Lily Allen has been taking care of rescue dogs for years, but her decision to return one of them caused a lot of backlash. The British singer came under fire after revealing she returned an adopted rescue dog after it ate her family’s passports, but her confession eventually opened a discussion about rehoming pets.
Allen found herself in hot water after an appearance on the podcast Miss Me?, where she shared a story about rehoming her dog Mary. She described her as “very badly behaved” and said that she decided to return her after she ate three passports because it was “an absolute logistical nightmare” to replace them.
After her statement attracted criticism, Allen took to social media to explain that her family loved Mary very much after adopting her from the NY shelter Animal Haven, but a severe case of separation anxiety she developed made it difficult to take proper care of her.
“The person that she was re-homed with was known to us and that rehoming happened within 24 hours of her being returned. We couldn’t meet Mary’s needs and her happiness and welfare were central to us making that decision, as difficult as it was,” she wrote on X, formally known as Twitter.
Allen’s story sparked a conversation about the harmful stigma around rehoming pets, and many people have come to the singer’s defense. Tiffany A. Lacey, executive director at Animal Haven, was one of them and she said they found a loving home for Mary, adding it’s their policy to take animals back if the adoption doesn’t work out.
