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Owner reunited with pet dog stolen from Petco in Palm Beach Gardens

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The owner of a dog that was stolen Saturday evening from a Petco in Palm Beach Gardens was reunited with her pet Tuesday morning.

The dog's owner, Tara Harris, said police called her in the middle of the night to say they found her pet Maltese-mix named Teddy. 

 

Harris arrived at the Palm Beach Gardens police station at about 5 a.m. to pick up Teddy, who is 11-years-old, blind and diabetic.

Palm Beach Gardens police said they arrested Heather Ryan, 48, who had the dog in her possession. Circumstances of the arrest have not been released by police.  However, police said Ryan was arrested near Legacy Place off PGA Boulevard and charged with grand theft.

Harris wanted to thank the police and the public for their help reuniting her with Teddy.

“I’ll never be able to put into words how unbelievably amazing it was (to be reunited with Teddy,)" said Harris. " I can’t express into words how happy I am to have him back in my arms with my family."

The dog, which lost 1.2 pounds in three days, was taken to a veterinarian to be evaluated.  Teddy was slightly dehydrated when he was found overnight and is now on an IV since his blood sugar levels were high.  

Petco issued the following statement: 

We’re so happy that Teddy was found and safely reunited with his family, and we’re doing everything we can to help them recover from this distressing experience. We’re continuing our thorough investigation of the situation, reinforcing the critical importance of adhering to all of our pet safety policies and procedures with our partners, and looking into any potential measures that may prevent this from happening again.