for the previous owners.

I agree with Meg. Your son should just ask the owner if he would be willing to relinquish the dog's ownership to your son permanently. If the owner agrees, your son should offer to pay him something - maybe $10 - and write up a bill of sale so that he has a signed document in case the owner changes his mind or tries to deny having given the dog to your son. It certainly doesn't sound like the current owner cares much for the dog, so I suspect this would be an easy transfer of ownership upon request.

Laurie

If he really wants the dog and the owner gives it to him I would ask what vet he takes him to and have your son/you take him to that vet. Another thing to prove it is yours now and also to get any medical records, if any.

There's another strategy your son could use, though it could backfire. Next time the dog shows up in his yard, he could call local animal control and have the dog picked up. If the animal control officer takes the dog to the pound rather than just taking him home, the owner will have to pay a fine to recover the dog. It sounds like there's a pretty good chance the owner won't bother to recover the dog, in which case the dog will be put up for adoption through the pound. Your son could then legally adopt the dog from the pound.

Several things can go wrong with that scenario, though. The ACO may not be able to catch the dog. The ACO may catch and take the dog back home rather than to the pound. The owner may recover the dog from the pound and then prevent him from wandering loose again. The pound may euthanize the dog before your son adopts him. Someone else may adopt the dog before your son does.

If your son really wants to keep this dog, his best bet is to just ask the owner if he can have him.

Laurie

Tricky situation. Not good to say the least. The only way he can keep the dog is if the owner puts it in paper. Otherwise there is nothing your son can do as far as ownership goes.
Now he can take pictures of the dog when it comes by ratty looking and he can report this (he needs to document it as well) and use that information against the owner to try and get him to give up the dog but that can backfire big time.
Nothing else he can do unfortunately. Bummer

Why not offer the owner a decent amount of money? If he's not that great of an owner, perhaps $75 - $150 might sway him to relinquish the dog.

Years ago I took over two former dogs because it was clear the dogs wanted to be with me. I didn't attack the owners. I started out "joking" and saying if the owner ever decided to get rid of the dog that I would love to have him. I did things like pointing out that I had two boys who could keep the dog busy. With a different owner I pointed out that I had a secure fence and was really well suited to own a dog with this dog's particular needs. I was referring to the fact that that dog was a Siberian husky and was difficult to own because they are super escape artists and require a lot of exercise. I continued like this and was careful not to place the owner on the defansive. I never had to offer to buy either dog, but I would have if it became necessary. It is very important, once the owner agrees to give up the dog, to get a bill of sale for a dollar or whatever amount is necessary. The bill of sale "protects" the original owner in the future if the dog should hurt someone or damage property. That kind of thinking helps persuade the original owner to agree to "sell" the dog, and the bill of sale precludes the original owner from taking the dog back. If the dog is licensed the new owner needs to report the change of ownership immediately. Or, if the dog isn't licensed, the new owner needs to get one ASAP. Once ownership is legal the dog should be nutered if he hasn't already been fixed. With this visit to the vet the new owner needs to ask for any existing vet records from the previous owner. Again, don't alienate the previous owner if there are no records or if the dog has never even seen a vet. If the new owner is serious about wanting the dog he has to take on the responsibilities of serious pet ownership. This new dog does represent the increased cost to the new owner. I really hope your son manages to get this dog as his own, so the poor dog can have a suitable, loving home. Good luck!

PS, I currently own four rescued Siberian huskies, two rescued cats, and one adopted cat. Second hand pets give first class love!

You have given me some really great suggestions . Thank you ! I told my son to offer the guy money just to make it legal . He was in my son's yard again today ( 82 degrees & humid out ) My son took him in the house in the A/C , fed him & brushed him again . Even though the dog goes to my son's house ...it really irks me how an owner can keep letting the dog escape . I have a feeling that this isn't the end of the story ......

Toomuchglass, don't forget we are here waiting to hear the end of the story, too!

My current middle dog was a neighbor's. He (the neighbor) was a young man who worked long hours, partied hard, and had a boat, so was gone a lot of the time. No fenced yard, either. I had the dog for a day and a half before we found the owner. The dog just cowered at the owner's feet when we walked him "home" and finally got the owner out of bed at 2 in the afternoon. He was so angry at the dog and clearly at his wit's end. I offered the chance to leave the dog with me (and my two dogs) part of the day to exercise him. I dropped off my dog-training videos. A few days later the owner came by to pay us for the vet (the dog had a laceration and needed to be wormed) and told us he had returned the dog to the Humane Society. I figured that if the Humane Society was silly enough to give him a 9 month-old supposed Dalmatian mix, they could not be trusted to place the dog, so I went and sprang him. I really did "intend" to get him a good home, but he stayed with us. Now he is eight years old and going blind and is a pain in the butt with his counter-cruising and total lack of super ego, but we still love him to death.

I hope some of the above strategies work for your son!

Here is a link that might be useful: Casey

ok, sorry if i make someone angry here! i wouldn't call animal control for any reason except one that has viciously attacked someone or another animal! they either get sick or die there. hey, i did work for animal control for a vet assistant before so i do have some experience on that subject. there are so many recues i would call for other issues! no kill places! now back to the original subject. i think your son is the one the dog loves. again, i am an animal/people psychic by profession. what you could do if the person doesn't want to sell the dog to your son is i might even call and report that the dog seems to be abused. this is against the law! if someone lets their animals stray all the time i would have to say they don't love them enough or at all. your son is who the dog wants to be with. it's not rocket science. we leave bad homnes and marriages too for greener pastures. i hope your son gets to keep the dog if he ideed wants it. maybe they belong together. the laws do bend different ways depending on what state you live in. in california we have a lot of laws to protect an animal. if we find an abused one, we can report it and sign up to be it's new owner if the original one is deemed unfit. after a brief waiting period we can get them.