Little Dog Lost - And Found
It was every pet lover's worst nightmare.
When Elizabeth Zagarino's six-month-old Puggle Bella went missing from their Laurel home recently, she was devastated.
But a story that could have turned out badly had a happy ending, and Zagarino believes it was the outpouring of support and concern from her North Fork community that brought her beloved little dog back home.
Zagarino's nightmare began over a week ago, when she let out Rascal, her pit bull mix, on a wire line. Bella and Rascal, said Zagarino, "are the best of friends." And so when Rascal wanted out, "Bella got upset and wanted to go out, too." After scratching at the door, Zagarino let her out and Bella bolted off to join her buddy.
But that's when things went horribly awry. After heading upstairs to talk briefly with her husband Frank, who was renovating the bathroom, Zagarino ran right back down to let the dogs in. "Rascal was right there," she said. "Bella wasn't."
Zagarino realized a dog napper had grabbed Bella, pulled into a neighbor's driveway, and hastily backed up, hitting the mailbox.
And so began an odyssey of fear and despair that had Zagarino waiting and hoping fervently for a miracle.
"I called for her. Usually, if she's not in sight, I can hear the little jingle from her collar and there was just deafening silence. Immediately, I panicked. I just knew. I began yelling for her and yelling for her. My husband came right out and we went frantically looking everywhere for her."
Soon, the whole family, including Zagarino's sons, Frankie, 14, and Tanner, 9, were desperately searching for their lost dog.
The following days were dark for Zagarino, who was wracked with guilt. "She's my daughter," she said. "This little dog is so nervous – all she wants is her mom. She's always near my feet, always right next to me."
"My husband realized when he went out front that our mail was all over the ground. Someone crashed into our mailbox."
Indeed, a rash of robberies across the country has been reported as thieves pilfer the pricey designer puggles – a mix between a pug and a beagle – hiding them in purses and in one case, a man's pants, as they pull off the heist. Because the dogs are small – Bella is only 15 pounds – they're easily stashed and are often stolen from pet stores and off the streets.
"When I told them what kind of dog I was looking for, every single person said, 'Oh, you have a hot ticket,'" said Zagarino.
The situation appeared even more dire when Zagarino's husband read an article in the paper about puggles being one of the most commonly poached pooches – thieves often steal and resell the designer dogs. Part of the impetus for peeling off with the pooches? Their pricey pedigree – most puggles fetch between $600 and $800 and up to $1000 when purchased.
"Any small dog is at risk. No dog should be left outside. It's like leaving a child alone," said Peg Gugliotta of the Kent Animal Shelter.
Determined to find her dog, Zagarino got serious. Her friend Danielle Cardinale helped her to plaster the North Fork with over 400 flyers, and soon, concerned neighbors and residents were calling Zagarino with news of prayer groups and search parties. Zagarino even got in touch with an animal communicator to help guide her to an answer. "I didn't care what I had to do," she said. "The whole neighborhood was looking."
Soon, though, the dedication of an entire community paid off when Bella was returned home, safe and sound, last Wednesday.
As soon as her husband turned on the kitchen light to get ready for work at 4:45 a.m., there was a tap on the door – Bella was scratching at the door, eager to get home.
"It's pretty self-explanatory that someone waited until there were signs of life in our house until they let her loose so she could get in," said Zagarino.
Whoever had brought Bella was already gone when Zagarino's husband went running to investigate.
And then, the most joyful of reunions unfolded. "I couldn't breathe for a minute," said Zagarino. "She just ran into my arms, I was crying so hard. I told my kids, 'Please tell me I'm awake right now.' I felt like I'd been in a nightmare for five days."
Once home, Bella was one tired pup, snuggled up to Rascal. "She's skinny and thirsty, but she doesn't seem traumatized. She came home with her collar and tags."
As for why she was swiped, Zagarino has her suspicions. "Maybe it was some teenagers who thought she was cute. Maybe it was someone who wanted to steal her but then saw all the flyers and thought, 'This town's way too small and too proactive,' and they had to abort the project."
What brought her dog home, believes Zagarino, was her refusal to give up – and a community that rallied behind a family in crisis.
"I just literally could not stop putting the word out there," she said. "I kept talking, kept driving, and I had everyone talking. People were praying and searching. There were over hundreds of e-mails sent out."
Now that her ordeal is over, Zagarino, who moved to the North Fork from California four and a half years ago, has a newfound appreciation for the community she now firmly believes is home. "I just want to thank everyone for the outpouring of prayers, help and concern," she said. "All those people praying, grabbing flyers and putting them up, helped to get my baby back."
For years after moving from Los Angeles, Zagarino was homesick. "I wanted to go home. But after this I realized this is my home. These people are really great. I learned something valuable – this is a really special place, these people are so special. The outpouring of support and love speaks volumes. It's been an amazing lesson for me."
lfinn@indyeastend.com
The Independent
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