A Dog’s Determination

We've all heard stories about the lengths a dog will go through in order to find their way back home. Sometimes accidents happen or dogs get themselves into situation where they are separated from their families. There are dogs that find themselves thousands of miles away, but kind people eventually get them back their homes. Other times, dogs walk for hundreds of miles to make their way back to the place they call home.

I just read a story about a little dog that did more than walk a hundred miles. He basically tried to swim his way home. Linda Pacifico in Chattanooga, Tennessee writes about her Wheaton terrier named Scruffy. The little terrier is three years-old and goes boating with Linda, her husband and their 8 month old chocolate Labrador, Cheyenne.

Both dogs love boating, but for different reasons. Cheyenne likes it when the boat stops and he can go for a swim. Scruffy on the other hand has no desire to go for a swim. In fact he hates swimming. He does, however, love it when the boat is cruising along the river and the wind is in his face. So when Linda and her husband noticed the terrier was missing from the boat, they panicked.

Scruffy couldn't have been gone more than 15 seconds, but even though they began to search immediately and continued to search for two hours, there was no sign of him. Linda was heartsick. She couldn't believe they had lost their little dog but eventually had to give up the search.

It was a horrible thing to go through and she and her husband were so sad, but the next day they got a surprise. There was a knock on the door and woman they didn't know stood on their doorstep. She wanted to know if they had lost a dog. She had found Scruffy and traced them through his tags.

Scruffy was found soaking wet and exhausted. The woman had coaxed him inside and then began looking for his family. Linda says that he was no worse for wear, but she was amazed by his determination. The little guy fought the waves and the distance to find his way back home.