Bam Bam, the stolen service dog, reunited with his Logan Square owner; ‘I prayed every day and night'
The 14-year-old Dachshund captured the hearts and minds around the globe after he'd been reported stolen in June from his Logan Square owner, Angel Santiago. Santiago is legally blind due to glaucoma and relied on Bam Bam as a service dog.
The pair was reunited Tuesday night, police said, after a man and woman dropped Bam Bam off at Chicago Police's 16th District station. Officers said the dog appeared in good health. Detectives are still investigating the theft, and no one is in custody.
Santiago told the Tribune Wednesday he thanked God for being reunited with his beloved Bam Bam.
'I prayed every day and night,' he said.
Bam Bam was reportedly stolen from Santiago's yard on June 5, according to a GoFundMe created to help raise funds for Bam Bam's search. The news of the theft went viral on social media, and Santiago told the Tribune he'd received calls of support from as far away as Spain and New Zealand.
Santiago walked several miles a day looking for his dog.
'No matter how many times I fall … I always get up,' Santiago said, kissing Bam Bam on the neck.
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Bam Bam, the allegedly stolen Chicago support dog, is reunited with his owner after more than 2 months
Owner Angel Santiago lost his sight entirely nearly three years ago. He asked for people to be on the lookout for Bam Bam. The internet is celebrating the reunification of Bam Bam, a 14-year-old dachshund mix, and his owner, Angel Santiago. On June 5, Bam Bam, who is an emotional support dog for the legally blind Santiago, was taken from Santiago's backyard in the Chicago neighborhood of Logan Square, per reporting from Fox 32 Chicago. But now, Bam Bam and Santiago are back together again. Per ABC 7 Chicago, Bam Bam was dropped off at a Chicago police station on Aug. 19 by two individuals. The dog, who is microchipped but was not wearing his collar at the time he was taken, appeared healthy, and was reunited with Santiago. The police said an investigation into the alleged taking of Bam Bam is still ongoing. The Garrido Stray Rescue Foundation posted on its Facebook page about the reunion, writing that police contacted their organization after a man and woman dropped off the dog at a local precinct, where they were able to trace him to Santiago by scanning his microchip. "Thankfully Bam Bam was microchipped and the information was current," the foundation wrote in its Facebook post, urging pet owners to "Please have a vet scan your pup annually when they get their rabies shot to verify your dog is still microchipped and contact the chip company to confirm your information is current." Santiago, who is legally blind due to progressive glaucoma, had let Bam Bam out in the backyard to go to the bathroom when he heard two people enter. Santiago attempted to grab one of the suspects but was unable to hold on to them. Santiago then said he heard Bam Bam barking, but that the sound got softer as the suspects, at least one of whom Santiago believes was a teenager wearing a long-sleeved shirt, fled with the dog. It was unclear to Santiago if the individuals who seemingly took Bam Bam were men or women. Santiago, who also lives with diabetes and became completely blind nearly three years ago, walked up to seven miles a day searching for his beloved dog, with volunteers joining the search. He had also put up posters and stood outside of local grocery store Tony's Fresh Market with Bam Bam's leash and collar in hopes someone would come forward with information about the dog's whereabouts. The internet celebrates Bam Bam's return The internet was devastated to learn of Santiago's story, with many posts calling for Bam Bam's immediate return. Now, people on social media are celebrating, with some calling the story a rare piece of uplifting news. "I'm actually overjoyed," one TikToker wrote in the caption of her video about the development. "We did it," another wrote in her TikTok. "Bam Bam is home!"
Yahoo
42 minutes ago
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Bam Bam, the allegedly stolen Chicago support dog, is reunited with his owner after more than 2 months
Owner Angel Santiago lost his sight entirely nearly three years ago. He asked for people to be on the lookout for Bam Bam. The internet is celebrating the reunification of Bam Bam, a 14-year-old dachshund mix, and his owner, Angel Santiago. On June 5, Bam Bam, who is an emotional support dog for the legally blind Santiago, was taken from Santiago's backyard in the Chicago neighborhood of Logan Square, per reporting from Fox 32 Chicago. But now, Bam Bam and Santiago are back together again. Per ABC 7 Chicago, Bam Bam was dropped off at a Chicago police station on Aug. 19 by two individuals. The dog, who is microchipped but was not wearing his collar at the time he was taken, appeared healthy, and was reunited with Santiago. The police said an investigation into the alleged taking of Bam Bam is still ongoing. The Garrido Stray Rescue Foundation posted on its Facebook page about the reunion, writing that police contacted their organization after a man and woman dropped off the dog at a local precinct, where they were able to trace him to Santiago by scanning his microchip. "Thankfully Bam Bam was microchipped and the information was current," the foundation wrote in its Facebook post, urging pet owners to "Please have a vet scan your pup annually when they get their rabies shot to verify your dog is still microchipped and contact the chip company to confirm your information is current." Santiago, who is legally blind due to progressive glaucoma, had let Bam Bam out in the backyard to go to the bathroom when he heard two people enter. Santiago attempted to grab one of the suspects but was unable to hold on to them. Santiago then said he heard Bam Bam barking, but that the sound got softer as the suspects, at least one of whom Santiago believes was a teenager wearing a long-sleeved shirt, fled with the dog. It was unclear to Santiago if the individuals who seemingly took Bam Bam were men or women. Santiago, who also lives with diabetes and became completely blind nearly three years ago, walked up to seven miles a day searching for his beloved dog, with volunteers joining the search. He had also put up posters and stood outside of local grocery store Tony's Fresh Market with Bam Bam's leash and collar in hopes someone would come forward with information about the dog's whereabouts. The internet celebrates Bam Bam's return The internet was devastated to learn of Santiago's story, with many posts calling for Bam Bam's immediate return. Now, people on social media are celebrating, with some calling the story a rare piece of uplifting news. "I'm actually overjoyed," one TikToker wrote in the caption of her video about the development. "We did it," another wrote in her TikTok. "Bam Bam is home!"
New York Post
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Elderly service dog Bam Bam reunited with blind owner more than 2 months after being stolen
A 14-year-old Dachshund was reunited with his legally blind owner who prayed daily for the service pup's safe return after he was stolen from their Illinois home in early June. Bam Bam, whose disappearance went viral online as enraged dog lovers spread the word to help find him, was dropped off at Chicago's 16th District police station by an unidentified man and woman around 8 p.m. Tuesday night — more than two months after the pouch was taken. 3 Bam Bam, a 14-year-old service dog, was safely returned to his legally blind owner more than two months after he was taken. GoFundMe Advertisement After being identified as the viral pup through his microchip, Bam Bam was finally returned to his owner, Angel Santiago, a 58-year-old man who is legally blind due to glaucoma. Upon their reunion, Santiago held the senior wiener dog close to his chest, peppering the dog's snout with long-awaited kisses. Bam Bam was snatched from Santiago's yard on June 5, leaving the legally blind man to navigate a world he struggled to see without his little helper leading the way. Advertisement Santiago told PETA organizers that he heard two men bust into his yard and scoop up a frantic Bam Bam. He said he tried to intervene the best he could, but that the pair absconded with his beloved pup. 3 Bam Bam was stolen from his owner's backyard on June 5, Angel Santiago said. GoFundMe When Santiago wasn't on the street handing out flyers and shouting for his missing dog, he was praying 'every day and night' for Bam Bam, he told the Chicago Tribune. 'No matter how many times I fall…I always get up,' Santiago told the outlet. Advertisement Despite his disability, the dedicated dog dad would walk up to seven miles a day in desperate search of Bam Bam. All his efforts soon paid off as other horrified dog owners took to the internet to help spread the word. 3 Bam Bam was identified through his microchip after he was dropped off at a local police station. Garrido Stray Rescue Foundation / Facebook 'To the people who took that blind man's dog out of his backyard, I literally hope you never have a good night's sleep ever again. The fact that you went into a blind man's yard and took his best pal, his best companion, his service dog for the last 14 years, you literally deserve to never have a moment of peace,' one TikTok user said through near-tears in a video with more than 800,000 views. Advertisement Santiago told the Tribune that he even received calls offering support from other countries like Spain and New Zealand. PETA was planning on posting billboards in Chicago to help with the search, but Bam Bam was dropped off at the police station mere days before they were set to go up. Because everything was already planned and paid for, the same billboards will still be plastered throughout Chicago, but will have a label clarifying that the dog was already rescued. It's unclear if the pair that dropped Bam Bam off at the police station played a role in his disappearance. Detectives are still investigating. No one has been taken into custody.
