Oh Marina, it’s just so terrible what’s happening to you!!! NOT…. Your decision to take Iggy away in the manner you did is why people hate you & your shelter. Cry all you want, noone feels sorry for you - now you know how those little girls are feeling!

I think Marina is a drama queen. I don’t see what the big deal is. If Ellen is an animal lover and they know it, why do they think she would give the dog to someone who couldn’t take care of it? And what’s with this age thing? No dogs in a home with kids younger than 14. Are these women on drugs? I think a 12 and 11 year old are quite capable of taking care and being good to a puppy.
It sounds to me like Marina and her partner are snobs trying to blame this whole thing on Ellen because she is a star. I’m glad I don’t live in Calif.
Those people are weird !!!!!!!!!

It’s sad to see a “rescue” organization that has really no regard for this puppy! An 11 and 12 year old are capable of being respectful of a dog and for this organization to judge them as unfit is just ridiculous. Who are they to make that judgement! I think this woman is just power hungry!

“People are being so cruel to us. People are sending things that say ‘Nazi’ and words that I can’t repeat. You know so we can’t even review [adoption] applications because at this point we think [the threat givers] are just gonna come and try to hurt our animals.”

No what is cruel is taking the dog back from what looks like a good home. THAT’S CRUEL!

So “rules are rules” you say! How about thinking about the dog FIRST? What’s the point of being in business to find good homes for dogs only to shoot yourself in the foot with trivial garbage of a power play that back fired on your shelter.

Do you think the puppy cares about your “rules are rules” or was the dog happy that it had a home to be in with people to love it so it did not have to end up in a glue factory or a lab somewhere.

I am a fan of rules. We have to have rules to get along in life. You also just can’t break rules at will and justify them. I am sure this rule is to protect the dog and it gives you a way to get the dog back if someone is hurting the dog. BUT finding the dog a good home is the first rule and if your taking the dog back from a good home then your breaking the first rule to find the dog’s good homes. So which broken rule do we go with?

I vote on the dog having a home…DUH!

I am not a big Ellen fan but I do give her two big thumbs up for being a class act and standing up and taking responsibility. We lack that in this country as too many people think about themselfs first. At least this time SOMEONE was thinking about the dog first.

Dave, Cincinnati Ohio

This is your story Kym. I have posted it on my site and sending people here for the full gist! Have a nice day!!!
Kemi at www.keminications.com
Toronto’s media gossip

Okay, so it’s okay for them to enter someone’s house under FALSE PRETENSES and seize a dog without a court order, but it’s not okay for Ellen to try to find the dog a good home? Yes, Ellen may have broken the terms of the contract, but she truly had the best interest of the animal at heart — which the Mutts and Moms gals apparently do NOT. Oh, and to the owners of Mutts and Moms: penalize the animal and the little girls because you are mad at the publicity that Ellen brought to the issue. That makes a lot of sense — NOT! Get over yourselves, and take any action against Ellen, but do what YOU KNOW IS RIGHT and return the animal to the people with whom it had bonded. You should be ashamed of yourselves. You call yourselves GROWNUPS?

ask them yourself: pawboutique@yahoo.com

This wouldn’t have been an issue EITHER way, had this not been Ellen. The dog would have stayed with the new owners, but because celebs get preferential treatment, and this lady “isn’t going to be bullied by the Ellen DeGenereses of the world” the dog loses and the kids lose, another case of cutting off your nose to spite your face. Sad.

I thought the whole point of a pet adoption agency is to find a good home for pets. I and all my friends and co-workers here in Myrtle Beach think that Marina Baktis and Vanessa Chekroun have absolutely no business being in the pet adoption business if they are denying a loving family and especially a pet in need just because they are jealous that Ellen is a Celebrity. For them to say that they won’t be “bullied” because Ellen is a celebrity… if she weren’t a celebrity it would be a plea coming from her heart, but because she is they call it harassment. You can bet this will all come down to money. They will sue Ellen and they are setting things up now using words like “bullied” and “harassment” and saying their reputation is ruined. Their reputation was ruined the minute they took that dog away.
They did it to themselves. It’s dispicable and so sad. Kharma will take care of these two in the end. It’s just a shame that Igggy, the girls and the family are the ones who have to suffer for their selfishness.
So sad, so wrong.
Mary in Myrtle Beach

Quit crying, you assclowns.

Ellen adopted a pet which means she became the OWNER of the dog. She chose to give it away. That being the case, when you came and took the dog back, you actually STOLE it from the new OWNERS. You’re damn lucky you’re not being prosecuted for theft.

I was afraid that this would turn radical. Its fairly clear now that the celebrity card was going to be played and that is just deploreable. As it appears, the celebrity card is one that the rescue had hoped to cash in on but it backfired. I am very curious as to whether they contacted every other adopter to check up on the placements or if they checked up on little iggy just becasue it was an opportunity to speak with Ellen and perhaps solicit a bit of celebrity power in their favor. The dramatic way in which the little dog was commando’ed away from the family, the dramatic 2 hour wait for the police when Vanessa could simply have taken iggy and left, the Lie spoken by Vaness to Ruby regarding “Just a home inspection” which gave her access to the home in the first place, the entire unfolding of events screams of manipulation on mutts and moms part. Then when it backfired, now Marina sobs and crys foul rather than apologising and setting things right and she claims she will NEVER give that sweet little dog to those little girls. I repeat my “True colors” comment of my previous comment. The fact that she is exhibiting such paranoia regarding the adoptions of the other dogs in her care being HARMED is simply horrid. to accuse future adopters who have filled out applications of being Out to get them or harm the animals is a reflection of how these women think. These women have no class. The publicity they sought is coming back to bite them. To Ellen and Portia, Hang tough ladies, if there were more “Ellen Degeneres’s in this world” there would be far fewer homeless animals and far more happy families. Blessings and best wishes from the Costal bend of Texas.

I watched Ellen and I was sad that an absolute animal lover like would have the dog taken away from an obviously good family. I don’t understand the reasoning behind this decision to take away an animal from family that truly loved Iggy. Now because they are upset over the negetive feed back that they are receiving they are now not going to give Iggy back. I think they should rethink their position and give the dog back. What is with the age thing? Pets are good for kids. Do they not know that? Lets grow up!

Some say Ellen broke the rules. That she signed that contract and should have abided by it. Well they say those rules were for the benefit of the dog. I say BULL….I have been an animal lover all my life. I am the first to take up for and protect the animals. Those women from the rescue should have handled things in a grown up manner. When they found out Ellen had given the dog to her hairdresser they should have went to the home and checked it out. They should have given the people a chance to prove they were a loving caring home. How did it benefit the dog to have been taken from the people he loved? What good did that rule do when it took that dog away from its family? And when is 12 years old considered a young child? I know for a fact that most dogs love children. Children can spend hours playing, loving, and bonding with an animal. They develope relationships that most adults cannot have with the animal. Animals are just like children. And they love to play. Have you ever sat and watched a child and a dog playing togeather? It is really something special. I don’t think those two women from the shelter had that dogs best interest at heart. I believe, like alot of other people, that they wanted to show they had power and authority over a celebrity. They wanted to show that a celebrity couldn’t tell them what to do. They didn’t care what the dog wanted. Why not get togeather with the family and put the dog in the middle and see which way it goes….I guarantee it would choose the child. The dog would choose which one made it happy. And if they truely are concerned about the dogs happiness then they would let it stay in that home. And not worry about who was wrong or right.

People also need to realize that Ellen wasn’t the first party to use her celebrity in all of this. Mutts and Moms THREATENED to go to the media first. They poured gasoline all over the situation and lit it on fire. They brought this all on themselves. Ellen admits she made a mistake. She did it without malice. She did it with good intentions. I think these two women that run the shelter are irresponsible and incompetent and should be removed from their positions (kinda like what they did to Iggy except their removal has merit where Iggy’s did not). Heck, we have a 5 year old and the Humane Society still deemed us a good home for our cat (and I know this must be hard for Vanessa and Marina to believe but the cat loves him). But I don’t think this was really about the home not being good enough, do you? I must say though that the death threats are inappropriate. Oh, and one other thing I would really like to know, what exactly is the mission statement for their organization? Is there something in it that says ‘rules will always come before animal welfare’ or maybe ‘ego first, contracts second, then we’ll think about what’s best for the pets’ …. hmmmmm… ?

when you deal with a celebrity, it cuts both ways. they have clout and a national pulpit. this can put a business on the map (i.e. kitson). but, you know that national voice can be used against you, too. how naive of these ladies to think they are so powerful that they could cross a celeb and get away with it. dont want the risk of dealing with a celeb, dont deal with them. i applaud ellen for speaking out. the women who took iggy from the kids should say out loud what horrible things were happening to the dog. if the only thing they have to say is that a contract was breached, they should have dealt with the breach of contract in the courts, not launched a swat type operation. the women who took the dog from the kids were operating from a point of hubris…nobody violates the terms of OUR contract…we’ll show her. give the dog back to the kids. as far as i can tell youre crying for yourselves because your actions were ego-driven and ill-conceived and now youre paying the price. apologize, make up, give the dog back and you you will be forgiven for your stupidity. dont and you wont. you’ll be able to tell the story to however many friends you have left after this and elicit sympathy from them for years. that will be your cold comfort. you will remain vilified and will lose whatever of your business remains, but then again, that’s what has happened to egomaniacs throughtout history. whatever pain you are experiencing was brought on entirely by your actions. yes, you kicked the bull and got gored, deservedly so.

If the requirement is no dogs in houses with Children under 14 then then name of the shelter is very hypocritcal. Mutts and moms… give me a break.

Mutts & Moms,

I don’t know exactly where to begin on this. I suppose I could tell you that my family and I are heartbroken over what we are seeing in the media. Or that I feel, based on recent media, that you’ve lost focus on what a non-profit rescue’s job should be. Maybe remembering some of the facts would be helpful? Like the fact that over 4 million dogs are euthanized each year in this country. In fact our local shelter kills somewhere between 40 and 50 dogs each week.

What kind of message are you trying to send?

You made a statement that you “…have the right to decide where your dogs go…” Ms Baktis, these are not “your dogs”. These are helpless souls wanting and waiting to go to their forever home. While I congratulate you for wanting to be a part of the solution, at least I assume that was your intention when starting a rescue, I believe you’ve lost focus. No dog is better off in a kennel that in a loving home!

Do you want people to believe they will be better off and have fewer hassles getting their pets from breeders instead of shelters and rescues? This is the message you’re sending. I hope you will reconsider your position and refocus. The publicity can easily be turned around. Get the lawyer out of the picture (really, it just looks like you’re after 15 minutes of fame and hoping for some money) and do the right thing here.

What I find amazing is that these 2 women can’t see what the majority of the people in this world can see and understand. Give Iggy back and quit your power trip. These 2 women obviously do not have a brain or heart. Anyone with common sense knows that when you adopt out a dog/pet you want them to go to a great home and I think that is what Iggy got. You are so ignorant that you are willing to lose you livelyhood and reputation to stop a precious puppy from having a great home. You are a disgrace to womenhood and to all pet lovers in the world. What is happening to both of you is your doing. So don’t cry because no one cares, just like you don’t care about Iggy!

It’s very interesting that they “seized” the dog from the hairdresser’s house. Very much like OJ’s “sting”. However, as a legal matter, Mutts & Moms may not have had the legal right to take the pet from the hairdresser’s family. They may be guilty of robbery or larceny. The hairdresser had no privity of contract with Mutts & Moms and, unless Mutts & Moms filed a Uniform Commercial Code statement with respect to their “property” it is quite possible that the hairdresser’s family was the legitimate owner and was robbed. In any event, a court order should have been issued. It is also quite possible that the laws in California do not permit such discriminatory agreements that pets cannot go to a house with minor age children (unless there is a public safety issue). It’s the same as saying that they can’t go to a house with lesbians.

I hope your business goes out of business! You two snobs shouldn’t be anywhere near sweet animals. You’re only fighting back because you think Ellen is getting celebrity favoritism. So what, you’ll show her? It looks like you guys are the ones suffering - not Ellen. She feels terrible for the dog and the hairdresser’s family. All you feel sorry for is yourself. Say goodbye to your business ladies. I hear waiting tables isn’t so bad. Or are you too good for that??? Better yet, give up one of your pets and see how it feels.

WELL SAID!!!!
Pappy’s Fella said:
I find it unbelievable that so many people are so patently blind about the inappropriateness of DeGeneres’ televised plea. She has effectively ruined this rescue agency. I don’t love bureaucracy in pet rescue groups, and I suspect that the complexity of the adoption process drives a lot of people to buy puppy mill dogs. But how can you call the rescue agency simply stubborn? They have been casually ruined and called to the whipping post because of DeGeneres’ irresponsibility and ensuing manipulative monolog. This should have been a private matter, and if the dog wasn’t working out DeGeneres should have consulted the agency for guidance– they feel a responsibility to the pet, and that is a blessing. It’s unbelievable that so many of you are buying into this load of crap because Degeneres cried on TV.

If these people care more about rules and technicalities, they need to be working at the DMV and not caring for animals. Ellen did nothing wrong and I hope their shelter and their for-profit business are both shut down! What a couple of ego-maniacal, self-centered people.

The agency comitted fraud. The ownership was never changed. The dog maybe in a new home but it was done under false pretenses and shoudl be constituted as theft. The place should be shut down permanently because these people were wrong. I hope the people who have the dog now admit it and turn it back in.

The thing that makes me the most angry is that no one seems to be thinking of what it could do emotionally to an 11 and 12 year old girl to basically be deemed unfit to care for a puppy with whom you have bonded on national tv and the internet. This is an important age for girls and the development of their self-esteem. If I had important pet “experts” show up at my door when I was 12 and take away my puppy because of something inherent to me (age), I would have felt like a failure and a loser and like I’d done something wrong. If no other reason could move the Mutts and Moms owners to give the dog back to the family he bonded with, surely the prospect of being instrumental in causing undue emotional distress to two young ladies who have clearly done nothing wrong other than being young and loving a puppy. They are sending a message to those girls that they are in some way substandard and this is truly, cruelly wrong. If an adult cannot swallow her pride to prevent unnecessary distress to children, the adult is immature and petty.

The negative reaction that Mutts and Moms is receiving is not because of Ellen’s celebrity. It is because they stole a puppy from a little girl and it pisses people off. I did not hear about this from Ellen’s show. I don’t even really watch it. I read about this in the news.

The people over at Mutts and Moms need to realize that THEY distroyed their reputation. THEY brought threats upon THEMSELVES. THEY have probably ruined their business. And THEY have hurt pet rescue across the entire country.

If it was Oprah, or George Bush, this would not be a issue! This bitch is ALL about power! Loves to see heart broken kids, she must have had a sad childhood to be so cruel! Rot in hell!

Sounds like the lady has learned her lesson.

I hope all rescue places have too!

My experience with rescue agencies was very negative. Some of them were outright offensive.

When I was trying to find a kitten, I ended up lying about my 3 year old daughter. The closest I could find to a kitten was a 6 month old. She survived my daughter and she’s still healthy and well loved.

No luck with my dog either. The only dogs I could find at the pound were mature pit bulls. I checked a few rescue agencies online, but a few phone calls scared me off. I ended up going to a breeder.

Unwanted pets aren’t a very serious problem. People are more educated about pet ownership then ever before. It’s hard to find puppies and kittens!

I do think that the rescue volunteers that give the ugly old mutts a good home are great people. But it doesn’t give them license to impose on everyone else’s joy of pets.

I highly disapprove of Mutts and Moms, Marina Batkis and Vanessa Chekroun’s actions. They acted on impulse with vengeance on the goodhearted-ness and best interest between a celebrity and deserving children; not with empathy or forethought. In researching the web, PETA, Humane Society, BBB, and SPCA historical information, these owners have not proven themselves respectful or caring. In fact they show spite, more than anything. Reviewing everything to date re. Marina. She still doesn’t show any emotion for the human bond between animal and a well deserving family. A reasonable human would not act on impulse driven by a bogus contract but allowed time for review and reasses the situation. A responsible business owner would have responded by now to the media, attorneys, and press with a RESOLUTION and not hiding and REACTING with negativity. When one appears as a villain one would naturally want to disarm the situation; not in this case. Nothing on the news has touched me in such a way that i would be actually reaching out and being an activist.

i cannot believe what is happening!! with all the animals in this country that need homes these women decided that what ellen did was wrong?! first of all i don’t think she did anything all that awful - perhaps she didn’t read the fine print but she didn’t do anything to harm the dog. second of all the way you stormed over to that home and removed that dog was unforgivable! you hurt more than ellen - you hurt your own reputation. do you honestly think that by “winning this battle” you made a good name for your business? no of course not - your a drama queen and a phony - i saw you on TV and this was your perfect way to get exposure. what you didn’t bet on was the amount of people that believe in ellen. you were wrong in the way you handled this - get over yourself.

I don’t get how they got the police to get involved in this theft.

I know this will probably not be a popular view on this site but the harsh reality is a dog is property. Once you have sold it, you no longer have a say in what happens with it. This is no different than if a used car dealer tried to repossess a car because the person who bought it gave it to someone else. The arrogance of this Marina woman is amazing. I’m pretty sure she can kiss her business goodbye, but it is no ones fault but her own.