Help Stella and Onyx Reunite

Hi, my name is Stella. I’m 24 years old and live with pretty severe and debilitating mental illness. I am on several medications, going to therapy, doing personal development work, and in 2020 I adopted my dog Onyx to train her to become my Emotional Support Animal and eventually psychiatric service dog.

I was living with my ex at the time, and I was the one who was always home spending time with her, training her, playing with her, walking her etc. My ex and I broke up in June 2021 and I moved off the property in July. Before I moved, my ex and I recorded a verbal agreement stating that I would allow for Onyx to stay with him until November 2021 while I got settled in to my new space and such. The agreement also stated that I would regularly be able to have visits with Onyx and that we would stay in contact to make sure that that happened.

Unfortunately this is not what ended up happening. Around the beginning of September, after having seen Onyx one time for approximately 30 minutes when I came to pick up clothes that I needed, I came to move a bunch of my things into my new apartment. Onyx was not there. Shortly after this visit in September, my ex completely stopped contacting me. I tried getting ahold of him multiple times and even reaching out to his family to no avail. I have tried everything I can but no one will talk to me and even tell me how my baby is doing.

I am here to ask for your help because I now am having to go the legal route of trying to get my dog back. She is my registered ESA and I have been without her for 7 months. Knowing his work schedule, he has likely had her staying with his mom the majority of the time, rather than him actually being around to take care of her himself. It isn’t right that he is keeping me separated from her just because he feels like he can.

I have filed a writ of retrieval and have a court hearing on Thursday February 17th to see if a judge will approve it, which is costing $255 in and of itself, but there will also be a bond set, and I don’t know how much that will be. I am a student and content creator trying my best to make ends meet but I don’t have a lot of extra money right now, which is why I am asking for help. I can’t stand to be away from my ESA anymore, and even if the bond is less than what my goal is here, I will still need help with getting to her and bringing her back here as I do not possess a vehicle.

Whatever little you can do to help would mean the absolute world to me. I just want my baby to come home.

Thank you,

Stella