Britney Spears’ dogs were reportedly taken away, sparking dispute with employee

Britney Spears confronted an employee at her Southern California mansion this week because the woman may have helped take the singer’s two dogs away, according to a report.

The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office confirmed to the Daily News on Thursday that it’s investigating an allegation that the pop star struck a female employee during a confrontation. The agency did not release any details, but TMZ reported Friday that the incident involved a housekeeper and was connected to Spears’ pet pooches.

It all began when the family’s dog sitter took both animals to the vet after one of them became sick about two weeks ago, according to the gossip site. The sitter never brought the dogs back because she believed they were being neglected, TMZ reported.

Spears, who is also embroiled in a conservatorship battle with her father, reportedly called authorities to report a theft last week, but she declined to do so when deputies arrived at her home. She apparently believes that the housekeeper took photos of the dogs and sent them to Spears’ dad, Jamie, and that he told the sitter to take them away, according to the site.

The housekeeper reportedly told Ventura County deputies that the “Toxic” singer slapped her phone out of her hands during an argument Monday morning.

“She alleged Ms. Spears battered her. Deputies took a report and the investigation is ongoing,” Capt. Eric Buschow said, adding that the case would be sent to the district attorney’s office for possible charges once the investigation is done.

Buschow did not immediately return a request for more information Friday morning.

Spears’ lawyer Mathew Rosengart said he was confident the case would go nowhere, calling the allegations “overblown, gossip nonsense.”

“It’s an overblown cell phone incident. That’s really all I can say,” Rosengart told The News on Thursday.

Spears, 39, has not publicly addressed the accusations.

———