Lady Gaga's dog walker Ryan Fischer praises 'guardian angel' French Bulldog as he recovers from shooting in hospital
Lady Gaga's dog walker Ryan Fischer, who was shot in the chest by thieves who stole two of her French Bulldogs, has shared pictures of himself recovering in hospital.
In an Instagram post on Monday, Mr Fischer described his ordeal and praised Lady Gaga's pet Miss Asia, who had avoided capture, for staying by his side as he bled from his wounds in the street.
Mr Fischer, who is expected to make a full recovery, described the pooch as his "guardian angel" and thanked first responders and well-wishers including Lady Gaga who he said has supported him and his family through the ordeal.
"Four days ago, while a car sped away and blood poured from my gun shot wound, an angel trotted over and laid next to me," Mr Fischer wrote on a post showing a picture of him on a ventilator.
"My panicked screams calmed as I looked at her, even though it registered that the blood pooling around her tiny body was my own," he added.
"I cradled Asia as best I could, thanked her for all the incredible adventures we’d been on together, apologised that I couldn’t defend her brothers, and then resolved that I would still try to save them… and myself."
He continued: "Hopeful that my calm(ish) and forceful pleas for the urgency of my care as well as the focused descriptions of the dogs would be enough to help me and get enough police and media attention to find the boys, I looked backed at my guardian angel.
"I smiled at her shaking form, thankful that at least she would be okay."
The two stolen French bulldogs Koji and Gustavo were returned unharmed, police in Los Angeles said on Thursday.
They dogs were found tied to a lampost by a woman who was said to be "uninvolved and unassociated" with the crime, according to the Associated Press news agency.
The pop star had offered a $500,000 (£350,000) reward for their return after the gunpoint robbery on Wednesday.
In a second post, showing him sitting up in bed without the use of a ventilator, Mr Fischer wrote: "I am still in recovery from a very close call with death and have kept myself (for the most part, I mean I am human) from the growing media story.
"I will write and say more later, but the gratitude for all the love I feel from around this planet is immense and intense.
"I felt your healing support! Thank you. I am humbled and grateful that attention and focus from the police were enough to get Koji and Gustav back to safety, and I know they are committed to bringing these criminals and attempted murderers to justice."
Addressing Lady Gaga, he said: "Your babies are back and the family is whole… we did it!
"You have shown so much support throughout this whole crisis to both me and my family.
"But your support as a friend, despite your own traumatic loss from your kids, was unwavering. I love you and thank you."
Lady Gaga, whose real name is Stefani Germanotta, is in Rome where she is shooting Sir Ridley Scott’s film about the Gucci fashion dynasty.
Concluding his post, Mr Fischer said: "And now? A lot of healing still needs to happen, but I look forward to the future and the moment when I get bombarded with kisses and licks (and maybe even an excitement pee?) from Asia, Koji, and Gustav."