A war of websites featuring a cute Pomeranian pooch named Sammy has become a bone of contention between his owners that has resulted in a US$500,000 lawsuit.

Manhattan man Scott Smith, 43, is now suing his ex-girlfriend Anna Camara claiming that she stole his dog's original website Sammy and the City, which reportedly has 40,000 visitors a month and more than 60,000 followers on social media.

The site that was created jointly by Mr Smith, his sister Jessica and Ms Camara last year and features the photogenic seven-year-old canine taking in the sights of New York City.

Mr Smith, 43, has claimed in court papers that Ms Camara locked him out of the website by changing passwords and online IDs and forced him to launch a new site from scratch, according to the New York Post.

"This is one of the biggest atrocities that has ever happened to a family," Smith told The Post. "This is my dog, this is my project, and not one bit of it is in my name."

Ms Camara has denied the allegations to the newspaper.

On the original site, the 4.5-kilogram fluffball can be seen getting windswept atop the Empire State building, taking long walks across the Brooklyn Bridge and getting lost among the autumn leaves in Central Park.

He was also featured in various colourful outfits including a leprechaun's hat for St Patrick's Day and 2012 glasses - that even Elton John would gush over - for the ringing in of the new year at Times Square.

But it seemed only Sammy had a smile on his face after Mr Smith claimed that his ex muzzled the joint venture in April by listing herself as sole owner in efforts to trademark the business's name and register the website.

By then the pair had already split but according to Mr Smith they had still been working on the project together, with Ms Camara taking the photographs.

Mr Smith spent a brief stint in a jail cell after getting into a scuffle over his ex's mobile phone, in an attempt that he claims was to get back the site's passwords.

The Upper East Sider has since launched EverybodyLovesSammy.com, which is still under construction, and is asking for donations to grow the website.

He recently tweeted: "Friends regarding Conflict with Sammy, Pls no bashing or hatred toward other individual. Not what my sister and i want (sic)."

-Theage.com.au

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