Woman gets her beloved Pomeranian back after believing he was dead

A Delmar woman and her furry companion were reunited Monday, after a tumultuous month when she believed her dog was dead, then found out that he had gotten lost and been adopted by another family.

"It's been a roller coaster," Angela Andrade said. "I feel better, like it's home."

The News Journal last week told the story of Angela Andrade and her 8-year-old white Pomeranian, Jakey. Andrade was told Jakey died after she left him with her father to go to a family wedding in late October. 

When she went to visit Jakey's "grave," something didn't seem right. It didn't look like a freshly dug grave, Andrade said.

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Her daughter-in-law Amanda Andrade made a Facebook post saying the beloved family pet was lost.

It turns out, Jakey had never died. He was found running around on the street by a neighbor of Andrade's father. The woman took the dog to an animal welfare officer who took Jakey to the Brandywine Valley SPCA's Georgetown shelter. 

Delaware law requires stray dogs be kept for three days before being adopted. The SPCA kept Jakey for five days, because his flea collar and recently groomed fur indicated he was someone's pet, said Brandywine Valley SPCA marketing director Linda Torelli. 

But Angela Andrade, thinking Jakey was dead, didn't know to look for him. 

By the time the Andrades found out what had happened, the pooch had been legally adopted by a new owner for nearly three weeks, Torelli said.

Initially, it seemed the new owner did not want to return Jakey, leaving Angela Andrade distraught.

But others stepped in to help. Hundreds of people shared a post about the situation on Facebook in the hopes of reaching the new owner.

A Delaware pet rescue offered to waive adoption fees for the new owner to adopt any of its dogs in exchange for returning Jakey. Someone even reached out to the News Journal, offering to give Angela Andrade his own white Pomeranian.

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It took a few days of negotiation to get Jakey back to Angela Andrade. 

The SPCA inspected Angela Andrade's home at the new owner's request, to make sure the pup was going back to a safe place, Torelli said. The shelter agreed to give the new owner a free adoption, waive fees and reimburse her for vet bills incurred while Jakey was in her care. 

"We're hoping this is closure for everybody," Torelli said. "We're hoping everybody's happy."

Angela Andrade, the new owner and a shelter staff member met late Monday afternoon in Georgetown, and the pup was handed off. Angela said the new owner had loved Jakey, and said she was "a very nice lady."

Her pup recognized his old owner, and jumped all over her.

"He was just smiling with his tongue curled" on the drive back to Delmar, Angela said. 

Tuesday morning, she said things were back to normal for the Andrades. Jakey was running around the house with her grandchildren, she said.

She's looking forward to taking out his Santa outfit for the holidays. 

Contact Jeanne Kuang at jkuang@delawareonline.com or (302) 324-2476. Follow her on Twitter at @JeanneKuang.