A pure-bred puppy worth $600 is back after mysteriously going missing, thanks to a front-page story in the Chilliwack Progress on Tuesday.
Kim Demeter says their 10-week-old yellow-lab, Zoey, is safe and sound at home.
"We got her back last night," she said. "The kids were ecstatic."
After the story appeared in the paper, the Demeters started getting calls from alert Progress readers.
"It was my last resort to call the paper after she went missing," she said. "It was like, how many more 'lost' posters can we put up?
"I thought we have to get this in the paper."
One of the callers who read the sad tale turned out to be the key to the return of Zoey. A nearby family had apparently adopted her, not knowing she was missing from a few blocks away.
"It was perfect. If it wasn't for the paper and the article, we would not have gotten her back."
A soon as a neighbour saw the newspaper story with the photo of the forlorn young Demeter brothers holding a picture of Zoey, a lightbulb went off.
They had noticed that the neighbour family had a new puppy that looked just like Zoey. The caller asked Demeter if she wanted to come over and see for herself.
"I raced over there with the kids, and scooped her up," she recounted.
There was no doubt it was Zoey.
The puppy wagged her tail wildly in recognition, and she greeted the kids.
It "totally paid" off to share their story in the end, Demeter added, and the family is so grateful to all the callers and concerned neighbours.
There are a few loose ends. There is no explanation for the meat that was found in the backyard, and believed to have been used to distract the older dog, Abby. Nor is there a reason why the older dog was found secured behind the gate in the backyard after she'd been seen running loose out front earlier that morning.
But for now, the Demeters don't care. They are just content to have their cuddly Zooey back.
jfeinberg@theprogress.com
Twitter.com/chwkjourno