WASHINGTON — A deployed soldier will get his dog back after his ex-girlfriend sold the dog online in his absence.
Robbert Gabbert — a 23-year-old soldier based in Fort Collins, Colorado — left his 3-year-old Shiba Inu, Baxter, behind with his former girlfriend when he was deployed overseas in March, according to The Washington Post.
The ex-girlfriend, who has not been named, told Gabbert’s father — also named Robbert Gabbert — that she could no longer care for the dog.
“She never did call me,” the senior Gabbert said to the Daily Mail. “Next thing we hear, she’d gone and sold him on the Internet.”
When Gabbert learned Baxter had been sold on Craigslist, The Washington Post says he posted a message on the website to help find the dog:
I am currently deployed and my ex sold my dog. I just found out and I am trying to find the people (person) who bought him. I will pay anything to get him back. His name is Baxter and he is an Shiba Inu. I do not have my phone with me. You can email me. The phone number is my mom’s she is helping me locate him. If you have any information PLEASE give us a call or an email.
The message spread and Gabbert’s family found out the a military family purchased the dog. But they family didn’t want to return the dog saying the children were attached to the new pet.
Supporters created a Facebook page, “Help Bring Baxter Home” to raise money to give the new owners in exchange for the dog. The page raised about $1,400, the Post reports.
Earlier this week, a representative for the “Help Bring Baxter Home,” Facebook page said an agreement was being worked on to reunite Baxter and Gabbert, Colorado TV station KOAA reports. The Facebook page was removed as part of the agreement, KOAA reports.
It is not clear when Gabbert will return from his deployment.
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