Rescued Pit Bull Stolen From Animal Shelter Before New Owners Could Take Him Home
GRASS VALLEY (CBS13) — A dog owned by alleged drug dealers was stolen from an animal shelter before a new owner could pick him up.
Even though the pit bull, named Bud, has had a bad past, the Martinez family says they fell in love with him.
"There's a huge stereotype, as we all know about pit bulls, but Bud is a family dog."
This good-natured pit bull was about to become a new member of Donna Martinez's family.
"We came up and met with him and just loved him, straight away."
Bud was rescued by police officers from a marijuana grow where he was used as a guard dog. He was set to be euthanized.
"The police department went in to the bust, and Bud came over and just was befriending them, laying at their feet and just being a real love."
Hearing about Bud's friendly disposition, Donna decided to adopt him. But just yesterday, during business hours, with the shelter packed with visitors, the unthinkable happened.
Right before Donna arrives to pick up Bud, a woman shows up and snatches him from his cage.
"Bud was gone. Somebody had come and stole him from the shelter."
Nevada County shelter manager Cheryl Wicks believes the woman who took Bud had been here before, asking a lot of questions.
"If you need to steal it, then you probably don't have the money to care for it.
Donna is also worried, because Bud is on medication. He recently had surgery.
"He had a little bit of an infection with his neutering so he is on medication, he still has antibiotics."
She's not sure what the woman's intentions are, but she's hoping he'll be found and he can finally get the loving home he deserves.
"We want him to be well, we want him to be safe, we want him to be happy, we want him in our home."
The shelter is offering a reward for his return.
Although rescue workers believe they know who took the dog, investigators could not be reached to confirm the suspect description.
