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Issue is one of animal cruelty, not custody

Re: Dogs should be reunited with original owners, Diane Steinle column, July 16.

It is clear to me that Pam Bondi has a great deal of love for the St. Bernard she adopted from the Pinellas County Humane Society. It is equally plain to see that the St. Bernard's family in Louisiana has a great deal of love for him also.

What is not clear is why this situation is being handled as a matter of custody or even as a question of whether the dog's adoption was legal.

Pam Bondi has been candid with the media in explaining her reasons for refusing to return Master Tank to his family: She believes the Couture family mistreated the dog prior to Hurricane Katrina. While not as outspoken, the Pinellas County Humane Society seems to have agreed with Bondi's opinion of the Coutures when it refused to contact the family and did all manner of things to prevent them from being reunited with their dogs.

With seeming altruistic integrity, Pam Bondi even stated in several interviews that if she felt the dog hadn't been mistreated, she would drive him to New Orleans herself and gladly reunite him with his family.

Since the dog is being kept by Bondi based solely on her notion that he was mistreated, that makes this a case of one person accusing another of animal abuse. It should be handled as such.

The Humane Society of Pinellas County, along with Pam Bondi and her representatives, should be quite familiar with the laws and processes already in place to legitimately determine animal abuse and to lawfully punish the abuser if convicted. It would be extraordinarily unjust for any court to treat this as a case of property or guardian rights without first determining whether the Coutures are indeed guilty of Pam Bondi's accusations of animal abuse.

As a person with 21 years' experience in animal welfare work, I can attest that Pam Bondi's approach to confiscating an allegedly abused animal is not permitted in the real world. People like me are still required to satisfy the court with adequate proof of criminal animal abuse and people like the Coutures still remain innocent until proven guilty.

Joy Drawdy, Gainesville

Returning dog is the right thing to do

Re: Dogs should be reunited with original owners, Diane Steinle column, July 16.

I so appreciated your column regarding the Coutures' dogs.

For the life of me, I cannot believe the total lack of empathy on the parts of Pam Bondi and Rhonda Rineker. They are selfish females. Shame on both of them for not returning the dogs to their rightful owners.

And shame on our Pinellas Humane Society for allowing the dogs to be adopted.

The Coutures have suffered enough. Returning the dogs to their rightful owners, the Coutures, is the only humane thing to do.

I'm sorry this had to go to the courts to be resolved. Hopefully, Bondi the rich and Rineker the quiet will have to pay all the court costs, which could have been eliminated had those two selfish females returned the dogs when their real owners were found.

Thank you for your well said words.

Judy J. Boyd, Palm Harbor

Let dog choose, make it a fundraiser

Re: Dogs should be reunited with original owners, Diane Steinle column, July 16.

Avoid lawyers and court costs regarding the dogs adopted after the Katrina disaster. At the same time, raise money for the many more unfortunate abandoned pets.

The venue: Raymond James Stadium. The ticket price to witness the event: $5.

The referee places the Couture family, the original owners, at one goal, and Pam Bondi, the adopted owner, at the opposite goal. The referee releases the St. Bernard Master Tank, now known as Noah, on the 50-yard line. From there, whichever direction the dog chooses to score ownership determines its fate.

R. Barrett, Tarpon Springs

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[Last modified July 23, 2006, 07:32:45]