A Long Island mall scion is in a legal dog fight with his ex-girlfriend over who will own their adorable long-haired miniature Dachshund — with both claiming the pup is their “emotional support animal.”
Alexander Patronelli of Glen Head and Katelyn Evans of Manhattan bought Finnley from a Texas breeder in April 2024, even arranging for a “flight nanny” to accompany the pup on the trip to New York, court papers show.
But the pricey canine –the breed can cost up to $7,000– has since became a casualty of their contentious split, as the former couple trade lawsuits in Nassau Supreme Court over the dog’s fate.
Patronelli, 32, and Evans, 27, dated for six years before breaking up late last year, and each says they’re having a ruff time without “Finn.”
“Finnley has been cared for by [Patronelli] (and at work) by his staff, his family, his friends, and is never left alone,” Patronelli, whose family owns the Locust Valley Plaza mall, said in an Aug. 6 lawsuit against Evans.
Patronelli claims in court papers that Evans is using Finn against him, and falsely told the Nassau Family Court he had “raised his voice and scared Finnley.” He also alleged Evans leaves the pup alone for hours in her Manhattan pad.
But Evans said she stuck with Patronelli through substance abuse problems, rehab and “violent outbursts,” alleging in Nassau Supreme Court papers he assaulted her in November outside his family’s restaurant.
That’s when she sought a protective order against Patronelli in Nassau Family Court, naming their dog as a “protected party.”
It’s unclear if Evans reported the alleged assault to Nassau County Police, who did not respond to a message seeking comment
Losing Finn left Evans, who works in marketing, “without the companionship of an animal that she found, adopted, raised, and cared for deeply,” she said in her own court papers.
Patronelli’s alleged snatching of their dog, “is a well-researched and documented tactic known to be used by domestic violence abusers to assert coercion and control over their victims,” she said in the legal filing.
Patronelli sued “to bully and silence Ms. Evans. She will not be bullied or silenced. The truth is on her side,” she said in a counter-suit accusing him of engaging in “bad faith litigation.”
The case comes about two months after a Brooklyn judge declared that companion pets can be considered “immediate family,” after a woman sued for emotional distress after a driver mowed down her son’s dachschund.
A lawyer for Patronelli did not respond to a message seeking comment. Evans’ lawyer declined comment.
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