(WSVN) - First, she lost her dogs. Then, she was scammed by someone who claimed to have them, but now, there is some good news and a reunion that came very close to not happening. Brian Entin has this update in 7 Investigates.
Victoria Blanco: “I love you, baby. I love you, too. Yeah!”
This is what Victoria Blanco has been waiting for, for months.
She is finally reunited with her Rottweiler named Monster after he dug out of her Hialeah backyard back in December.
Victoria Blanco, reunited with one of her lost dogs: “It’s amazing. Last night, I went to sleep, and I was like, ‘I hope this is not a dream, and I wake up, and he’s not here,’ but I woke up, and he’s here!”
We first met Victoria after Monster and her other dog, Harley, went missing.
She was desperate to get them back and fell for a new scam.
Someone texted Victoria that they found one of her dogs and demanded gift cards to give the dog back to her, but it was all a hoax.
The scammer got her money, but she did not get her animals.
Victoria Blanco: “These people, I don’t know how they get away with this. I guess they get a picture of a dog that looks similar. It’s horrible. It’s horrible that they’re doing this.”
We hoped our story would help Victoria find her dogs.
Doorbell video: “Harley, Harley, Harley.”
And there was hope after the story aired when a viewer thought she found Harley.
As you can see on the doorbell camera, at first, it seemed like a match, but a closer look and a microchip scan revealed this was not Victoria’s Rottweiler.
Weeks went by and Victoria was convinced she would never see her dogs again, but then, good news, she got a call from Miami-Dade Animal Services. They had Monster here at the shelter.
Victoria Blanco: “I get there, and she said I have to pay $160, and I said, ‘I don’t care. I’ll pay the $160. I just want my dog.'”
More than two months after he vanished, Miami-Dade Animal Services found Monster on the street about half a mile from Victoria’s Hialeah home.
It’s a mystery where he was all that time.
When he was taken to the shelter, the scanner did not detect his microchip, so he was neutered and put up for adoption.
Luckily, it’s their policy to scan dogs a second and third time.
Kathleen Labrada, Miami-Dade Animal Services: “So, at the time of impoundment, they’re scanned. Before they have surgery, they’re scanned, and then, before they’re released to an adopter, they’re scanned.”
Victoria is relieved they scanned Monster again, just one day before he was set to go home with a new family.
Victoria Blanco: “I’m excited, I’m happy, and I thank God that he’s back home. Neutered or not neutered, he’s my dog, and I love him to death.”
Having Monster home gives Victoria hope that she will still find Harley.
If you know where she is, email us.
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