A 14-year-old dog, Max, is enjoying ice cream treats and naps at home Tuesday after being stolen at gunpoint in Northeast, D.C., last weekend.
Zaleena Ahmed, 38, of Northeast D.C. told WTOP that the West Highland Terrier was found after being stolen in an armed robbery near her Fort Totten home in the 300 block of Galloway Street on Saturday night.
While Ahmed was walking Max, a gunman demanded the dog and when she resisted, D.C. police said the pet owner was beaten by the suspect.
The suspect took Max and fled in an “awaiting vehicle,” according to police.
The reunion
Tuesday morning, Ahmed said she woke up, “feeling like a little defeated, emotionally and physically,” as the swelling in her head was going down and she could feel the stitches more.
Then, she got the call from a detective who told her that Max was found near the Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens and returned to the Sixth District Substation, Ahmed said.
Three people spotted the dog and recognized him from photos online.
Ahmed brought Max a blanket, water, and some of his favorite things, including an ice cream treat.
“Are you Max’s mom?” Ahmed recalls an officer asking her when she arrived at the station.
When she saw him, Ahmed said she didn’t notice her pain, despite the gash on her forehead. The dog seemed “unbothered,” as though he was thinking “I’ve been waiting for you.”
“He didn’t have a crazy reaction like you anticipate in the movies where he started running towards me,” she said. “I think I was the one that ran towards him.”
The senior dog suffers from some health issues and Ahmed said she felt relieved and “blessed” to have him returned.
“I felt his tummy and it felt really empty,” she told WTOP. “He seemed pretty thirsty.”
The theft wasn’t the first time the pair have been separated by dangerous circumstances. In July 2018, Ahmed was involved in a car crash where her mother died.
In the chaos of paramedics providing medical care to her mother, Max left the scene. Ahmed said that night she thought she’d never see her pet again, but the two were reunited after a driver saw him on the side of the highway.
“I feel like I’m maxing out on my miracles, because I survived two possibly deadly situations,” she said. “And then I was reunited with my dog twice.”
The recovery
On a walk around his apartment complex, Max’s back legs were shaking a bit and Ahmed said she has scheduled an appointment with his veterinarian for tomorrow.
“His temperament was a little bit alarming because he was reactive to some of the dogs that he normally is very friendly towards,” she said. “Maybe he just needs like a day to recuperate and reestablish his routine.”
Ahmed said that Max has been walking around with his favorite ball.
“He ate all of his treat. He ate all of his breakfast. He had his ice cream. Now he’s just snoring in his bed,” she said.
As for the suspects, Ahmed said she doesn’t wish any harm on them.
“I just wanted my dog back and that’s what I got,” she said. “So I hope that these people realize that there’s still an opportunity to do good, and they stop putting themselves in the line of danger and risk of … a future that isn’t beneficial to them.”
D.C. police have asked for help in identifying the suspects who snatched the dog. As of Tuesday afternoon, a spokesperson for D.C. police told WTOP that no arrests had been made and that the investigation into the theft continues.
Anyone with information can contact D.C. police at 202-727-9099 or text 50411.
WTOP’s Dick Uliano contributed to this report.
