Hello! This fundraiser is to help raise legal fees for Jessica & Bryan, devoted pet parents who have been fighting since February 2025 to get their beloved Australian Shepherd “Valkyrie” home from finders that refuse to return her. The finders refuse to return her despite an overwhelming amount of evidence that the finders are in possession of Valkyrie and that Valkyrie is a cherished member of Jessica & Bryan’s family. It’s a real life David & Goliath story where it seems like the finders are trying to make this a lengthy civil court battle so that Valkyrie’s owners are not able to afford the legal fees needed to fight for their family member.

Valkyrie strayed from her rural home in Tallahassee, FL, on 9/13/24, and her owners looked everywhere for her and told anyone they knew that she was missing. Valkyrie’s owners learned in approximately December 2024 that a family in a nearby gated community had Valkyrie and they were finally able to identify that family in February 2025. The joy of finding Valkyrie quickly turned to heartbreak when the finders ignored a cordial plea sent via email to please return their beloved Valkyrie. Jessica & Bryan have been fighting a legal battle ever since then to get her home. Jessica filed a theft report with the Leon County Sheriff’s Office and then shortly after that Jessica & Bryan received a Cease and Desist letter from an attorney for the finders. The letter contained false allegations and threats of legal action. At this point, Jessica & Bryan sought the help of an attorney to defend themselves and to help “Bring Valkyrie Home”.

The Cease and Desist letter is included here so you can see the type of response the owners were met with after sending a cordial email to the finders that detailed Valkyrie’s home and past treatment for dermatitis in December 2023 at Forgotten Coast Animal Hospital. Her dermatitis had flared up shortly before she went missing and Jessica had trimmed Valkyrie’s coat and removed her collar and then started treating her with leftover medicated shampoos from her 2023 case of dermatitis. The allegations in the letter are unfounded and recently the finders’ attorney provided “video evidence” of a trespassing and stalking claim that was in the letter - only problem with their evidence is that it is not Valkyrie’s owners vehicle nor do they know who was in the vehicle. The other allegations in the letter are also unfounded and more details can be found on Valkyrie’s Facebook page.

Although laws regarding found property had been violated, the State Attorney’s Office would not file criminal charges against the finders and instead said the case was better suited for civil court. So here we are….the losing side in the civil case will be responsible for both sides legal fees.

Valkyrie’s owners do not have the savings or disposable income needed to fight this battle to get their fur baby home so they are asking for your help. This is a battle that never should have started. Most people are good humans and would have returned Valkyrie to her loving owners when presented with the overwhelming evidence that she is a beloved member of the family. Jessica & Bryan are not big users of social media so this GoFundMe and Valkyrie’s Facebook page is the first of Valkyrie’s legal battle being shared publicly. Although they would have preferred to maintain their private lifestyle, they are willing to give that up and face public scrutiny in order to tell their story so that they can ask for help from complete strangers that may have empathy for them and empathy for Valkyrie. This story is not about public shaming of the finders, so you will not see their names detailed in posts, but it is about getting the story out there and that requires sharing public records which are posted on Valkyrie’s Facebook page.

Please go to her Facebook page (Bring Valkyrie the Aussie Home) for the full story of Valkyrie, the purebred Australian Shepherd that chose Jessica & Bryan when she was just a puppy. The joy of being chosen by Valkyrie when she was just a tiny puppy and then raising her since 2020, has turned to heartbreak because the finders appear to believe they are more important and that the first five (5) years of Valkyrie’s life and love from her family does not matter. Valkyrie has feelings too and is likely missing her family just as much as her family is missing her.

Those that know me, know that I like to stay “under the radar” and that when I author posts on Facebook about trapping dogs and reuniting lost dogs with their owners that I often refer to a “Good Samaritan” that helped the owners and I do not take credit for anything as I’m not here for attention, but rather just to simply reunite lost pets with their owners. You may ask why I am starting this fundraiser and not Valkyrie’s owners, the simple answer is that the owners have been accused by the finders’ attorneys of alleged misconduct and although an abundance of records have been provided to disprove those allegations, they continue to receive letters with the same allegations.

I have been helping the owners since February 2025, ever since I saw a lost post for Valkyrie. I am hopeful that by me starting the fundraiser and having oversight of the disbursement of donations, that I am preventing Valkyrie’s owners from being accused of only caring about the money. I can say with certainty that no amount of money would heal the owners’ broken hearts, they simply want their beloved family member home. Valkyrie is invaluable and irreplaceable.

The finders at one point reportedly told law enforcement that they did not know whose Australian Shepherd they found, yet they offered to pay Jessica & Bryan (whom they do not know) $1,800.00. What ?!? Who does that ???

Please help Jessica & Bryan so that they can get Valkyrie home where she belongs! This heartbreak has gone on long enough.