Anaheim Couple Offers $55,000 Reward for Return of Their 5 Bulldogs

RocÍo Lopez posing with her dog Blue who she dressed up for Halloween last year. Photos courtesy of @thestolenfivebulldogs via Instagram.

RocÍo Lopez loves the holidays. Especially this year, when she planned to spend extra time with her fiance Anthony Vasquez and their five bulldogs–Blossom, Peanut, Penelope, Blue and King–which she often dressed up this time of year.

But now she dreads the holidays–on Sept. 30, someone stole her five dogs out of her Anaheim backyard. Now, nearly two months later, the dogs are still nowhere to be found.

“I sometimes feel very hopeless, and I think what if I don’t find them?” Lopez said. “My life would completely change, and I would not be the same.”

Monday, Sept. 30 started as a typical day. Lopez remembers taking her dogs out to play that morning, before she got ready for work. Then she secured the bulldogs in their large backyard playpen. She, her fiance and his uncle left all left around 11 a.m.

Vasquez routinely went home during the day to feed and make sure the dogs were safe. But when he got there that day, the dogs were gone.

Top left: Blossom, Top right: Peanut. Left Bottom: Penelope Middle:  Blue Bottom Right: King. Photo courtesy of @thestolenfivebulldogs

 

Alarmed, Vasquez checked the rest of the yard, house and the surrounding neighborhood. Unsuccessful, he called Lopez.

“He was just in a panic, and I just couldn’t believe that this was happening,” Lopez said.

Lopez was in disbelief, partly because of the seven feet of concrete that conceal the yard and the dogs, making the home a difficult target for theft. She also said she lives in a busy neighborhood.

Lopez’s dog, Peanut, has a diagnosed choking problem from eating too quickly.

After the call, Lopez quickly headed home. There, she and Vasquez walked the neighborhood, called out for them, but found nothing. Later that day, the couple began contacting shelters and news organizations. They posted pleas on Facebook and obsessively browsed Craigslist listings. The couple also distributed missing dog flyers.

Then on Oct. 1, they received a call from someone who believed they knew the whereabouts of the dogs.

The five would often spend time together playing in the backyard of the couple.

The lead lived three hours away. They drove there that night. Upon arrival, they were greeted by a man who let them take a tour of his house but said that the dogs were not there. The couple returned home, feeling even worse.

“After we left, two weeks later, he contacts us saying he may know who has the dog,” Lopez said. “It was just so strange, and he hasn’t called us back yet, but we’re still looking into him.”

In hopes of raising more awareness, Lopez and Vasquez created an Instagram page (@thestolenfivebulldogs) in hopes of bringing them home. Lopez said the Instagram account where she posts daily has helped them share their bulldog’s story. It now has more than 1,600 followers.

“The Instagram account has been very helpful because we’ve got thousands of people to repost the dogs,” Lopez said.

King, a french bulldog, is only six months old.

Since they went missing, Lopez said the most challenging day for her was Halloween because she could not dress any of her five bulldogs up in the costumes she had planned for them.

“It was hard because last year we dressed Blue like a crocodile,” she said. “We didn’t have the other dogs yet. This year I was going to dress them all up, but I didn’t get to dress up any of my dogs, which was upsetting.”

Her biggest fear is that the dogs could be sold or used for breeding purposes, as not all the dogs were old enough to be spayed or neutered. She also said that some of the dogs need constant medical attention and regular veterinary visits and worry that they’re not receiving proper care.

While Lopez and Vasquez are worried continuously, they remain confident that they’ll see their dogs again. “I don’t think that I’ll ever find it in me to stop looking, even if it takes months or years,” Lopez said. “I’ll never stop.”

The couple is offering a $55,000 reward for the safe return of all five bulldogs. Lopez and Vasquez said that they would sell or do anything to see their dogs again.

The couple is offering $55,000 in hopes all of their dogs return home.

35 Replies to “Anaheim Couple Offers $55,000 Reward for Return of Their 5 Bulldogs”

  1. I am so, so sorry. I just read the heartbreaking article and will keep you and your babies in my prayers. I hate to ask, but as a career prosecutor I must: has your fiancé always loved dogs? Did he want you to get all of them? Was he worried about the expense of having so many dogs? Why was his uncle there and leaving the house when you did? Where did he and your fiancée go while you went to work? And whatever your answer is, can you verify where they were? (I realize it’s a delicate situation.) Have there been any other dog thefts in your area? No neighbors saw anything? This sounds very suspicious to me. Someone targets your house to steal 5 bulldogs? Who even knew 5 bulldogs were there? Your neighbors? Who had access to your backyard?
    I don’t mean to upset you, but this doesn’t sound right.

  2. We will be on the lookout for these these stolen babies in Central kentucky. We have an English and his name is Blu a baby English her name is Mazarin. we could not imagine our lives without our little bull babies we will keep you and them in our prayers

  3. F*** this lady and her dogs. I mean it’s sad or whatever but the world isn’t going to stop for this b**** I don’t know who the f*** she think she is f*** her in her f****** dogs

    1. If you can’t say something nice then don’t say anything at all.
      Why are you so heartless and using that kind of language.?Apparently you do not like dogs.
      Sure there are more important things in the world. But there are people that love there pets

    2. Kiss her ass then u can kiss mine. Everybody’s got their own opinion like they got assholes but UR THE BIGGEST ONE! Didn’t ur mama teach u that if u ain’t got nothing good to say then keep ur trap shut!

  4. I hope and pray that your dogs are returned to you! I’m sure all of us dog people are praying for your family. God Bless!!!

  5. This is one of the most terrible things that can happen to any family. I sympathize and hope desperately their family members be returned to them. I have 5 olde english Bulldogges that I cant imagine life without. They are family and for crying out loud whomever took those pups, return them please.

  6. Thank you for sharing your story.
    I will be praying that you get your babies back soon ,
    I have always had bulldogs and they are the sweetest dogs ever.
    KEEP THE FAITH !!!

  7. It’s truly sickening that you can’t even leave your pets in your own property and count on finding them there when you return home.

  8. I’m so sorry to hear about your babies. I pray you find all five safely and the perpetrators are caught and punished. There are humans in this world that just don’t belong but God will punish them on Judgement day. I’ll keep praying

  9. How horrible. How heartless. I recently got a blue Frenchie. I take her & my other bulldog in the car. I never leave them alone for fear of someone stealing them. Prayers to the family. I hope they get them back.

  10. I truly understand your pain, I’ll pray you boys are returned soon healthy.
    We had 3 pugs boys, they were a year apart. Unexpectedly our Chico had gotten possible bladder cancer. He had lost the use use of his rear legs so we used a harness and unfortunately never saw symptoms of the CA until it was to late he was 14. Then unfortunately our Piglet 15 just started having seizures, we had an appointment with a Neurologist the day before Thanksgiving. Sadly we had to put him to sleep 2 days before because the seizes didn’t stop throught the night they increased.
    Our last boy Jack we just lost in August at 15 1/2 he developed a tumor on his back leg that wouldn’t stop bleeding.
    Not having children I’d say this was God’s way of letting me know what it was to have kids.
    Without dragging further with the story I felt dead inside, I can’t begin to feel the pain of losing all 5 at once but knowing how bad I did feel for each of my boys. I just wanted to reach out so you know your heartbreak is valid.

  11. So joe are you a demon? Well someone is going to have to teach you a big lesson in manners. Much as I have no empathy for an idiot who leaves her dogs outside then cries when something bad happens, I think you need to apologise for your rant or you are going to be the one who is sorry when Karma comes a calling on you very soon.

  12. You left five dogs alone out in your back yard and you didn’t have at least ONE camera on them? A few cameras would have cost a lot less than 55K!!

  13. Well some did look old enough to be fixed if you are truley an animal lover! Sad they all went missing but still c’mon you are a breeder!! You breed for your own profit and i know you may have loved your dogs but your sad about the money your missing out on merles can make u lots of money and so can frenchies !!! Dont fix your story because your scared of criticism!!! We all know they werent fixed because you have a kennel and your a breeder…. thats a big reward unfourtunatley the dog world is like the mafia… they will pop out somewhere and with out paperwork they cant win as much as you did

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