LA woman quits job, now on mission to find her missing French bulldog while rescuing other dogs

LOS ANGELES - A woman in North Hollywood is on a mission to find her missing French bulldog, and in the process, she has stepped away from her job, and rescued other French bulldogs too. 

Yasmine Haezaert's grey French bulldog went missing on January 13. Haezaert said her mom was watching her dog while she was working, teaching makeup classes. Havoc did not have a collar or an air tag on him at the time. 

"He ran out of our house and he was picked up immediately. I just drove home in silence and I prayed and I just prayed that I'd find him and I came home. And we searched all night and I, for weeks, would drive with my head out the car calling his name hoping he was somewhere still in the dark but that night, it became apparent he was taken, and I haven't seen him since," she said.

Haezaert said her mother told her he ran through the neighborhood and into an opening that leads to Roscoe Boulevard in North Hollywood. Haezaert said he was then picked up. Since then, she has taken off work to look for her dog fulltime. 

"I took time off work. I teach makeup. I haven't picked up any new classes. I haven't been taking clients. This is a full-time job and people either decide to let go or they have to give this everything and it's exhausting. It's financially straining. It is taxing daily but I've given up everything to look for him," said Haezaert. 

Haezaert said she has been relying on savings and also has received "tremendous" help from her family in order to search fulltime. 

"I go door to door. I've been following up on every single lead that comes to me. I have gone to see backyard breeders. I have gone to shelters, rescues, businesses. I have reached out to celebrities. I have enlisted cadaver dogs, a detective with local LAPD, private detectives, intuitives, animal psychics,  there is no stone I will leave unturned," she said. 

She said she has received positive feedback with people helping her search for her dog, and also negative feedback. 

"I raised him and he's never known anything but happiness. We're so attached to each other. To me, he's saved my life so many times that I can do it for him. I wouldn't wish this on anyone," she said. 

During the process of looking for Havoc, she has helped rescue three other dogs. 

"I've actually saved three different dogs in this process, not alone. Of course, it takes a village and everyone at this point knows someone this has happened to [French bulldog stolen], who hasn't gotten their dog back. It is so common that you'll find a dog that looks exactly like yours and he was stolen too," said Haezaert.

A family in El Monte did find a dog that looked just like Havoc too. He was sponsored by I Stand With My Pack, a rescue organization. Haezaert is now fostering the dog. 

"We actually that day called him Havoc's doppelganger so his name is now "Dopie," like doppelganger," she said.

Dopie has IVDD, or Intervertebral Disc Disease, a spinal disorder that is common in French bulldogs. Dopie was found paralyzed from the waist down, and had a broken jaw. Dopie underwent surgeries and is now walking and much better. Havoc has IVDD as well.

"He [Dopie] motivates me because I know that would be a life Havoc would live if I don't find him. It's a huge possibility," she said. 

During her search, Haezaert said she realized how many French bulldogs are stolen or abused in Los Angeles. 

"I have to believe that there are still good people out there, but it's hard to [believe it], seeing how big of a problem this is becoming, especially in Los Angeles. Frenchies are great dogs but they have become such a commodity and such a staple of this LA life and this flashiness that kinda was before I got him that I didn't realize this. I stopped walking him years ago because it's not worth my safety [she instead would play with him in her backyard]," she said.

Haezaert is offering an $8,000 reward for any information leading to Havoc's safe return. Her phone number is 310-844-4536 for leads. 

"I am offering an $8,000 reward. I am willing to drain my life savings for this dog," she said.

Havoc is described as a gray Blue brindle French bulldog. He is 25 pounds, has crooked bottom teeth, and also has a diamond-shaped white patch on his neck and a white patch in between his legs.