Penny lost and found

(We have been meaning to share our account of Penelope's recovery. Edward's wonderfully detailed story was a tough act to follow!)


We adopted Penelope on a Tuesday. On Thursday around 4:00 pm she got spooked by something and bolted from the house. She was so fast, and we lost track of her. It's not possible to describe how sick and worried we both felt. We were concerned that she would not have any instinct to try to find her way back home, since she hardly knew our house as home after only two days.


We immediately called the rescue group we'd adopted her through, as well as a friend who organizes searches for lost dogs. She and several other incredible folks volunteer their time to do this; their group is called AWOL Dogs. Thanks to their advice and assistance, within a few hours notices had been posted to our local listserve and Craigslist, a blog had been started, and flyers started going up around our neighborhood. The search for Penny over the following days included emails and phone calls to area vets, churches, schools, dog walkers, etc, more listserve postings, tons of flyering, and also the assistance of a professional dog tracker.


It was a cold weekend. It snowed and rained on Saturday, and I just told myself that Penelope was strong and smart, that she'd find a safe place to stay. On Sunday morning we got an email from Penny's most recent foster mom, who was tireless searching along with us. She said she'd had a dream that Penny was found. Maybe 30 minutes later the phone rang; I nearly fell over trying to grab it. A woman's voice said, 'We found Penelope and my neighbor is taking her to the animal hospital right now.' I was putting on my shoes, writing down an address, and crying all at once. My husband was already at the door, car keys in hand, saying, 'Tell me where to drive.'


We arrived at the animal hospital and met Edward and Dawn, Penny's guardian angels. The vet took us back to see Penny and confirm that it was her. I was nervous that she might not know us, but she did and immediately started licking our hands and faces. The sense of relief was overwhelming.


Now, three weeks later, Penelope is just about 100% healed. She has fully adjusted to seeing with one eye. She is playful, silly, intelligent, and loving. She is a true gift.