Avery is the star in an unusual chain of events that led to a happy ending for four dogs in peril. Avery is a 2 year old German Shorthaired Pointer who was stolen one year ago from Colorado Springs, Colorado. It was one more blow in a string of sad events in the lives of Avery's parents, Bill* and Eden*. Bill's grandfather and Eden's father were both diagnosed with terminal cancer on the same day. They made a last minute trip to Ohio to say goodbye to Bill's grandfather, and Avery was left with a friend in Colorado. While they were away saying their goodbyes, Avery was stolen.

Bill and Eden tried everything to find her and eventually resigned themselves to the idea that they may never see her again.

"We had in one sense given up on ever finding her, yet I still hung onto a little bit of hope. I look at the pets section on craigslist on a fairly regular basis in an apparent attempt at torturing myself by looking at all of the unwanted animals. Every time I saw a female GSP I would check to see if it was her. If the pictures were lousy or taken at a distance, I would compare a picture of Avery to them to make sure the markings weren't similar. I had some hope I would find her, but I never dreamed she would get to come home. I figured if I found her she would be living with some other family who loved her and had taken her in when she needed a home. I tried really hard to not imagine that she had been hit by a car or something of that nature". Eden

Their excitement was tempered with the realization that they could not afford the flight to bring Avery home. CARE Volunteer, Lil, put the same determination to work to raise the funds to get Avery home that she used to track down Avery's family. In less than 12 hours, we had the funds for her plane ticket and airline safe crate. We cannot thank the folks enough who generously contributed to help Avery get back home. Without your help, Avery's family would have had to settle for knowing that she was safe, but they would never see her again. Thanks to you, Avery has been reunited with her family back in Colorado.

As mysterious as how Avery found herself in SC are the events that helped her find her way back. So many things had to come together in just the right way that one has to wonder if it was divine intervention. Avery's mom believes her Dad had a hand in it. Eden's Dad understood more than anyone how much Bill and Eden loved Avery. He passed away this summer. Perhaps he did help Avery get back home as his way of helping Eden through her first holiday season without him.

"I can never possibly thank all of you enough for saving her. I don't know for sure what set in motion this whole chain of events. I don't know how she found you all who definitely went above and beyond every step of the way for her, but I guarantee I will never forget any of you or the generosity people showed in donating for her flight home. After having our family really torn apart over the last year, we can finally add a piece of it back in. I can look forward to another fun-filled Christmas baking season of trying to keep Avery from stealing all the Christmas cookies off the counter as soon as I bake them and knocking the Santa train off its tracks every time it makes noises. My husband can finally look forward to running with another live being that has the stamina to keep up since neither basset hounds nor cats are exactly endurance runners and teenagers just tend to complain a lot." Eden

Avery is back home, now, and Bill and Eden say she fell right back in to her old routines. She still likes to steal food whenever she gets a chance. The only family member not thrilled that Avery is home is Desmond, the cat. He'll come around.

Avery is not the only dog with a happy ending in this story. CARE Volunteer, Kelly, was at the shelter that day looking for Missy, a CARE foster dog who had dug out of her fence and gotten lost. Missy was found safe and has been adopted. When CARE Volunteer, Lil, went back to the shelter to bring Avery home, she saw a St. Bernard and a German Shepherd Dog who needed to get out. She contacted a local St. Bernard rescue group who bailed out the St. Bernard, and Lil is fostering Jemma, the German Shepherd Dog herself.

We may never understand how this all came together so perfectly, but we are all thrilled that it did. Our only regret is that there were many more dogs who we could not save. We can save them all if we all come together. Please check your local shelters and rescues when you are ready for a dog. They are filled with wonderful pets who deserve a chance to live as part of a loving family.

* Names have been changed.