LOST DURING '07 FIRES, DOG REUNITED WITH OWNERS

Printer-friendly versionPrinter-friendly version Share this

 

 

 

April 11, 2014 (San Diego’s East County) -- In 2007, when devastating wildfires ripped through San Diego County, John Hartman and his family were left without a home. But the fires took more than replaceable items; they also separated the family from their dog, Buddy.

But a $10 microchip, implanted in Buddy two years before the fires, is now responsible for reuniting the family—nearly seven years after he went missing.

Hartman said someone found Buddy soon after the fires and took him to a vet. But the dog quickly escaped and the family thought they had lost Buddy for good.

Since then, Hartman and his wife moved to Oklahoma. But on a recent trip to San Diego to visit their son, they got one very surprise call from the County’s Department of Animal Services.  After seven years, Buddy had been found. Someone who reported finding the black lab loose in Imperial Beach dropped off the dog at the County’s Gaines Street Animal Shelter on March 28. Staff scanned the dog for the microchip and matched it up to Hartman.

“We’ve reunited animals from across the country and even the world with their owners, but seven years is one of the longest time periods we were able to reunite a pet and its owner,” said Dan DeSousa, deputy director of Animal Services. “The story could have had a tragic ending when the dog was lost during the wildfires, but the happy ending of this dog being reunited with its owner after moving from out of state can’t be beat.”

On April 1, Hartman and his wife picked up 10-year-old Buddy and they left San Diego to head back to Oklahoma with their long-lost pet.

The microchip made it all happen.


Error message

Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting -- not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine's local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.