Veteran needs help to find missing service dog

A service dog owned by a U.S. veteran has gone missing. The two-year-old blue nose Pitbull named King has been missing for almost 14 days.

“King needs to be with Guy and it’s emotional because you know, I was watching him. It was my responsibility. But it was like every other morning, I thought I would come home and see him. He’s very there and in your face and giving you hug and kisses. But he wasn’t there that day,” said his caregiver Adrian Deleon.

It happened the day after Halloween in the Ocotillo area in Yuma. King’s caregiver got a call from his roommate saying the dog slipped out through the front gate.

“Every night I go to sleep, he’s usually there at the end of the bed just like waiting you know. I thought when Guy would come back he would be here for him and he’s not and I feel very horrible as a friend. I felt like I let him down.”

His owner, Guy Higgins, is a veteran who is now a civilian working overseas for the U.S. Marine Corps. Deleon, his caregiver, says King helps his owner cope with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

“It’s not just a service animal. It’s not just a pet that people might think. That’s his best friend.”

For the past two weeks, Deleon has been knocking on doors and passing out fliers asking for King’s safe return.

“I just hope that somebody has him and they will turn him in.”

Deleon says it’s heartbreaking to think that King may be out there, scared and lonely.

“He needs to be home. He needs to be doing his job. He needs to be with his father.”

If you know where King is you are asked to call the Humane Society of Yuma. Deleon is offering a $1,000 reward to get King home safe.