On Sunday the 21st (Paul's birthday) we left Avery with Michael's parents and drove a couple hours to spend a few days with my family. Early Sunday afternoon, Michael got a call from his mom. Michael's mom had been walking Avery when Avery got spooked, escaped from her harness, and took off.An exhaustive doghunt ensued. Flyers were made and posted. Doors were knocked on. The radio station ran an ad. A reward was offered. Searchers were on foot, in cars, on fourwheelers. And across the country, people were praying for her return. Michael and I cut our time with my family short and headed back his parent's house. But Avery was nowhere to be found.
Temperatures were in the single digits on Sunday and Monday with negative windchills. Bulldogs don't deal well with extreme temperatures, so it was our hope that she had found shelter with a neighbor or someone had seen her running along the road and "adopted" her. Tuesday and Wednesday came and went and still there was no sign of Avery. At that point we were counting on her microchip - that if someone had her, she'd be taken to a vet, scanned, and returned to us.
Thursday we were preparing Christmas dinner when there was a knock on Michael's parent's door. It was a neighbor...saying they had Avery. We (Michael, his mom, our niece, and myself) piled into Michael's mom's car and sped to the neighbor's house. There was a group of people waiting for us, and they carried out a scared, skinny bulldog. It was Avery!
A family who lives down the road from Michael's parents (or a portion thereof) had gone for a hike after their Christmas dinner when they encountered Avery laying in the pasture across the road from their house. They carried her back to their house, fed her, gave her some water, and consulted with a flyer that had been posted to confirm that the dog they found was, in fact, Avery the Bulldog. It was an answer to prayer. And our Christmas miracle.
We took Avery to the vet the next day. She had some scratches and a rash around her mouth (probably from rooting around for water) and had lost a few pounds, but there was no sign of frostbite and her heart and lungs sounded fine. She was (and still is) somewhat lethargic, but is getting her weight back and her strength back.
We are so grateful to the family who found Avery and returned her to us on Christmas day. And grateful to our family, friends, and neighbors for their prayers and search efforts. Merry Christmas!
