Overview
- A woman helping with storm recovery in Indiana found the chihuahua near a road and brought her to Griffith Animal Control, where shelter staff scanned for a microchip.
- The microchip was registered and Microchip Hunters used the number to locate owner contact details and notify the Evanston Animal Shelter.
- A volunteer transported the dog from the Gary/Griffith area to Evanston, where owner Vanessa Antonino was reunited with the pet she lost nearly 12 years ago.
- Antonino said she had been living in her car when the dog vanished and broke down in tears at the reunion, which returned a longtime companion to a family that grew while she was missing.
- Shelters say the case shows how microchips and cross‑jurisdiction rescue networks can reunite pets years later and that severe weather often leads to more found animals, so keeping contact information current is crucial.