Pakistani man finds missing dog 'Buddy' in Sharjah, refuses the cash reward
'Buddy' found by a Pakistani who identified the poodle after reading a Gulf News report
Dubai: A Pakistani man has found Buddy, a dog that went missing on Thursday (August 22) from a Sharjah home.
The dog, a three-year-old Toy Poodle, was reunited with his owners on Saturday night (August 24), two days after going missing from the family’s villa in Sharjah.
The happy reunion took place late Saturday night when the Pakistani man, Abid Yasin, found Buddy sitting next to a car in the fish market opposite Al Jubail bus station.
The market was about 5km from the villa where the family kept him.
Yasin, 35, is an equipment operator earning salary of Dh3,000. He told Gulf News that he had read a report earlier on Saturday about a missing dog in Sharjah.
Dog looked scared, dehydrated
“I had seen a picture of the dog. And when I saw this dog near the market, he looked the same. He (the dog) looked scared and dehydrated. So the first thing I did was give him some water to drink."
“I had seen a number on the poster — a picture of which was published in the news. And so I called the number and a lady answered the phone. I told her about a poodle I had found sitting in the fish market. She asked for a picture of the poodle to be sent to her. I did it and she confirmed indeed it was Buddy. I was happy to have handed the dog to its owners,” said Yasin.
The family launched a nation-wide hunt for ‘Buddy’. The family had put out posters with pictures of Buddy across markets in Sharjah so people could identify him.
Lisa Sykes earlier told Gulf News her family had relocated to the UAE from Switzerland only on Wednesday (August 21).
Lisa said that the next day, Thursday, Buddy went missing after she took the car out of her villa. The gate was briefly opened when she was trying to park the car back in her villa. The next minute, the dog was gone.
The British family offered a cash reward of Dh2,000.
Sykes could not contain her tears, after being reunited with her beloved pet. She said Abid is an "angel".
The number of the poster belongs to Carla Pozza, a staff at Victoria English School, who was helping the Sykes with the search.
Pozza rang up Sykes with news that Buddy had been found, and confirmed it with a picture. The family erupted with joy.
"When Abid took him home to us, I could not contain my tears," said Sykes.
"We had put out a cash reward for Buddy and offered him the money. But he refused. I was so touched. But my husband insisted we should reward him. And so we made sure he takes the cash reward from us. Abid is an angel. He is a good soul.”
Lisa's husband Keith has just been recruited as headmaster at Victoria English school. The couple have three children, two of whom — Hebe Sykes (10) and son Sidney Sykes (9) — live in the UAE. "The children are equally happy. Thank you Gulf News for all the support," said Lisa.
Yasin said: “What is the point in life if you cannot help another human being or another living soul? I personally love pets. I know the pain of losing a pet – it is like losing a loved one. This is the least I could do."
The Pakistani said he has given all the money to his wife. “I want to help people with this money. I am keeping it aside for now. It is for any emergency or to help someone in need.”