Hey Friends,

Stories like the one I'm about to tell don't always have the happiest of endings ... but no worries ... this one does!!

I have to start out with an admission.  I'm not the most devoted exerciser.  It's been quite some time since I've been in a "routine".  Well yesterday I decided to go to Victor Ashe Park and walk.  It was so spring like and while I am more underweight than overweight and while I do eat really well, (especially since my lovely Celiac Diagnosis), I know that really need to start making sure that my heart is healthy, so I thought what a better day than today!! So as you are reading, keep in mind me doing exercise at the park in January, is the first "out of the norm" thing of the day.

Next ... when I do walk or jog I ALWAYS use my ipod to listen to music to keep me movin. Yesterday I decided I would just use my iphone since it has an ipod built in and has more of my favorite songs formatted. Well just my luck, I grabbed the wrong headphones and didn't realize till I was out on the track .. phone already in hand .. my earphones didn't fit!! So normally my ears would be plugged up unaware of what was being said around me and I wouldnt have my phone in had.  That is "out of the norm" two and three.

Here is where the story begins ....  A couple and their children were walking 2 dogs, each on a leash.  As I passed the guy was asking everyone "Is this your dog .. did your dog get loose". Keep in mind I would normally have never heard this, but no earphones, so I did.  I told him no and asked him if he had just found him there at the park.  He told me that he saw him running from the lake area, that he appeared he had gotten loose from a nearby house or something.  I told him no that it wasn't my dog and went on about my own way walking until I caught up with the couple and the lost dog again, only this time they had let go of the leash for him to find his own way  home : ( 

Knowing the situation my heart broke seeing him run around clueless, so I stopped them and asked if they were just going to let him go and they said yes they were leaving.  I was crushed thinking this dog was left to find his owners all alone and wasn't about to let that happen because by his appearance you could tell the dog was obviously well loved and taken care of.  Wait .. as he ran .. I heard it .. he had tags!!  So I grabbed the dog and checked them out... but it was one tag and it was only a rabies tag!!  But there was a phone number ... oh wait .... from SAN FRANCISCO CALIFORNIA!!  My hopes were feeling slimmer.

Still hopeful, I called the number and pleaded with the lady on the phone to help me.  I gave her the rabies tag number and she was going to attempt to see if there was any possible way to get owner contact information based on that number alone.  I was placed on hold, starting to have more and more doubts that this little guy would find his owners, because even if they did have numbers on file, it would be likely that his owners had a new phone number, since the tags were from thousands of miles away!

I was on hold for a long time and during those moments I went up to everyone along the way, asking if they had seen anyone looking for a dog.  I made my way down the trail by the water (where the couple said they had seen the dog run from) and was starting to get a little panicked to be honest. I was thinking about what I would do if I couldn't find the owner.  I would call my vet and take it to be scanned for a microchip, I would take it's picture and put up flyers all around the area that I found a lost dog, I would call my friends at the Shelter, but then what would I do with the dog in the meantime  .. I have two cats that would be very upset with me bringing a dog inside their world. Then if I did that I wondered if it was potty trained and even an inside dog??  Regardless, I knew I wasn't going to just leave him there. I was so sad for the sweet dog and as a animal owner my heart ached for the family that was out there somewhere looking for their faithful furry friend.  I honestly had tears swelling up  in my eyes.

Just then I see a couple walking toward me. Even though I couldn't really see them yet, I could tell by the powerful tugs that this was the dogs owner ahead. Sure enough, it was!!!  I can't even tell you the sigh of relief I I let out ... my heart was truly smiling so big!

I got to talking to them and found out this lost dog had a name ... Sampson ... and his owners had JUST moved here to Knoxville not long ago,  so "Sampson" didn't have any local tags yet and he also wasn't micro-chipped.  Which means who knows if I would ever have found them? Then I was thinking had I not seen that other couple just let him go, he never would have managed to find his way home because he wasn't loose from a nearby home there in North Knoxville his owners had driven him from further out West Knoxville!!

So that's the story of  Sampson and the reason my heart is smiling today and probably will be at least the rest of the week!!  

I asked if I could snap his picture so I could use him as the poster child of my blog today.  I knew it would be the perfect story to inspire all of you to PLEASE go out and buy updated tags for your pets and also get them micro-chipped!!!!  Sampson is lucky .. everyday dogs and cats get lost from their owners and end up in shelters or on the streets, never again finding their home.  

I hope "Sampsons Story" inspires you to get your pet tagged and chipped. I know I'm going to take my own advise as well!! My cats stay inside ALL the time and while they do have tags, they aren't micro-chipped, but their next vet appointment I'll be adding that to my tab .. for sure!!

Welcome to East Tennessee Sampson .. I'm VERY glad I met you!!

Stacy :)