Prodigal pooch: Family and volunteers rejoice when lost puppy is reunited with loved ones

The Lost and Found Pets of Grant County, Washington, a non-profit group, celebrated a “miracle story” when a 5-month-old Shih Tzu puppy, Toby, was reunited with Cristina Cepoi and her family of Maple Valley.

The puppy ran away after a collision at 3:20 p.m. June 13 at the intersection of North Dodson Road and Road 4 Northwest. Cepoi and her family were traveling with their friend, Lurie Buza, who was driving when they collided with another vehicle approaching the intersection.

Among the six people injured in the crash was 2-year-old Evalee Sanchez in the other vehicle, who died after being flown to Central Washington Hospital in Wenatchee. The child was a passenger in a vehicle driven by Edgar Alba, 22, of Moses Lake.

Alba was driving south on Dodson Road and attempted to make a left turn on Road 4 Northwest in front of the Cepois and Buza. The Cepois’ car rolled five times.

A car window was broken open by emergency crews, and the dog ran away.

Cepoi posted on the Lost and Found Pets of Grant County’s social media page the day after the collision (June 14), asking for help locating the lost pet. The thousands of followers of the group quickly jumped into action, with the organization president, Annette Hernandez, reaching out to the family for information.

Sheri DeRam, a volunteer and board member for local group, said the conversation started with getting basic information about Toby from Cepoi and her family.

“What does he like? Does he come to a squeaky toy? Does he know his name? What’s his favorite human food? Things like that,” DeRam said. “Hopefully, we could go out there and, one, spot him, and, two, try to get him to safety.”

She said it can be very dangerous for a young animal, especially a Shih Tzu, surviving outdoors amid the heat and dangerous wildlife. The same day Cepoi posted in the group, DeRam said there had already been sightings of Toby by the group.

DeRam said the group decided to place out a humane, safe trap with some items that might lure Toby while not harming the animal. She said once animals are in that “fight or flight” mode, like Toby was after the accident, it can be tough getting them to come around.

On June 15, Toby was again sighted, but DeRam said there were too many people trying to spot him. She said there’d be no way to catch him until he was able to settle down and feel safe.

On June 16, the group worked on another rescue call, but headed back out with the trap June 17, working in shifts, members rotating in the search efforts.

On June 18, Annette Hernandez headed for her shift to look for the puppy and found Toby had finally come into the trap. Hernandez contacted Cepoi and her family, took Toby home for the night and met up with Cepoi and her family in Ellensburg on June 19.

DeRam said Toby was found less than a quarter-mile away from where the collision took place and never really went far from there. She said she could see the sight of the collision from where the humane trap was set up.

For the family and the Lost and Found pet group, the reunion was a relief to see.

“They couldn’t believe Toby was safe,” DeRam said. “It was a miracle that he survived, a 5-month-old Shih Tzu out there. That’s a pretty dangerous situation, especially being in a situation where there’s a fatality in the other car.”

In many cases for the pet group, someone will find a lost pet and post it one day and have the family reunited with their lost pet within a couple of days. Some cases are more tragic and heart-wrenching like this one, she said. She also said rescues and reunions like this wouldn’t have been possible without the help of an array of volunteers and community members stepping up.

All in all, she said it was just a relief to have a bit of a happy outcome with this case, as a family involved in a serious car crash less than a week prior was reunited with their young pup.

Casey McCarthy can be reached via email at cmccarthy@columbiabasinherald.com.