Two dogs missing after fatal I-40 accident, woman distraught

By Zsombor Peter
Staff Writer

Ginger and Precious, two dogs that were traveling with their owner Joseph Thellen, ran off after an accident killed the owner on I-40, near the Arizona/New Mexico state line. Anyone with information on these lost dogs is asked to call Lynne Estabillo at 310-539-0267 or 719-440-3270. (Courtesy Photo)

GALLUP — A woman who lost her father in a fatal car wreck just west of Gallup a week ago Friday is still searching for her two dogs who ran off during the accident.

Joseph Thellend was pronounced dead at the scene after a one-ton truck pulling a horse trailer heading east on Interstate 40 crossed the median and struck his westbound SUV on the driver's side.

"It's been very difficult," said Lynn Estabillo, who was in the SUV with her mother and father, of the loss. "I've had my ups and downs."

Estabillo and her mother came through with only a few cuts and bruises. The driver of the truck, who fell asleep and the wheel, also survived.

In the confusion of the accident, Estabillo's two dogs a two-year-old terrier/chihuahua mix named Ginger and an eight-year-old basset hound named Precious ran off.

Estabillo, now 17 weeks pregnant, was heading from Colorado to California to temporarily move in with her parents while awaiting her baby and the return of her husband, a U.S. soldier currently stationed in Iraq.

"I was going to move in with my parents until my husband completed his tour in Iraq," she said. "He didn't want me being alone while he was away."

"My dogs were always a source of comfort for me," Estabillo added. "They were my companions when he was away."

Following her move, the address on the dogs' collars are no longer accurate; The address encoded on the chips inserted in the back of the dogs' necks should be. Those chips, she said, can probably be read at a veterinarian's clinic or any humane society facility.

If you have any information about the dogs, you can contact Estabillo at home at 310-539-0267, on her cell phone at 719-440-3270, or e-mail her at estabillol@aol.com.