JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A real-life pet detective is proving her chops right here in North Florida, reuniting missing dogs and cats with their owners.
Her name is Tammy Wozniak-Reed, but to most, she's known as The Pet P.I. The Ormond Beach resident worked in animal shelters for years and saw a need for someone to track down missing animals. In 2014, after getting a private investigator license from the state of Florida, she started her own business solving the tough cases.
Wozniak-Reed's already has so many success stories, finding missing pets and bringing them back to their owners. And now, the private investigator is helping a Jacksonville family find their beloved dog.
Stephanie McGurty and fiancée Nick Torres desperately miss their 2-year-old dog Steven. They have been frantically searching to find the Rottweiler Border-Collie mix.
"He is like my baby," McGurty said. "We just want him to come home."
McGurty said they adopted him when he was about eight weeks old.
"And we just moved here from California," McGurty said. "Like all we have is each other and our dogs. We don't have any family here. We just really want to get him back."
Steven, and the couple's other dog, busted out of their backyard fence on New Year's Day while the couple went to an afternoon movie. While the couple was gone, a neighbor was shooting off illegal fireworks. They think those scared the dogs, causing them to push through the fence.
They found the other dog at a neighbor's house. But Steven remains missing.
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"Now we are out here trying to find him," Torres said.
After searching on their own for a few days, they decided to get some extra help and they hired Wozniak-Reed, the Pet P.I. She's like a real-life Ace Ventura: Pet Detective.
"This is what I enjoy doing and this is what I feel I was meant to do," Wozniak-Reed said.
This pet detective doesn't play around. She's a licensed private investigator with an arsenal of tools and toys to find, lure and return the missing pets.
"I have night vision. Binoculars. All kinds of goodies," Wozniak-Reed explained.
The Pet P.I. is out looking for Steven in the Bartram Springs neighborhood where he ran away. The Duval County community, near Philips Highway and Racetrack Road, is very close to the St. Johns County line.
Wozniak-Reed took News4Jax along with her as she scoured the woods behind some houses, telling Steven’s owners how to attract him with treats and the comforts of home. Together, they placed the crate he normally sleeps in near the woods-line.
"This is his crate that he goes to bed in every single night," Wozniak-Reed said. "We are hoping that if he sees it, he will go inside."
They've put up motion-activated deer cameras, which Wozniak-Reed has used successfully to spot other missing dogs and cats.
She believes Steven could be hiding in the brush and roaming for food after dark.
"I found some dumpsters that look like a dog has eaten through the trash," the investigator said.
That's why this pet detective is working around the clock. She stayed up all night on Jan. 6, searching the neighborhood for Steven.
She's also helped Steven's owners put up signs, ones that she designed to get people's attention.
"On the poster it says 'very scared, do not chase, please call if seen.'"
The couple and the investigator also went door to door with tiny, wallet-sized posters.
"People can hold them in their wallets, in their purse, put them in their car," Wozniak-Reed said.
These are things she says are very important, when time is of the essence.
"The main thing is putting posters out and getting community awareness."
The Pet P.I. consults with owners over the phone and checks with shelters, authorities and private companies to track down missing pets.
Wozniak-Reed said she hopes she can help bring Steven home soon, so his owners can be happy again.
"I really hope we find him," McGurty said. "If somebody sees him or knows where he is or is not sure where to go, we just really want him to come home."
If you know where Steven is, call 916-200-8470 or 916-804-5419.
Tammy Wozniak-Reed, the Pet P.I., can be reached at 386-547-1740 or at mypetpi.com.
Wozniak-Reed offers free consultations and phone and Internet-based consulting services starting at $100. She charges an hourly rate, plus mileage and expenses, for physical searches.