It was a
very hot day at the end of July when my husband and I left to visit my
sister and her family in Windsor, Ontario. We brought along our
2-year old Bichon Frise, Kelly,
whom we had just
acquired two weeks prior. Kelly was quite shy and nervous with all the new sounds and people she was meeting because
she spent her first two years with her breeder and knew no other
life. For that reason, we decided to take her along with us in
the hopes of acclimating her.
When we
arrived in Windsor, Kelly stayed close to me and was nervous in yet
another strange house. We sat outside on the deck to have a cold drink. It must have seemed to her like there was no escaping the heat and the unfamiliar faces and surroundings. She just could not relax and she did not eat at all.
The next
day, we left Kelly in the air-conditioned house while we went out
shopping. While we were out, my
sister’s grandson, Michael arrived at her house. Shortly after
his arrival, the doorbell rang and when Michael answered it, Kelly
bounded out the door and continued running as fast as she could. Both
Michael and Colleen (the lady who rang the doorbell) tried to catch her
but she disappeared into a huge field that was full of trees,
underbrush and tall grass.
When we
returned and heard about Kelly’s escape, my first thoughts were that
she would not survive. She did not know the area nor about
streets and traffic nor how to fend for herself. I felt sick inside.
Immediately,
we started our search by driving around the perimeter of the
field. From the highway which was higher up than the field,
we spotted Kelly running. We pulled over to the shoulder and my
husband, Dave, ran down the embankment but she spotted him coming and
quickly ran into hiding. While we were combing through the fields, we
met a lady who introduced herself as Colleen and told us that she was
the lady who rang the doorbell and that she felt very badly about the
dog escaping. We assured her that it was not her fault and told her
that Kelly was shy and nervous. She asked if we would like more
help with the search and we accepted her offer. Her teenage twins
and older daughter arrived with some of their air cadet friends. It was
encouraging to have young legs going through the field. Colleen
took them home at supper time but said they would return later.
Sure
enough, one hour later, they all returned and were eager to get on with
the search. By 9:30 p.m. it was getting dark and there was no
sign of Kelly. How guilty I felt inside knowing how scared my
little dog must be. Colleen went home and quickly returned with lawn
chairs for us to sit on. We were
very hot and tired but did not want to leave the field so we sat there
watching the stillness of the field until 11:00 p.m. Dave went to
my sister’s house and brought back some dog food and a dish of water
just in case Kelly surfaced when everything was quiet. As tired
as we were and as comfortable as the bed was, neither of us slept much
that night.
Day 2
started at 6:00 a.m. Colleen came to the door and told me that
she and her daughter had gone walking after we left the field the night
before. They did see Kelly and called her but she ran very quickly away from them. With high
expectations, we immediately left the house and went to the area of brush where they had seen
her. That was the start of another long day of searching that
ended up with us sitting in the chairs until 11:00 at night again
without any sign of Kelly. We went back
to my sister’s house feeling hopeless, guilty and sad.
Day 3
started out with a loud clap of thunder followed by pouring rain.
My first thought was that Kelly must be
terrified. That was, if she was still alive. I quickly got
dressed and went out driving around the perimeter of the field
again. Within minutes, I spotted Colleen driving towards me. An hour or so later, with the rain
still coming down and the humidity on the rise, we decided to go to Colleen’s house, have some coffee
and try to come up with a plan. We called every animal shelter and
veterinary clinic within a ten mile radius. They all asked
for a description and where she had been seen last and took our cell
phone numbers. Colleen’s teenagers made a poster on the computer and
ran off many, many copies. They inserted each copy in a plastic
protector sheet. Colleen and I drove them around as they placed
the notices
on anything and everything that was
standing. We placed an ad in the local paper. We advertised a reward on the posters and in the
newspaper. I started to feel a bit positive now that we extended the search. But going through
my mind were thoughts like, was she run over by a vehicle? Is she hungry? Is she hurt?
Is she still alive?” We still kept looking through the field and finally returned to my sister’s around 11:00
p.m.
On day 4,
we started receiving responses to the ad in the paper. Several
people informed us that Kelly had been
seen on their street. It surprised us that she was now quite far
away from the field. It also added some
hope to the situation…hope that someone would bring her in and notify
the shelters. Each time that we followed a lead, it came up
empty. Now, we were literally walking the streets. We split up
and knocked on doors and asked people walking or riding bicycles if
they saw a little lost white dog. Each day, we contacted
the shelters and hospitals and each day
we heard, “Sorry, try again tomorrow”. During all this time,
Colleen was working on a paper for a
business course she was taking. She told me that she could not
concentrate on her paper because she was
so concerned about Kelly so she asked her instructor if she could have an extension.
This
lovely, young mother was determined to find our Kelly. Every day
she was armed with enthusiasm and hope. She started and ended
each day with a bright smile and cheery words. We offered to pay for her gas and she outright
refused. No matter where we went Colleen was right there and full
of energy. She would not let us give up even with the heat and
humidity, mosquitoes and rain. She sent an e-mail to a radio
announcer whom she knew from the baseball team on which her teenagers
played. She requested that he put out a call for help in the
search for a lost small dog who was visiting with
his owners from Toronto. She said that it would be very sad if the
elderly couple had to return home without their little dog and urged
the people of Windsor to extend a helping hand.
Day 5 was
much the same as the others. We were starting to doubt if we
would ever find her. The phone calls were
coming in but there was never any sign of Kelly when we got
there. We were told by some
people that they saw her and she was very dirty and that she ran very,
very fast. Others told us that they tried to catch her but she
was too quick on her feet. Was someone feeding her? Where was she
getting this energy? Our daily routine ended much the same as the day
before…frustrated, sad, hot, tired and hopeless.
Day 6 was
the day before we had to leave for Toronto. It was really our
last chance to scour the parks, the fields, the school yards, church
yards, anywhere and everywhere a little dog might be. And that
could be anywhere…. Despair and desperation were setting in. How
could we just leave her??? Colleen assured us that she would continue
the search after we left. We knew that she would. That was
the kind of person she was. We split up like we always did at
supper time and were headed back to my sister’s house when Dave’s
cell phone rang. It was Colleen’s son yelling with excitement
that they had spotted Kelly in a park. They had called out to her but
she ran under a large tree that had low hanging branches and they
didn’t want to scare her so they stood back from the tree and called us
to come right away. We rushed over to the park as fast as we
could possibly go and, upon our arrival, there was Colleen and her
teens crying and pointing to the tree.
As we approached the tree very slowly, I called out her name quietly
and when I saw the big brown eyes looking
at me, I started crying and repeating her name as she slowly came out
of hiding. Kelly was crying and
wagging her tail when I approached her and picked her up. She was
full of burrs and mats and oh so dirty but she was alive. Now we were
all crying and hugging each other. It was one of the most
emotional but rewarding times of my life.
We
brought Kelly home, took her to the vet to be thoroughly checked and we
have never looked back. Colleen and I keep in touch on a regular
basis. Dave and I consider ourselves extremely lucky to have met
such a caring, giving individual. We can never thank her enough
for her unconditional support. We refer to her as Kelly’s
guardian angel and our heroine.
