A pitbull who was stolen from his family is finally back home, thanks to SAFE and a community that heard their plea on Facebook.
KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa (14 November 2025) – SAFE, a KZN-based rescue organisation known for stepping in when animals have nowhere else to go, had recently been posting urgent pleas about a pitbull they called Gideon.
He’d landed in their care after being rescued from two men who were dragging him along the road in Morningside. For a while, he had a loving foster and was doing incredibly well…until his foster parent was suddenly rushed to hospital for emergency surgery.
With no other options, SAFE had to move him into kennels. And that broke him.
“Gideon is hurting himself in kennels in an effort to get to a human,” the team wrote in their second public plea.
They tried medication, comfort, short-term solutions but nothing helped. His stress was severe, and SAFE knew they were running out of time.
They put out one last call for help on Facebook. Hundreds of community members shared it.
Finally, a miracle came through. One even better than they’d been hoping for.
They received a call late at night. It was someone who had spotted their post on Facebook. Their pitbull, Raygar, had been stolen a month ago. They’d searched everywhere. No sightings, no trail, nothing. But when they saw Gideon’s photos, they recognised him immediately.
“They said Gideon could be Raygar’s twin. They sent a picture, and we knew Gideon was their beloved Raygar,” SAFE shared. More photos and videos came through. There was no doubt, Gideon was Raygar.
Yesterday the family reunited with him.
The frantic way Gideon tried to reach every human suddenly made sense, he’d been trying to get back to his people all along.
SAFE thanked everyone who shared the posts that led to this moment.
“We would like to thank each and every person who shared his post, while it was not an answer to the miracle of a foster, it was one better, his return to his family that adore him. So grateful to you all for making this possible with your sharing,” they shared.
Keep shining on you crazy Facebook diamonds. Your clicks reunited a family.
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