KILLEEN, TX — Nikki the Bichon Maltese mix and Rockzi the bulldog were left in the backyard while Angelique Miller ran out for a quick errand. When she got home, the gate was unlatched, cracked and Nikki was gone.
Someone had taken her from their home.
"We had posted all over social media and community forums," Miller said "And never got any word so we kind of just kept it as Nikki was at a new home and hopefully she was being taken care of."
Miller's biggest concern was telling her then 3-year-old daughter.
"I didn't want to break her heart," Miller said.
Lizette Alvarez loves to dance and so Miller told her daughter that her puppy went off to dance in the circus to make other little boys and girls happy.
Years have passed and although they never lost hope, they moved from Killeen to Georgetown.
Miller received the call she'd been waiting for two years later on May 21, 2019. Nikki was found. It was a good Samaritan who found her walking alongside a road in Killeen and took her in to see if she had a microchip.
When the Killeen Veterinary Clinic scanned her, her ID number came up and Miller was called.
"I always had thoughts and hopes we would get this phone call," Miller said.
Miller said she was grateful she got the microchip because, without it, Nikki might have never been returned home.
Microchipping is required in Killeen and Waco, so it's an important thing to get done when getting a cat or dog.
"[If] something happens to your pet, you want to make sure it gets back to you so this is a sure fire way to make sure that happens," said Carrie Kuehl, executive director for the Animal Birth Control Clinic.
According to Kuehl, there is virtually no pain, it's a quick shot when inputting the microchip where an ID number is associated with it. You'll register that number online so if your pet is ever lost, vets and clinics can scan your pet and find your name.
"The process is like an injection for a vaccination, it's really simple. It doesn't take very long, maybe a few seconds," Kuehl said.
Since there is no way to have a GPS on your cat or dog, this microchip is close to the next best thing if they ever go lost. At the Animal Birth Control Clinic they have already placed microchips in 2,221 animals this year.
"We at the Animal Birth Control Clinic have implanted over 4,500 microchips every year for the last three years. So we feel like we are contributing in a heavy way," Kuehl said.
