A Happy Ending . . .

The last eighteen hours were horrible. I noticed yesterday afternoon, when someone knocked on my door, that the dogs had somehow gotten out of the yard. They usually run in from outside when they hear someone at the door but yesterday they didn't. It's just like when your kids get too quiet and you think they're up to something they shouldn't be up to. Dog owners will back me on this one. : ) When I looked in the backyard they were no where to be seen. I noticed that part of the chicken wire fence in the yard was bent up at the bottom. The hole was just big enough for a chocolate lab and his sidekick cockapoo. I drove around the neighborhood expecting to see them. Our lab, Brady, has this terrible habit of chasing car wheels when he gets loose. Thankfully, we live on a pretty quiet street. The last time Sparky, the cockapoo, got out he went right to the front porch. There was no sign of either of them. I asked people that were out in their yard and nobody had seen either of them. I drove around for more than two hours with a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. When it got dark and there still was no sign of them I was beside myself. I tried to be strong for my three sons but I couldn't. The strongest one was actually my seven year old. He's so incredible.

I called the police, the local all-nite veterinary hospital and animal control in case anyone had seen them. Closing and locking the front door without them being here broke my heart. I tried to sleep but, needless to say, if I got two hours that was a lot.

I have always been a very intuitive person. We all have that gift but some people are more aware of it than others. I have become more aware of it as I've gotten older. I woke up feeling very drawn to the woods this morning. There is a huge stretch of woods that run behind our house for a couple of miles. Where we live, it's just a very thin bit of trees that separate us and the school behind our house. As you go further down, they become much deeper and there is marsh land and very deep muck in the middle of the woods, as well as a fence right square in the middle of all that muck. The fence is because there is a highway along the woods further down. As I said, I was very drawn to those woods this morning.

The best way for me to describe how I found my dogs this morning is to say that I followed an intuitive voice in my head and, after I got the boys off to school this morning, I got into my car and let it take me where it wanted to drive. I ended up at the end of a cul-de-sac about a mile from my house. Without thinking or questioning where the thoughts were coming from I got out of the car and walked into the backyard of a house that was backed up to those woods. I stood at the edge of the yard and called out for my dogs. Immediately, in the distance, I heard my little dog, Sparky, bark. After a few minutes, I heard Brady. I was drawn to that location, pure and simple. Amazing Grace. When I realized that I wasn't going to be able to get to them easily, I called my friend, Colleen, to help me. There was so much muck that I couldn't reach them AND they were on the other side of that fence I described to you. The lab was able to find a part of the fence that was broken so he climbed over it and waded thru all of that horrible mud and came to me. The cockapoo was way too small and couldn't get past the fence. Colleen tried to come in from the highway side of the woods but encountered the same problem of not being able to reach Sparky due to the muck. She then decided to call Animal Control for back up and drive around to meet me. That is when everything sort of just fell into place.

As she was walking into the woods to find me, three surveyors that worked for the sewer department just happened to be coming into the woods at the same time. Suddenly she called out, "I have back up!! It's Superman, Batman and Robin. Our Super Heroes to the rescue!!" I had no idea what she was talking about until they came into view. Those men were so wonderful!!

After much coaxing, we finally got Sparky to come to the fence where there was an opening above muck level. When he saw me he literally dragged his body thru that disgusting mess to get to me. None of us could believe he was able to do it.

I can't begin to tell you how grateful I am to my friend, Colleen, the three "Super Heroes," St. Anthony (the Saint of lost things that I prayed to like crazy) and all of the other Divine Intervention that helped to get my dogs back. I'm so happy to be able to say that, because of everyone I've mentioned above, this (very long) story had a happy ending!!

Amazing Grace.

Many blessings ~ Wendy