Rose's Adventure

This story has a happy ending but that is also the reason it matters so much to us. 2012  proved to be painful for the Vines family on the pet front. We lost a couple of sweet hens from our chicken flock to hawk attack and illness, and then our Chocolate Lab, Sugar, died in August at age 14. Then in November, my first pet as an adult and super sweet cat, Merlin, died at the age of 17. These animals were part of our family and we have certainly missed them greatly these last months. We have tried to focus on enjoying our memories of these companions of ours and have certainly been more thankful than ever for our sweet little beagle girl, Rose. She is actually Abigail's dog, whom she received as her 8th birthday gift and has been a delight ever since we adopted her.

Abigail is definitely the animal lover of all our kids, and she gets that honestly from me. Because Abi had prayed for a sister for so long, when I found out I was pregnant with Owen, she asked that if he was not a girl, if she could finally get her own dog. We told her that she would have to really work to prove her maturity and she did. She showed great discernment in not getting the first cute dog we saw, and some we were interested in didn't work out or weren't available when we were ready to see them. Through the process she remained sure that we would find the perfect dog and was so patient. All of our other pets had been rescued and not animals we had sought out, so this whole process was a new experience for us.

Abi had specifically known she did not want a "fluffy dog" and we visited several shelters repeatedly and searched online for the "right" girl for her. We spent months praying that God would lead us to the right dog at the right time.  The first time we visited the shelter where we saw Rose, after describing what type dog we were looking for (not a puppy, terrier/beagle/short hair mixed breeds preferred, small to medium size, easy going with kids of all ages), the workers brought out several different dogs.  All were cute, but none just clicked with us. Abigail had cautious criticism of each, including their yappy barking, too hyper personality, etc. We weren't discouraged, but just thought we would find the right dog by her birthday, which was coming up soon. Then another worker came out and asked what we were looking for, and we reviewed our criteria again. She asked the guy helping us if he had brought out "Little Lisa," who was kept in the back. When we asked why she was separated, the lady explained this little dog had been there for many months, and was a favorite, plus she was sensitive to the newspaper that they used in the bottom of kennels, so she was in another room, to ensure they didn't mistakenly paper her kennel. We asked what type dog she was, and she replied, "Oh, she's a little beagle - super cute."

when she knew Rose was the one, May 2010

When they turned the corner with Rose, my eyes welled up. I watched and waited for Abigail's response, which was gentle and sweet, but cautious. She was an affectionate dog, smaller than average size beagle, and what they called a "pocket beagle" meaning she was possibly bred to remain small. She was full grown, housebroken, and pretty much perfect. We went home to discuss her, and felt very interested in pursuing her. A few days later, James and Abi went back to play with her one more time and after that, were sure she was the one for us. We paid for her surgery and adoption fees, and after she'd been spayed, brought her home, just in time for Abigail's birthday.

Rose transitioned into our family seamlessly, which sure made it easy on us, since we'd never had a house dog before. The first week Abigail walked her often, even at night, to be sure she didn't have accidents. She quickly adjusted to being in her kennel and loved our other pets, and our other kids. She was just a joy -  not too barky, not hyper, so absolutely what we'd prayed for.

loving each other just an hour or so before the disappearance

When we moved to the new house, got chickens, and changed a lot about our home environment, we weren't surprised that she adjusted well again. The only issue was that we have deer often here in our backyard, and they're pretty bold. When they visit morning and afternoon during this season, they do drive Rose crazy if she's outside in the dogpen. She barks a ton and eagerly tries to figure out how to get to them, but thankfully, never has. Until recently that is. The day after Christmas, on a bitterly cold day, I went to check the mail in the afternoon. Rose had been enjoying the cozy warmth of the house, and I let her join me as we went outdoors, knowing she'd appreciate a walk. We headed out of the garage, and Rose turned to the left as I turned down the driveway. I called to her as she trotted up to the dogpen, and then I saw that she was making a beeline beyond that point - and she was gone in a flash. I called for Abigail, knowing she must've gotten the scent of the deer, and too late, I realized that it was the time of afternoon when they probably had just visited our yard.

The next few hours were painful and long. We hiked up through the woods, searching along trails and deep behind our neighbors' homes, to no avail. No sign of Rose. Though we had been only seconds behind her, once she took off, she was so fast that we never caught a glimpse of her again. We drove and called for her, and walked up and down our neighborhood in the dark that evening, praying for her to show up. She didn't. James had worked all day, and drove all around on his way home, through neighboring subdivisions, calling for her also. It was a sad, guilt-ridden evening for me, and a heartbreaking one for Abigail. She cried herself to sleep, and we all were pretty overwhelmed with sadness. It got down to 28 degrees that night - way too cold for a sweet, spoiled, mostly indoor pup.

That night I prepared almost 20 signs to put on street signs all around our neighborhood and other main roads, hoping someone would recognize her. I posted on Facebook about her, and many, many people shared her photo and information - dozens whom I have never met. I called the local vets, the shelters, friends who voluntarily do rescue, and did everything I knew to, hoping that maximum publicity would get our girl home to us. Several people said that since she was a beagle, she'd follow her nose home. I wanted to believe that but I also knew that since Rose wasn't used as a hunting dog, and hasn't ever explored beyond our neighborhood on a leash, that she might really not be able to find her way home. There are also so many deer in this area, once she got on a trail, I knew that she could follow it far beyond the reaches of our end of town, and may be so disoriented and cold that she wouldn't know how to get back. She had been a stray, after all, when she was picked up as a younger dog.

By late afternoon, 24 hours later, we still had made no progress in finding her. Abi and I drove and drove some more, hung all our signs, and called for her through several close neighborhoods. James was preparing to go back to work, it was getting close to dusk, and I was feeling so awful that I had let her out and she was still gone. Abigail was trying to maintain composure, but was seriously struggling. A shelter worked encouraged us to visit the general trail we thought she'd followed, to mark it again in case she got close but couldn't find her way home. Abi and I tore up an old blanket she loved and fabric of some old leggings of Abi's, and started tying strips to trees along the hills that run behind and beyond our home. We had gone a good ways and suddenly, my phone rang. My heart nearly stopped as a lady spoke and said that I didn't know her, but she thought she had recognized our dog from Facebook, and that she had just been in her neighborhood. I cannot tell you how I screamed for joy, ran like a lunatic, and nearly broke my ankle, as we both tore through the woods back to our house, yelling for the kids and James to hurry to the van.

reunited. 

I also called friends from church who lived in the same neighborhood, leaving a message to ask them to start looking for her before we could get there, since Rose had run off from this lady who had seen her. We had been on the same street, just an hour before, and prayed we'd get there in time to find her. It was getting dark, and the temperature was dropping already. We drove over super fast, and split up quickly, calling and calling for Rose. I was getting frustrated as two different people mentioned they had seen her within the last few hours, and Kristi had seen her within the last 10 minutes, but we couldn't find her. As I got in front of our friend Bonnie's house, she walked out to tell me she'd just gotten the message. I stood there crying, explaining our heartache, and then saw Abi drop to her knees a block from me. Then, the tears really started pouring.

Apparently, sweet Rose heard our voices, and worked her way back to us, and had crouched down behind a garbage can, shyly poking her head out as Abigail got close to her, and then ran to her, licking and crying and crying. The reunion was a beautiful one to see, and there were many tears shed, and she cried and cried with her hoarse voice, jumping and squirming, so happy to be with her family. Then we met Kristi, who had called after seeing her, and hugged and sobbed all over her too. She had been tagged on Rose's photo by our mutual friend, Holly, whom I had spoken with that morning, knowing how much she loved beagles and had helped with rescues before. I have never been that grateful for Facebook. We had signs in that neighborhood, had driven through it three times in 24 hours, but had no success until another person recognized her from that post. Simply amazing. Even cooler was the fact that as we chatted, I realized I recognized Kristi, and she had attended our first Swaziland launch evening, and was one of the early sponsors of a child at the Lesibovu carepoint! Such wonderful multiple connections!

tucked in by Isaac that cold evening she returned

snuggling after a bath 

We have all settled back into normalcy somewhat, though Rose sure has lived the life of a princess since we got her back. She isn't going outside without a leash on, possibly ever. ;-) I don't know what the lesson was in all that, and though it was only a day of torture, it sure was painful. I know that we saw community rally over something as simple as a lost dog, and had many folks show compassion and eagerly spread the word, which meant tons to our family. (I will not take this opportunity to contrast that with the lack of interest by people in actual children who are in desperate need of families and basic provision, but I admit it has crossed my mind....) For now, I'm just going to be grateful. This story had a happy ending, and my precious girls are together again. Thank you Lord!