Normally we would applaud anyone who doesn’t stay immune to what they suspect is animal abuse. With so many dogs and cats being mistreated these days, it’s only best to be safe and raise an alert before it’s too late.

But this incident suggests that even if we mean the best for an animal, it’s always a good idea to make sure your suspicions are genuinely valid. The story comes from one Redditor, Boring-Exit9303, a dog owner who had his four-legged friend ‘stolen’ in broad daylight while out in a park.

When the author realized his daughter was out of his sight, he tied the dog named Maximo Tiberio “in an area specifically designated for that purpose” and moved “no more than 15 meters away from him to search for my daughter.” But as the two were going back, a girl appeared from out of nowhere, ran towards Maximo, grabbed him and ran back to her car.

The stress was through the roof at that point, and so the owner went to the police to find his stolen dog, wondering what her motive was…

Recently, the owner of this beautiful rescue dog, Maximo Tiberio, asked people if he was right to press charges against the woman who stole his dog in a park

Image credits: Boring-Exit9303

So he shared the whole incident on r/AITA subreddit

Image credits: Boring-Exit9303

“This is a sad story – for everyone involved,” Molly DeVoss told Bored Panda commenting on the incident. Molly is a certified feline training and behavior specialist who runs Cat Behavior Solutions agency and she shared some insights on how it would be best to respond if you ever suspect an animal is being mistreated.

“It is heart wrenching to witness abuse and neglect of animals,” Molly stated and added that regardless “you shouldn’t break the law in an attempt to remedy the situation.”

“Talking to the owner is the best place to start. Explain your concerns and offer resources to help. Keep your cool; people will be more amicable to working with you towards a solution if you are not triggering defensive attitudes from them,” the feline behavior specialist explained.

“If you can’t get cooperation from the pet’s owner, there are legal avenues you can pursue; all 50 states have felony provisions against animal cruelty. Call your local animal control agency, 3-1-1 or 9-1-1 as soon as possible.”

Molly concluded that even though a dismal percentage of these cases are prosecuted and convicted, you should never break the law yourself, or put yourself in harms way to rescue the animal.

And this is what people had to comment in response to the story

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