Seahawks defensive end Michael Bennett has paid nearly $15,000 to a Tampa, Fla., dog kennel where he allegedly abandoned his 4-month-old dog when he and his wife moved to Seattle.

When Bennett, a former member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, signed with the Seahawks last offseason and moved to Seattle, he left his boxer puppy, Koa, at Tampa’s Lucky Dog Daycare in March 2013 and never returned, the kennel’s attorney told seattlepi.com.

After repeated unsuccessful attempts to reach Bennett and his wife, Pele, Lucky Dog filed a lawsuit in December to recoup more than $5,000 that the Bennetts allegedly owed the doggy daycare.

Meanwhile, Koa remained at the kennel, all but abandoned after the Bennetts moved to the opposite corner of the country. The puppy required at least two walks a day, and had to be separated from other dogs because it had not been fixed, attorney Mark Aubin said.

“It wasn’t good,” Aubin told seattlepi.com. “That just isn’t how you conduct business and that’s not how you treat an animal.”

Finally, after Koa had been there for 10 months, Lucky Dog worked with a Florida boxer rescue organization and found the dog new owners. The pup has a new name, Quigley, and seems to have recovered from a long year without any primary caretakers.

“(Quigley is) now with a nice new family, gained all his weight back and is doing great,” said Aubin, who took the case pro-bono.

The dispute, first reported in November by TMZ, gained some media attention in Tampa, where the public’s reaction has not been positive. Aubin, for one, was unsettled by the way the Bennetts allegedly neglected their puppy.

The Bennetts dodged phone calls and emails, and even disregarded court orders, throughout the ordeal, Aubin said. Even after a Hillsborough County, Fla., judge ordered a judgment of about $8,200 this spring, the Bennetts continued to ignore the case, Aubin said.

In early June, Aubin filed a motion for contempt of court. That seemed to attract the attention of Bennett’s agent, whose attorney recently contacted Aubin to work out a settlement.

After all the added legal costs, Aubin said, the Bennetts’ settlement grew to nearly $15,000 — though they initially owed Lucky Dog just under $5,000.

“It was foolish. It was ridiculous,” Aubin said. “He abandoned the dog!”

Bennett’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus of Rosenhaus Sports Representation, did not return a voice message seeking comment from Bennett or his attorney. The Seattle Seahawks also did not respond to a request for comment from Bennett.

The 28-year-old defensive end, one of the stars of Seattle’s Super Bowl-winning team in 2013, in March signed a new contract with the Seahawks reportedly worth $28.5 million over four seasons, with $16 million guaranteed. In 2013, Bennett led the Hawks with 8.5 sacks in the regular season and added 1.5 in the playoffs on his one-year deal, and became one of the most sought-after free agents after the Super Bowl.

Visit seattlepi.com for more Seattle Seahawks news. Contact sports editor Nick Eaton at nickeaton@seattlepi.com or @njeaton.