During a car crash on an Idaho street Sunday morning, a 2-year-old Border Collie/Heeler mix named Tillie was thrown from one of the vehicles involved. She ran off into a field — and then seemed to disappear.
The Idaho State Police (ISP) issued a news release asking for witnesses to the wreck and urging everyone in the area to keep an eye out for Tilly.
“Tilly has no tail, a dark-colored face, weighs approximately 70 pounds, and was wearing a multi-colored plaid and tan-colored collar with a name tag containing the owner’s contact information,” the news release said. “Tilly’s family is from Hayden and is doing all they can to find the dog.”
Two days later, Tilly was discovered doing what Border Collies like to do: She had found her way to a farm and was herding the sheep there.
Although she lost some weight and was pretty thirsty, Tilly’s owner said the lucky dog was otherwise fine, KHQ reports.
However, as someone commented on the KHQ Local News Facebook page, “Once a Border Collie/Heeler mix has had a taste of sheep herding, he/she will never be satisfied with nipping at the feet of toddlers again.” True.
When Cemal Senturk was rushed to a hospital in Trabzon, Turkey, last week, his little white dog, Boncuk (which means ‘bead” and is pronounced Bon-DJUK), followed the ambulance there. And for nearly a week, Boncuk returned to the hospital to wait for Senturk.
“She comes every day around 9 a.m. and waits until nightfall. She doesn’t go in,” security guard Muhammet Akdeniz told the news agency DHA, according to the Associated Press. “When the door opens, she pokes her head inside.”
Senturk’s daughter, Ayşe Çapkınoğlu, would bring Boncuk home each day, but the dog always managed to go back to the hospital.
“My father took him in nine years ago, fed and raised him. And Boncuk showed his loyalty this way,” Çapkınoğlu told the Daily Sabah. “Boncuk looked around and started to cry when my father called out his name while getting treatment in the hospital room. We were surprised.”
(As for the different pronouns, the Associated Press reported that Boncuk is female, while according to the Daily Sabah, Boncuk is male.)
Yesterday, Senturk, who suffered a blood clot in his brain, was allowed to go outside in a wheelchair to greet his devoted dog. Senturk was later released from the hospital.
“Sometimes I was looking at him from the window of my hospital room and calling out his name,” Senturk told the Daily Sabah. “He was barking and trying to make himself heard. We reunited again. If you show attention to dogs, you will see the same affinity.”
While Boncuk’s devotion to his or her dog dad is amazing, hopefully Senturk’s return home will put an end to the dog’s wandering. But just in case, Senturk should think about getting a locking gate for his faithful little escape artist.
Boncuk is not the only dog who has followed their owner to a hospital. In 2015 a Miniature Schnauzer named Sissy walked over 15 blocks to visit her dog mom in a hospital in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Unlike Boncuk, Sissy actually entered the hospital through its automatic doors. And also unlike Boncuk, Sissy didn’t follow an ambulance there, so it’s pretty remarkable that she was able to find the hospital.
Because he had an eye infection, the owners of a 3-year-old Lab/Shepherd mix named Louis decided to have both of his eyes removed. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, last year Louis was hit by a car and suffered a broken leg that was never treated.
But Louis’ sad story doesn’t end there. His owners could no longer care for him, so in December they surrendered their sweet and shy dog to an animal shelter. A rescue group saved Louis and brought him to the Helen Woodward Animal Center (HWAC) near San Diego. HWAC is a nonprofit founded in 1972 that provides humane care and adoption for homeless animals, and also offers educational and therapeutic programs for people.
Louis’ case was unlike any other seen at HWAC in nearly 50 years, the center stated on Jan. 11.
“It is incredibly important that people who consider getting a pet know the obligations they take on with these animals,” HWAC Adoptions Director Hella Tyler said. “When people get their pets for free off of Craiglist, they don’t seem to realize that pets come with responsibilities and a monthly expense for their caretaking, including medical care. In turn, these pets will provide their owners an unparalleled love. They pay it back tenfold. It’s just devastating to see an animal treated the way Louis was treated.”
Louis is extraordinary, Tyler said. “He really suffered at the hands of his former owners but he shows no malice towards humankind. He is ready to love the perfect family and he certainly deserves one.”
Before you reach for another tissue, let’s fast forward to this week — and this dog with the tragic past can now be called Lucky Louis.
After receiving dozens of applications and over $25,000 in donations from around the world to help pay for Louis’ care, HWAC has selected the perfect forever home for this special dog.
Louis’ new dog dad is Steve Walker, a veteran Marine who competes in Iron Man competitions as well as triathlons and marathons. Walker has something in common with Louie: He began losing his vision when he was only 18, due to the rare eye disease Retinitis Pigmentosa.
“We were laughing as we were reading on the internet on how to help out a blind dog, and it was pretty much the same thing as for a blind person,” Walker told KGTV.
His Los Angeles home, where he lives with his wife, Kacey, and daughter, Jordan, is already set up for someone without sight. It is one-story and has pocket doors instead of swinging doors, among other special features. Louie shouldn’t have much difficulty at all settling in with his new forever family.
“I think he’s going to pick up on that and I think he’s going to benefit from a lot of the changes we’ve already made to the house,” Walker told KGTV. “So we’re really excited about seeing him adapt to our home and our family, and seeing him flourish, really.”
For the first time ever, a former shelter dog will soon make the White House his home. And, for the first time ever, a special “Indoguration” is planned to mark this momentous occasion.
Major, a German Shepherd, was initially fostered by the Bidens from the Delaware Humane Association (DHA) in 2018 after their daughter, Ashley, sent them his photo. Like so many so-called “foster fails,” the Bidens fell in love with Major and he became their forever dog.
Today is Major’s lucky day! Not only did Major find his forever home, but he got adopted by Vice President Joe Biden &…
To celebrate Major’s move to his new home, the DHA and Pumpkin Pet Insurance are holding a fundraising “Indoguration” on Zoom that they say is the “largest virtual party for dogs.” The event is on Jan. 17 at 3 p.m. Eastern Time, three days before Major’s dog dad is inaugurated. It will be hosted by Jill Martin of the “Today” show on NBC, with special guest Sir Darius Brown, a 14-year-old animal advocate.
You can RSVP for the Indoguration online. A donation of at least $10 to DHA is required to attend. The DHA is a nonprofit, no-kill animal care and adoption center that also offers affordable spay/neuter services, low-cost vaccination clinics and a pet food pantry.
While Major is the first pound pup to live in the White House, he’s not actually the first rescue pet to make it their home, according to CNN. President Lyndon B. Johnson’s mixed-breed dog Yuki had been abandoned at a Texas gas station when he was rescued by LBJ’s daughter, Luci. The Clintons’ cat, Socks, was also a rescue pet.
Major will also be sharing his new home with the Bidens’ other dog, Champ. The German Shepherd was purchased by Joe from a breeder as a gift to Jill after the 2008 election. Here’s hoping that all the Bidens’ future dogs, and all future first dogs, will be shelter or rescue dogs.
Unless you have a heart of stone, videos of veterans being reunited with their delighted dogs should never fail to bring a tear (or 100) to your eyes. In honor of Veterans Day, here are some of the most heartwarming, in my humble opinion.
Marine Reunites with K-9 Partner 2 Years Later
After a two-year separation, last year Marine Sgt. Jacob Varela was reunited with Atilla, a German Shepherd who’s a trained tracker dog. The two had worked together for three years in a special operations unit.
“We were together for everything, everywhere I went out in the field,” Varela told WGN. “If I was drinking water, he was drinking water. He’s an actual teammate.”
When Varela found out that 9-year-old Atilla was being retired, he decided to adopt his former partner. The nonprofit organization Mission K9 Rescue, whose mission is to reunite military dogs with their handlers, helped to make this happen.
In July 2019, Varela and Atilla were reunited at Midway International Airport in Chicago. “The way he reacted, the way he jumped on me, he knows who I am, so that’s good,” Varela said.
Senior Golden Retriever Reunites with Dog Mom
Buddy, a 13-year-old, arthritic and partially deaf Golden Retriever, had been with her dog mom, Hannah Foraker, ever since she was a puppy. Foraker had never been away from her home in Cleveland, Ohio, when she joined the Army in 2015.
After a three-month separation, Foraker returned home for two weeks at Christmastime. “Buddy came running, as best as she could, out of the house and said hello to everyone,” Foraker told FOX 8 at the time. “At first she didn’t even realize I was there, but she did a double take and came bounding over to me, whining nonstop in pure glee.”
Foraker said Buddy never left her side during her visit.
After 3 Years, Soldier Reunites with His K-9 Partner
Vance McFarland and his bomb-sniffing K-9 partner, a Czech Shepherd named Ikar, spent two years together during a tour of duty in Afghanistan that ended in 2012.
Afterward, McFarland returned home to Boise, Idaho, while Ikar and other members of the Tactical Explosive Detection Dog (TEDD) program were bought by a private company and then left to languish in a boarding kennel. Fortunately, thanks to Mission K9 Rescue and the United States War Dogs Association posting photos of these dogs on social media, their former handlers, including McFarland, were successfully tracked down.
After a three-year separation, McFarland and Ikar were finally reunited, and it was all captured on video. McFarland adopted his loyal partner.
“Having a dog with you on deployment is almost like having a little bit of home,” McFarland told KTVB. “Other soldiers were jealous — they always wanted to come up and pet Ikar. We made the best of it.”
McFarland said Ikar “is going to live the rest of his retired life spoiled. Really spoiled.”
A Compilation for (Literally) Crying Out Loud
Still have some unused tissues left? Enjoy this compilation of veterans reuniting with their dogs that was put together by The Dodo.
You can make a donation to help Mission K9 Rescue facilitate more happy reunions.
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