A dog that came to be known as Ghost recently made national headlines when he was rescued after living with a pack of coyotes in Las Vegas for roughly six months. But Ghost’s rescue would grow into a battle of ownership that’s still going on even after he’s home with the family that insists Ghost is their dog.
Ghost drew the attention of the Southern Nevada Trapping Team after he was spotted amongst a pack of coyotes in Henderson, a city outside Las Vegas. He earned the moniker Ghost because every time a person came near, the dog would disappear. But when trappers discovered Ghost was limping, they had to rescue him before the three coyotes he ran with turned on the injured dog.
Rescued From the Wild
Susan McMullen and her partner Timi Zondiros of the Southern Nevada Trapping Team made it their mission to catch the Ghost dog, and when they did, Susan told Fox5, “It is just that adrenal and excitement and relief… it was just a relief to get him out of there.”
“When he got into that crate…. He just sat down. I think he was also relieved,” said Timi. “He is the sweetest most loving dog… he comes up to you he wants to be petted, he wants to be held.”
But his months living the coyote life had taken a toll, and Ghost’s catalog of injuries included bites and scratches to the face and body, a limp, a toe in need of amputation, an eye infection, and an infected scrotum.
“He’s got some rocks in his belly because he was probably hungry and ate some rocks, so we are just going to watch those and hopefully those will pass so we don’t have to have yet another surgery,” Susan added.
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And because his care totaled thousands of dollars, a GoFundMe popped up to help cover his care. As of now, the fundraiser has raised $14,000. But the page organizer has said those donations will be refunded as what was meant to be a happy tale of rescue and recovery has turned into a legal battle.
Ownership Feud
Seeing Ghost on news coverage of his rescue, the Cabada family of Las Vegas were relieved as they were certain this was Hades, their four-year-old Bull terrier mix that had gone missing six months prior. They say Hades had gone missing from a family member’s home when they were dog-sitting for the family. But along with the Cabadas came others with supposed claims to Ghost. The Southern Nevada Trapping Team, in conjunction with Amor Peludo Animal Rescue, responded to the Cabadas, telling them Ghost was not Hades.
But the Cabadas insisted, and that’s when Clark County Animal Protection Services intervened. Police put Ghost in the care of The Animal Foundation in Las Vegas while the matter was investigated.
Animal Foundation spokeswoman Kelsey Pizzi assured Ghost was just fine in their care, explaining, “We have a team of veterinarians. I can assure you he is being cared for. He is actually doing well,” said Kelsey.
Kelsey told USA Today, “There was plenty of evidence this was their dog.”
With this, Ghost would be giving up his coyote life and returning home to his live as Hades.
Hades Goes Home?
Call him Ghost or Hades, he’s been reunited with the Cabada Family. And from his reaction at the moment of the reunion, it seems Hades recognized his family as he was so excited he couldn’t stop jumping on and hugging them.
“It was a very emotional reunion,” Kelsey shared. “As soon as he saw his family, he ran right over to them … He just kept jumping into everyone’s arms.”
But McMullen and Amor Peludo Animal Rescue, who had taken the dog into care, insist this dog isn’t Hades, and even if he was, they listed reasons why he shouldn’t be anymore in an Instagram post.
Carole Sandy, a board member with Amor Peludo, also told KTNV 13, “The dogs have never received medical care. Why would they now receive thousands of dollars of medical care?”
And in a now-deleted post on Facebook, Amor Peludo stated, “We’re devastated. We’re not going to give up. We’re going to pursue this by any legal means possible.”
But now that Hades is home with his family, mom Christy Cabada is relieved, telling USA Today, “This past week I was feeling horrible.”
“I had anxiety and a knot in my chest and honestly, all of it went away when he recognized us,” shared Hades’ mom Christy. “My heart felt full of love.”
Now, Hades is “home in his big old fluffy bed.”
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Feature Image: @amor_peludo_las_vegas_/Instagram
Toledo, United States.
