Bam Bam is back.
The beloved 13-year-old dachshund, whose story was widely shared after he was separated from his owner, Angel Santiago, was finally found. Now while the duo heal from the episode, new challenges and health complications lay ahead.
The search effort, which lasted just over two months, ended Tuesday at the Jefferson Park District when the service dog was returned to his owner Santiago, who is blind.
Almost two days after being reunited, Santiago, 58, of Logan Square, is none the wiser on who took him and what they were after. Sitting in his living room with an alert and gentle Bam Bam, Santiago said the dachshund is not back to his old self just yet.
While he is happy that Bam Bam is back, Santiago wants answers. He is keen to find out who was behind it all.
“We’re getting there,” Santiago said Thursday afternoon. “It’s hard for him to sleep at night. He has really bad anxiety issues. I only take him out on his leash in the back because he’s skittish to go outside.”
The dachshund was reportedly taken just before midnight June 4 from his Logan Square yard, according to Chicago police.
Santiago said he had intended to step out to his backyard deck when he sensed he was not alone. Officers responded to a report of theft, saying they were told an unknown person had entered the backyard and taken Bam Bam, police said.
“I immediately heard Bam Bam yelp and he dashed right to the gate and I knew something was wrong,” Santiago said.
The process of getting him back was equally challenging as Santiago said he had been fielding scam calls from people who were after the reward.
The community rallied together through a social media campaign. Their efforts resulted in widely shared social media posts, flyers, a GoFundMe that raised over $19,000. More than 2,000 people signed a petition, urging city officials to take action. A $5,000 reward was also offered for the dog’s return.
Santiago now wants to use some of the money toward Bam Bam’s veterinary bills.
“They found that Bam Bam has an enlarged heart and liver. And now we have to work on that for the next month,” said Santiago.
An important takeaway from Bam Bam’s return, is updating the microchips on pets, said John Garrido, the co-founder of Garrido Stray Rescue Foundation.
“The problem is, many times people will get a dog microchip that they either don’t register or don’t update. They often move or change their phone number and they don’t update the chip,” Garrido said.
In Bam Bam’s case, after he was turned in at the Jefferson Park District, officers tried the number that was connected to his microchip and googled it. It was then that officers came across the social media posts searching for the pooch.
It’s unclear what happened to Bam Bam in the 11 weeks between when he was reported missing to when he was turned over to police.
On Tuesday, an unidentified man and woman dropped off Bam Bam at the Jefferson Park District, police said. But the pair refused to provide any information and left.
Officers were able to make contact with Santiago about an hour and half after the dog was dropped off. The dog was in good health at the time, and no one is in custody, police said.
Lost Dog Illinois, a national non-profit that tracks lost pets and reunites them with their owners, said they have a specific team of “Microchip hunters” who track owners of pets with ‘dead-end microchips’ — chips that haven’t been updated or registered. The team worked on 1,500 cases last year with a team of 20-25 volunteers, said Jeanette Garlow, of Lost Dog Illinois. Their team also shared Bam Bam’s story.
“Everybody had tears in their eyes when they knew he had been reunited,” said Garlow, adding that the microchip was key in helping get Bam Bam back home.
Meanwhile Santiago and Bam Bam looked forward to a trip to Petco Thursday afternoon, and possibly a future trip to the beach.
“We’re just going to make sure that we get him his food, his toys, everything else that he needs from [the] great people in the neighborhood that donated and we’re going to spoil him today,” he said. “We’re gonna really spoil him.”