Vet Who Refused to Return Homeless Man's Dog Convicted

A veterinarian who refused to return a dog to a homeless man after finding the ailing pit bull mix tied to a truck was convicted of theft Friday in western Michigan, per the AP. Amanda Hergenreder took the dog on a two-hour drive to her clinic, where she cleared up a severe urinary tract infection and removed a rotten tooth last November. She named him Biggby, after a nearby coffee shop, and said the 16-year-old dog was thriving while living with her. But prosecutors filed a misdemeanor larceny charge after Hergenreder refused to bring the dog back to Chris Hamilton, a Grand Rapids man who lacked a permanent home at the time.

Despite the controversy, Hergenreder told jurors that she would do it all again "in a heartbeat." She cited her ethical duties as a veterinarian and noted that the dog wasn't licensed. Defense attorney Miles Greengard said she kept the dog because there was no assurance that animal welfare authorities would investigate his living conditions. "She believed, as I believe, she did the right thing. What is right and what is legal are not always the same thing," he told the AP following a two-day trial in Grand Rapids. A conviction for larceny can carry up to 93 days of jail and a fine.

Hamilton won't be getting the dog back. Biggby—or Vinny, as Hamilton called him—was euthanized in July because of health problems in old age, Greengard said. Earlier this year, Hamilton told WOOD-TV that he had tied the dog to a U-Haul truck while he walked to a gas station. "Never felt the same after losing him," he said. He never saw the dog again, per WOOD.