Film producer gets second chance with pooch he regretted giving up
Milo is home again in California, safe and sound, after a heartwrenching separation in Texas from his owner, who had given up hope of ever seeing his canine companion again.
It was the 18-month-old pit bull’s microchip that reunited him with Andre Lemmers, a film producer from Los Angeles.
Milo was three months old when he joined the Lemmers family in March 2019, after Andre Lemmers bought him from a breeder in Texas online.
“I wanted to get a dog, specifically a pit bull with light eyes. I’ve always wanted a dog with light eyes, because I have light eyes,” Lemmers, 39, recounted in a phone interview from a Tucson, Ariz., hotel last week.
Lemmers had grown to enjoy Milo during their first year of companionship, but the dog tended to misbehave when Lemmers was gone for extended periods of work.
Early in 2020, Lemmers’ film production company landed several jobs overseas.
“In February, we were going to shoot in Spain, Italy and Jordan. It was going to be for about six months,” he said. “One of the countries where I was going to shoot wouldn’t allow pit bulls.”
Lemmers said Milo wasn’t happy when he wasn’t around.
“Milo was a puppy, he was supposed to be playful and happy and enjoying every day. And I couldn’t give that to him,” he admitted.
So Lemmers made the difficult decision to return the dog to the breeder, and he agreed to allow the dog to be re-homed. He sent Milo back to Texas, calling it “one of the worst days of my life, literally, the worst.”
Lemmers went on to Europe and the Middle East. Then COVID-19 struck. He and his production crew were in Greece when word came that President Donald Trump was about to slap a travel embargo on all flights from Europe.
“We literally dropped everything, we left everything there, because we had to fly back to Italy in order to fly home,” he said, “and we had one day to do it.”
Back in Santa Monica with his wife and two young daughters ages 7 and 8, isolating at home because of novel coronavirus, Lemmers was regretting even more his decision to send Milo back.
Meanwhile, unbeknowst to Lemmers, Milo had been sent to at least two different homes, running away from one. On May 14, Lemmers received a call from Chad Ensign, manager of the Converse Animal Care Facility.
“He told me, ‘Milo was surrendered to our facility and somebody else is here to pick him up,’ ” Lemmers said.
Turned out that, through all of Milo’s ownership changes, his microchip was still registered to Lemmers. No one had bothered to change it along the way.
“I told them, “No. Don’t give him to anyone. I’m going to come get him. Send me the paperwork, tell me what I need to do. I need him back,” Lemmers said.
Ensign said they’ve had reunions before, but this was different.
“We see microchips return animals to their rightful or past owners all the time, although this one is an extreme case crossing the country,” Ensign said.
Lemmers was soon airborne and on his way to Converse to reclaim his Milo.
“I told them, ‘I am going to be there the minute you open.’ I got there the night before, went to Petco, and bought everything I needed to buy for him,” he said. “I was so anxious, I couldn’t sleep that night. I was afraid of not waking up, so I set two or three alarms, but woke up earlier on my own about 5:30 anyway.”
Once Ensign admitted Lemmers to the lobby May 20 and went to retrieve Milo, Lemmers said he got nervous.
“There were only two ways this would play out: He’d either run to me or he’ll be mad at me and go back into the facility, and be like, ‘Nope, you gave me away once. Nope,’” Lemmers said.
But the second Milo spotted Lemmers, the dog’s choice was clear.
“When he saw me, he sprinted to me, jumped on me, and started licking me. He was spinning and crying, and running back and forth between the girls who cared for him and me,” Lemmers said.
On the road trip back home — pit bulls aren’t allowed on U.S. flights, so Lemmers had to drive — Milo was in the back seat.
“He literally leaned forward and put his head on my shoulder. I said ‘I’m sorry, Milo, I’m sorry’ — I don’t know how many times I said I’m sorry,” he said.
“In my heart he was always mine. I thought I was doing what was best for him. But I was wrong,” Lemmers said, adding, “The best thing is, it’s a great ending to a great story.”
As Lemmers concluded the phone call from Tucson, with about seven hours still to go to Santa Monica, he sent a picture of Milo — resting on the hotel bed by Lemmers’ side, one paw on his man’s leg.
“He doesn’t want to leave my side,” Lemmers said, “and he’s not going to, either.”