Stolen dog sold on Facebook ends up at shelter with puppies. Then came reunion
A shelter in Iowa is celebrating a win after successfully saving a sick dog and her litter of puppies after they were left by the person who bought her online.
When Luna was brought into the Kings Harvest Pet Rescue in Davenport along with her puppies, it was clear she was malnourished and skinny, as were her babies, the shelter said in July 18 Facebook post.
Only, that wasn’t the whole story. Turns out, Luna had been missing, but her original owners couldn’t track her down since she wasn’t microchipped.
“She was stolen from her original owners who tried hard to find her. She showed up as an owner surrender at our shelter with newborn puppies months after she went missing,” the shelter told McClatchy News.
“The man who brought her in said he bought Luna off someone on Facebook Marketplace, and the description of the seller didn’t match the previous owners or anyone else we could identify. Our best guess is someone stole Luna to sell her online, or Luna escaped a backyard and the finder decided to sell her instead of reuniting her with her family..”
While that was bad enough, the man who bought Luna didn’t know she was pregnant at the time.
Luna was so ill, she wasn’t producing milk and it was affecting her puppies. The shelter didn’t know how long they had been sick from malnourishment, but it resulted in the loss of one of the babies. The shelter was able to diagnose the other puppies after testing the deceased pup.
“The other six in the litter were treated and it looks like they will all pull through,” the shelter said. “Four are available now for adoption, and two who were in worse shape will be available once they finish treatment and we know 100 percent they’re recovered.”
And even more good news? Luna was reunited with her original owners.
“She was a real superhero during her whole ordeal and we’re so thankful she’s now spade and in a wonderful home,” the shelter said in the post.
Davenport is about a 170-mile drive east of Des Moines.
This story was originally published July 21, 2025 at 11:51 AM with the headline "Stolen dog sold on Facebook ends up at shelter with puppies. Then came reunion."