"Vaquera's Law"-the fight to recover Vaquera
Donation protected
My dog Vaquera was taken and hidden from me for almost 2 years, since the day she disappeared on Dec 19th 2018. I am now in a legal battle to recover my beloved dog. This lawsuit could determine the rights of owners and their pets going forward. The law states that dogs are "private property", but it does nothing to prevent rogue rescues from trying to make claims on dogs that have been previously adopted by private parties.
After over thousands of dollars and hours spent trying to find Vaquera, I learned that Marina Baktis, owner of Mutts & Moms rescue where I had originally adopted her in Jan 2015, had recovered her on the very day she went missing. Marina played along reposting my pleas for help, while all along hiding Vaquera in her home. On Oct 30th 2020, I learned through the AVID Chip company that someone was trying to change the chip information on my "Stolen Dog". That someone was a friend of Marina's, Stacy Parmer the owner of the Barking Lot Rescue in El Cajon. Stacy had found a new home for my dog. I learned who the new owners were and I immediately drove to San Marcos where the family lived to let them know they were in possession of my "Stolen Property". Despite my evidence of ownership and the long history of my search, pictures, posts, "stolen dog" police reports, the family insisted they had every right to keep their new pet and they “had done nothing ethically or legally wrong”.
I disagree.
My dog was my child. I have no actual children, only my 2 dogs. They are my world and just because someone else paid an adoption fee through a rescue who knowingly re-homed my "stolen dog", does not make it any different than an abducted child in my mind. Between search costs and legal fees, I have already spent in excess of $70,000 dollars.
I realize that this is a trying time for most people, but even your $10 donation will help recover Vaquera and perhaps deter bad rescues from this type of behavior in the future.
All money donated will go directly to pay for legal fees as I continue this battle to recover my amazing dog. Vaquera really is the poster child for Pit Bulls as she loves every living being equally(except coyotes ).
After over thousands of dollars and hours spent trying to find Vaquera, I learned that Marina Baktis, owner of Mutts & Moms rescue where I had originally adopted her in Jan 2015, had recovered her on the very day she went missing. Marina played along reposting my pleas for help, while all along hiding Vaquera in her home. On Oct 30th 2020, I learned through the AVID Chip company that someone was trying to change the chip information on my "Stolen Dog". That someone was a friend of Marina's, Stacy Parmer the owner of the Barking Lot Rescue in El Cajon. Stacy had found a new home for my dog. I learned who the new owners were and I immediately drove to San Marcos where the family lived to let them know they were in possession of my "Stolen Property". Despite my evidence of ownership and the long history of my search, pictures, posts, "stolen dog" police reports, the family insisted they had every right to keep their new pet and they “had done nothing ethically or legally wrong”.
I disagree.
My dog was my child. I have no actual children, only my 2 dogs. They are my world and just because someone else paid an adoption fee through a rescue who knowingly re-homed my "stolen dog", does not make it any different than an abducted child in my mind. Between search costs and legal fees, I have already spent in excess of $70,000 dollars.
I realize that this is a trying time for most people, but even your $10 donation will help recover Vaquera and perhaps deter bad rescues from this type of behavior in the future.
All money donated will go directly to pay for legal fees as I continue this battle to recover my amazing dog. Vaquera really is the poster child for Pit Bulls as she loves every living being equally(except coyotes ).
Organizer
Chiara Tellini
Organizer
Pasadena, CA