Animal control took my livestock guardian dog

Question

My dog was guarding my chickens and ducks. She was alone on the property for two weeks while we were moving. I drove back every other day to refresh water and food. The ducks drank out of my dog's water dish and got dirt in it, and the chickens also scratched around and got dirt in their water. They insisted that my animals' water had not been changed in weeks when, in reality, I was there and changed the water the day before.

They took my dog, ducks, and chickens on the day I was coming to move them to our new home (the day after the first visit). They gave me three citations (one for each species), even though their report states that the ducks had access to the creek for water. They set a court date for a month from now for an arraignment and said if I plead not guilty, the next court date could be up to a year from then. They stated that I will not be able to get my animals back until after that.

Answer

I suggest you retain a criminal defense attorney in your state. When people are planning to be away, arrangements should be made for their animals. Feeding and providing water to a dog every other day is not sufficient. Sometimes through negotiations, the prosecution and defense can reach an agreement regarding disposition of the criminal charges and about returning animals under specified conditions or relinquishing animals so they are not held indefinitely. I hope this works out in the best interests of all of these animals.