RIO GRANDE, NJ – A dog that appears to be living in the car will stay with this family, according to the Rio Grande Police. Police said a call was made to complain about the dog inside the car, owned by a family living in the nearby motel. Police said violations were issued but had to return the dog to its owners.
“On Saturday, April 9th, there was a social media post about a dog in a car in the Rio Grande area. This dog belongs to a family who lives in a motel and is looking for a place to live, allowing the dog to stay in the car.” The Middle Township Police Department said.
The department said it had previously seized the dog and filed animal cruelty charges against the owners.
Those charges are currently pending, but the dog was returned to the owner by the court. The owner’s position is the dog is cared for and walked frequently by the family in addition to being close to their motel room.
“The Middle Township Police Department has been in contact with the Cape May County Prosecutor’s Office, which has an Assistant Prosecutor who is specially trained in Animal Cruelty cases. The position of the Prosecutor is there is not a legal basis for seizing the dog,” the department said. “This was confirmed with numerous conversations with the Cape May County Prosecutor’s Office on Saturday, April 9th.”
Animal activists are flooding the Middle Township Police Department’s phone system and the owners are now receiving threats, the department said.
“The Middle Township Police Department has been receiving a large volume of calls, many from outside the state demanding we seize the dog,” the department said. “We have also been contacted by the family reporting to have received threats since the post.”
The Department said will continue to work with the family to find a temporary shelter and coordinate any legal action with the Cape May County Prosecutors Office.
“The Middle Township Police Department has responded to every call in relation to this situation and taken all the proper steps within the law,” the department said, defending itself from undue criticism over their handling of the incident.