Ellen DeGeneres told Ryan Seacrest Wednesday morning that she was concerned over reports that Iggy, the dog at the center of her adoption controversy, had been given away to a new family – not her hairdresser's. Seacrest got DeGeneres on the phone during his KIIS-FM radio program in L.A., and said to her, "I heard this morning that this dog, Iggy, is now with another family." DeGeneres replied: "Yeah, that's what I just heard, too. The statement was, 'Finally, it's in a safe home.' Which is an unbelievable statement. I mean, the whole situation is surreal. I can't even begin to tell you the disbelief." Citing the attorney for rescue agency Mutts & Moms, The Insider reported Wednesday that the dog has indeed been placed in a new home. (And see TMZ video of the scene at the hairdresser's house after the dog was taken). Seacrest asked DeGeneres, "Why did they place the dog somewhere else without figuring this out?" She replied: "I guess so that people would just leave them alone. I don't know." DeGeneres reiterated to Seacrest that she had made a mistake in not following the rules in giving Iggy to her hairdresser's family. But she claimed once again that the rescue agency was punishing the dog and her friend's family for that mistake. She also agreed with Seacrest when he suggested the agency had a personal vendetta against DeGeneres herself. "I don't even understand the latest statement in the press, which is, 'I won't let the Ellen DeGenereses of the world get away with this,' " she said. Following the Rules DeGeneres went on to suggest that Mutts & Moms enforces its rules arbitrarily. One such rule, she said, is that it does not allow families with children under 14 to adopt – a rule she said the agency has not always followed in the past. Also, she said, she was never asked to fill out an adoption application and never had a home evaluation – also supposed rules. DeGeneres said she had little recourse at the time the dog was taken back because the agency was still listed as the owner on the dog's microchip. Asked what she would like to happen next, DeGeneres said, "I want Iggy's health and safety, number one. I would like Iggy to come back to that family, because I gave Iggy to that family, and that family has now had their hearts broken, and I feel responsible." Then she added: "But the bigger picture is, everyone [needs to be] aware of your rights, and that you have to make sure that the microchip has your name on it, someone can come at any time and take your dog away."
