A San Fernando Valley woman plans to hold a candlelight vigil Saturday evening just over a year after her French bulldog went missing in North Hollywood — while vowing to keep searching for the beloved dog.
Mushie, a spayed black brindle Frenchie with a white chest, perky ears and no tail, disappeared on Sept. 17, 2024, near Victory Boulevard and Beck Avenue, a couple of blocks east of Lanksershim Boulevard.
“The sitter we booked through Rover had watched her multiple times. But on this night, we received a call from the sitter just 14 minutes after we had dropped her off saying she didn’t know where Mushie was,” owner Gabriella Sidhu told City News Service last year.
“We live in El Sereno over 30 minutes away and we did not want to be far from where she went missing in case there were sightings, so we decided to sleep in our car that night and for the next two weeks,” Sidhu added. “We missed work and spent all of our time putting flyers up, speaking to anyone that would listen, posting on social media, and scouring sites for Mushie. We were tired physically and mentally but were determined to find her. We still are.
“After two weeks, we could no longer take time off from work and had to return. Every evening after work and every weekend, my partner and I use every bit of free time we have to drive to the Valley and search for our girl. This situation has consumed our lives. We are heartbroken and exhausted but we know we will find our girl and we won’t give up until we do.”
On Saturday, Sidhu will host a candlelight vigil from 6-7:30 p.m. at the site where Mushie went missing, 11524 Victory Blvd., to honor her companion and hand out candles, flyers, car magnets and other items.
Sidhu has gone above and beyond in her efforts to locate her beloved pet, plastering the eastern San Fernando Valley with literally thousands of missing dog posters in the ensuing months and rallying local media to keep the story alive.
She even got a search-and-rescue team with a bloodhound to come out, and spoke to three animal communicators, or so-called pet mediums, to try and piece together where Mushie is.
“My partner and I rescued her from a terrible life with a breeder,” she told CNS. “Because of her breed and her previous circumstances, she has several health issues and requires daily medications. She needs special food and treatment.”
Sidhu said there were a few sightings of Mushie after she went missing near Whitnall Dog Park and by Toluca Early Education Center. However, the sightings ended after the first few weeks, which led her to believe that the dog is with someone in their home.
“We believe someone has her and is taking care of her,” she said. “They may not know the dog they found is Mushie and that she has a loving home. … With the lack of sightings, we are hoping that by sharing this story it reaches the right person who has her or knows who has her. We hope it encourages them to come forward and do the right thing. We are offering a reward for her return, no questions asked. We are not looking to punish anyone, we just want our baby back.”
In recent months, Sidhu and her partner have increased their reward offer from $5,000 to $10,000 and launched a website, bringmushiehome.com.
Sidhu was at Victory Vineland Recreation Center in North Hollywood on Wednesday, along with a Sun Valley man whose French bulldog named Nova was stolen out of his yard. They distributed flyers, held up posters to traffic and shared their stories with anyone who would listen.
“This is not OK,” Sidhu said. “We are witnessing an epidemic of theft, especially of French bulldogs. … The engagement on social media has been astounding: nearly 5,000 reactions, over 700 comments and over 600 shares on Facebook; nearly 6,000 likes and almost 300 comments on Instagram. Seeing this level of engagement along with horrific frenchie-related crimes in recent years such as Lady Gaga’s dog walker being attacked, we know this is a huge problem the community cares about and we must bring awareness to it.”
“Though too much time has passed, we are not giving up until Mushie is back home where she belongs.”
Anyone who sees a dog matching Mushie’s description is asked to contact Sidhu at gabriellasidhu@yahoo.com, or 760-960-9272.