Stolen, abandoned dog reunited with family

A dog who Tampa police think was stolen out of a family's backyard and then abandoned is back home with her family Saturday.

Tampa police got a call about a dog being abandoned from a blue pickup truck near I-275 and Bird Street Friday. A couple witnessed a man leaving the dog near the road and driving away. The dog was unharmed and police brought it to animal services. TPD posted about the case on their Facebook page, sharing a photo of the dog.

Brenda Medina has been searching for her German shepherd Lika all day. She and her family went out Friday morning and returned to the dog missing from their yard. A neighbor told them about the TPD post and Medina called police to pick up the dog.

"I just can't fathom how somebody would do that you know take an animal that's not yours," said Brenda Medina. "Even if it was yours, but especially if it's not yours and just kind of toss it on the side of the road."

Medina says she hasn't met the couple who made sure Lika was safe after she was abandoned, but she wants to thank them.

"I just want to say thank you and my family is so grateful," Medina said.

Investigators are still trying to track down the likely dog-napper. Medina says there's no way Lika could have escaped from her fenced-in yard.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call police.