Question
How do I take legal action against my neighbor for live trapping my house cat of 7 years, along with a raccoon, and dumping them off in the middle of nowhere? The neighbor, whose yard the traps were set in, told me exactly what happened. The police aren't returning any phone calls, and I'm getting nowhere with animal control. What is the next step?
Answer
I am very sorry to hear about your cat. Abandoning an animal is against the law. In Michigan, the police and animal control generally enforce animal cruelty laws in addition to Michigan Humane, although it is my understanding that MH enforces these laws only in certain parts of the state. I suggest contacting MH for more information. A civil lawsuit for money can also be commenced for compensatory damages, such as for the value of the cat, and for punitive damages for egregious behavior. In the meantime, I hope that through dialogue you can ascertain where the cat was left and make efforts to locate the cat, such as hanging fliers, visiting and contacting animal shelters, contacting entities in your area that maintain animal lost and found reports, checking online animal lost and found sites and posting a lost report, and contacting local veterinarians. Good luck!
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