When Gabrielle Hartley came home to her Tampa apartment at 4 a.m. in 2018, she walked into every pet owner’s nightmare. Her front door had been kicked in during a burglary, and her beloved dog, Luca, was gone.
Seven years passed without a trace. Then, out of the blue, she got a call that stopped her in her tracks.
Hartley told Tampa Bay 28 that she was contacted by PetKey, a microchip company, letting her know that Luca had been found—and he was alive.
According to the Tampa Police Department, an officer spotted a stray dog wandering alone in the road.
“Officer Bishop spotted this friendly pup wandering alone, and as soon as he opened his patrol car door, Luca jumped in, knowing he was saved,” the department shared on social media.
Luca was taken to Animal Doctors of South Tampa, where veterinarians scanned him for a microchip and discovered Hartley was his owner.
Hartley said she believes Luca was taken for breeding and later abandoned when his health started to fail. What she found when they reunited was heartbreaking.
“He had a UTI, blood infection, broken teeth from probably trying to escape a cage, broken claws, and defensive marks all over his body. He’s only like 38 pounds for a full-grown male dog, that’s not even close to healthy,” she said.
Luca is now receiving care at Harmony Vet Care in Tampa, where he’s on the road to recovery.
Despite the years of hardship, Hartley said her pup’s spirit is still shining through.
“He still loves his favorite snacks, strawberries and peanut butter,” she said. “That moment he crawled up on my bed and he’s licking my hand, he’s looking at me, and I could tell he feels comfortable and safe, and it’s so worth it.”
The story has quickly touched hearts across Florida, with many praising the microchip system for making this reunion possible. Experts say Luca’s case is a powerful reminder of why microchipping pets can make all the difference, even years later.
Hartley’s story joins a growing number of long-lost pet reunions happening across the country, many thanks to the persistence of animal shelters and updated microchip databases.
For Hartley, the seven-year wait was agonizing—but the ending was better than she ever imagined.
“It’s like a piece of my heart just came back home,” she said.