A pup discovers danger on a busy highway.

Several years ago my pet Terrier Sadie was killed by a car in Cape Canaveral, Florida. She ran off during a thunder storm and had absolutely no traffic sense. This little dog had managed to find her way into the hearts of every member of my family and was like a granddaughter to my Dad. She will always be missed.

Shades of deja vu appeared recently when I noticed a small white dog running along a busy highway. It decided to cross right in front of a car and a huge truck. The car blew its horn to scare the dog back to the shoulder and the truck narrowly missed killing the confused pooch. I grabbed his collar and brought him inside my workplace where I gave him some water and checked his tags for I.D..

Fortunately, there was an identity number and a toll free number which I called. After learning the owner’s contact information, I left a message on their machine and waited. Closing time was fast approaching and I didn’t really want to take the dog home, so a call was made to the animal shelter at 3:55. The message said they were open from 9:00 to 4:00 but I guess they went home early. Another call was made to the animal control officer but he was done for the day and wished me luck. The humane society had a similar response and I still had not heard from the owner. No one was being very “humane”. An internet search provided no clues to finding an address to match the phone number and I was running out of options.

It was now 5:15 so I decided to take a chance and drive down a road the dog may have come from. What luck! The second mailbox had the name Smith on it so I drove onto the farm and found Mr. Smith pitching hay outside his barn. He followed me back to pick up his little Bichon Friese and after thank yous and smiles, the pup got to go back home without a scratch after his adventure. I only wish someone would have found my little terrier before that car did in Florida. Sadie must be smiling after this happy ending.

From the Humane Society: A pet—even an indoor pet—has a better chance of being returned if she always wears a collar and an ID tag with your name, address, and telephone number. Ask your local animal shelter or veterinarian if permanent methods of identification (such as microchips) are available in your area. Note: Mr. Smith only had a P.O. station listed as an address. That’s why it took so long to find him.