Texas ? A small-town mayor accused of secretly keeping her neighbor’s dog after telling them the pet died has resigned, and a judge is set to decide custody of the Shih Tzu.

Grace Saenz-Lopez apologized Friday to Alice residents and said she believed her actions were in the dog’s best interest.

“I am sorry for the division that the events of these last few weeks have caused,” Saenz-Lopez wrote in her resignation letter. “It was never my intention to bring any negative exposure to our city.”

A custody hearing Monday is expected to decide who gets Puddles, who Saenz-Lopez renamed “Panchito” after taking the dog last summer.