'What Took You So Long?' Lost Dog Comes Home after 2 Years

March 14, 2001 
St. John, New Brunswick, Canada

Bo Peep's fur was so matted that it took the Animal Rescue League almost four hours to shave it off.  But what else would you expect after two years in the wild?

A few days ago, a family from Muquash, NB was finally able to capture a dog that had been hanging around their property for the past two winters.  The family had been leaving food for him, but he was always too shy for them to approach.

When at last they managed to grab the little dog, they took him to the ARL shelter at St. John, where shelter manager Roxanne Ogden noted that he was emotionally scarred and cowered at any human contact.

After giving him a thorough cleanup and a shave, shelter workers found a registration number tattooed on his ear.  The number led them to the discovery that the dog was a rare white Puli, traced back to a breeder in Trenton, Nova Scotia who had sold him to a woman years ago.

Ultimately, the details of Bo Peep's ordeal came out.

In 1999, Bo Peep's owner had let him out of the car to relieve himself, but the dog was startled by a transport truck that whizzed by, and the panicked pooch tore off into the woods.

The owner searched for a long time, but eventually she gave up.  Bill Peart, the breeder who had sold the dog, recalls, "We had given up all hope; we never expected to see him again."

Unfortunately, Bo Peep's owner died later that year, and her surviving husband is now not interested in reclaiming the dog.

However, Mr. Peart has decided to take Bo Peep home, where he will be reunited with his canine family.

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