RICHMOND, Va -- Hours after a CBS 6 story aired about Dumpy, the pit bull with big, blue, piercing eyes who vanished from a friend's backyard in the Fan District, he was reunited with his owner.
He went missing when Jessie Swaney took Dumpy to her friend's house on Addison Street around 4 p.m. Monday afternoon. Swaney said she put him in her friend's backyard, which is gated and latched, and returned a few minutes later to see the gate wide open and no sign of Dumpy.
Swaney and her friends filed a police report and posted fliers throughout the city. Local restaurant Sticky Rice and multiple local dog agencies posted about Dumpy's disappearance and posts have been shared hundreds of times.
Dumpy reunited with his person.
Those social media posts have also led to tips. Swaney said people have spotted a pit bull mix that looks identical to Dumpy over in Shockoe Bottom, being lead on a rope by an unknown man. Swaney said she was “sobbing” when they first received the reports.
"I haven't slept like, at all. I got up around 6 a.m. and was like wandering Monroe Park,” Swaney said. "He's really dumb, and the greatest thing ever and so cute and nice. He wouldn't hurt a fly.”
Swaney misses Dumpy for more than his sweet demeanor. Swaney said she is in the final stages of battling breast cancer, and Dumpy has been by her side through most of her fight.
"I'm towards the end, but yeah, Dumpy has really helped me with that, so I'd just really like to have him back,” Swaney said.
Dumpy has helped her through breast cancer.
Swaney said Dumpy was microchipped by Ring Dog Rescue, and hopes someone recognizes her “sweet angel” and comes forward. Swaney said if anyone currently has Dumpy, they can drop him off at Sticky Rice in the Fan, no questions asked.
"I just want him back, I don't care how it happens,” Swaney said.
Then, Tuesday night, after the story aired on CBS 6, someone called in an anonymous tip.
Ring Dog Rescue responded and found Dumpy in Deep Run Park in Henrico. He was reunited with Jessie at Sticky Rice around 9 p.m. and appeared to be in good health.
