ROUND ROCK, Texas — After being gone for a month, Lucas is back home safe with his owner Heidi Martinez.
“He’s sort my, my buddy when the kids are at home, you know. We’re watching the news. We’re chilling together," said Martinez, a Round Rock resident. "He’s my sidekick. It was sad to see him gone, but he’s back home now.”
This reunion is all because of Round Rock Animal Control Officer Camie Stoffel. She found the four-year-old terrier four miles away in someone else’s front yard. Officer Stoffel said she had a hunch a family was looking for him. Putting her detective skills to work, she started looking around on social media.
“I was going through Facebook, and I was like I was actually getting quite tired going through all the photos," Stoffel said.
But finally, Stoffel recognized that pink nose on a post. She called Martinez immediately.
“I was like, 'Is it true, you know, could this be Lucas, is Lucas coming home?,” Martinez said.
“I was talking to him the whole way, getting him all excited to be home and when I got here he ran straight, straight to his mom," Stoffel said.
The Martinez family spent the month of November posting online, visiting shelters and distributing flyers. They were starting to think Lucas wouldn't be back in time for the holidays, but they said they did not lose faith.
“When I told the kids they were, 'Like yes mom, he’s home for Christmas, like this is like the best present ever,'" Martinez said.
Officer Stoffel said it's all in a day's work, but she doesn't think of this as a job.
“If you are missing a pet, even if it’s a bird, we get calls for birds and lizards, we get calls for every critter under the sun," Stoffel said. "Don’t give up hope.”
The Round Rock Police Department has tips if anyone's pet becomes lost.
- Look closest to home first.
- Distribute flyers in the neighborhood.
- Check with local veterinary clinics.
- Notify neighbors, search “found pet” ads in local newspapers and Craigslist, and visit local animal shelters.