Wanganui Mayor Michael Laws has stepped in to sort out a dog fight over an unregistered bitch seized by his council, then given to the wrong person.
Wanganui District Council customer service manager Melanie Heron said the farm dog was found wandering on December 2 and impounded.
A man claiming to have owned it since it was a pup visited the pound on December 5, having reported it as missing and placing a "lost dog" advertisement in the newspaper.
However, the dog was not released to him, as he needed to pay registration and pound fees.
Six days later, a woman went to the pound, said the dog was her's and paid the fees.
"Unfortunately we made an error in accepting payment from (the woman) for the registration and purchase of the dog when we had reason to believe that someone else owned the dog," Ms Heron said.
When advised that the dog would be returned to the man, the woman visited Mr Laws at home in the evening.
"He advised her of the full facts, apologised on behalf of the council for any distress, ensured she would get a refund of her $45 and the opportunity to purchase another dog from the pound," Ms Heron said.
