Hahira family brings Yuletide joy to couple seeking lost pet

Published 1:00 pm Tuesday, December 27, 2011

A Hahira family granted an early Christmas wish to a Florida couple searching for a lost loved one.

Ann Exum, of Hahira, did not know her daughter’s discovery would change her family’s traditional Christmas this year and open the door to a new family when she came home with an unexpected guest.

On Dec. 19, Alli Exum was visiting her grandmother’s home when she heard what sounded like a dog in trouble. As she followed the cries, she found a miniature Doberman Pinscher stuck in the fence surrounding the back yard.

“We are still unsure just how that dog ended up in my mom’s back yard,” Ann said in an interview Monday.

Alli tried to comfort the tiny dog she rescued. The Valdosta State University student took the shivering pup to her home and filled her mother in on the details.

“We immediately made her (the dog) as comfortable as possible,” Ann said. “We fixed up a kennel for her and fed her. She was starving. We weren’t sure how long she had been in my mom’s back yard, and despite the weather conditions and lack of food, we could tell she belonged to someone and was well taken care of. That night we just did our best to make sure she was comfortable and felt like

part of the family.”

Because there was no identification on the dog, the Exums did not know where she had come from or what her name was. Alli told her mom she thought the small animal looked like a Roxy … so Roxy it was.

“On Tuesday morning (Dec. 20), I got on the phone and started calling every veterinarian and even called my own (vet) in Quitman,” Ann said. “Our vet, Dr. Bassham, told us to bring the dog in, and he would check her for a micro chip.”

But before Ann took “Roxy” to Dr Bassham, she decided to call the Lowndes County Animal Shelter just to see if someone had been inquiring about a dog matching her description. When the receptionist at the shelter told Ann a Florida family was indeed searching for the dog she described, Ann immediately called the number provided by the shelter.

“As soon as Amie (one of the dog’s owners) answered the phone, I told her who I was and that we found her baby … she just cried!” Ann recalled. “It was very emotional. I cried, my daughter cried. Amie told me she received her Christmas miracle and we were ‘Roxy’s’ angels.”

When Ann asked what the tiny Doberman’s name was, Amie replied, “Roxy.”  The owners, including husband Dan, also have a female beagle name Soco. Amie told Ann that Soco has been grieving the lost of her pal, Roxy, and hasn’t really been eating for the past week. Ann said she was just happy she could reassure the Eldreds that their “baby” was in good hands until they could return to pick her up.

For Christmas, the Exums bought Roxy a stocking and hung it next to the stockings belonging to the family’s two Dachshunds. They also took pictures and sent them to the ecstatic couple. Alli went a step further and became friends with Aime on Facebook so she could send updates on Roxy throughout the upcoming days. She even sent a Christmas picture and message from Roxy posing with her new “guardian angels.”

Ann is a letter carrier with the postal service and said she has assisted in reuniting many animals with their owners in the past, but this occasion is by far the most emotional one she has been a part of.

“It is a blessing to be able to help someone,” Ann said. “This Christmas has been the best ever … it was certainly a different one, but a good one. I just thank God things turned out the way they did.”

While traveling the distance from Ohio to Hahira, Amie Eldred corresponded with The Times via her iPhone. In sharing the details of the traumatic events, Amie said tears were once again forming as she remembered the empty feeling of losing her dog. The couple along with Roxy and Soco, were heading to Ohio from Florida to visit family for Christmas. This is Amie’s account:

“On Friday (Dec.16),  we were driving from Okeechobee, Fla., to Arcanum, Ohio. We have done this trip many times with Roxy and Soco.

“Our first stop on the trip was in Hahira … for gas and to let the dogs out to potty. It was 9 p.m. My husband Dan and I are both teachers and could not leave until after work that day. Roxy was super excited to get out and smell around so I hooked her leash first. She was tugging and pulling on the ground to go but I held on tightly, I still had to get Soco on the leash. Just as I was getting Soco’s leash, Roxy slipped her head right out of the collar. I got Dan’s attention quickly and we were on the chase. Just like that she was across the parking lot of the gas station and to the field behind it.

“At this time the fog was just starting to set so she was very hard to see. Then we couldn’t see her at all. We called and called … but nothing. It was a very empty feeling. At the time we didn’t even know what city we were in. All we did was stop for gas and expect to never look back. After a couple hours of walking the field and the interstate, we didn’t know what to do. A little before midnight, we saw a cop near by. He was very nice and took my information and the description of Roxy. He told me about the Lowndes County Shelter and that in the morning that would be a good place to call. He also brought his car to the field and shinned his spotlight all around to help us look. Finally we parted ways, and he promised to keep an eye out for her and call us if he found her. We were able to leave a sign at the gas station with our information and Roxy’s description. Not knowing what else we could do we decided to have faith in people and the community and hope that someone would find her and contact us. We drove on. It was one of the toughest decisions ever. At this point my parents didn’t even know we were coming to Ohio so I couldn’t even call them to tell what happened. My sister and aunt were the only ones we told. We wanted the trip to be a surprise. My brother had just deployed to Afghanistan earlier that same month and my sister was about to move to South America as a missionary. It only seemed right we be in Ohio for Christmas.”

The next couple of days were extremely hard on the couple. They contemplated cutting their trip short so they could return to Hahira and look for Roxy. Friends and family members got involved and offered their assistance. Amie said all they could do was pray and hope. She called the Lowndes County Animal Shelter and left her information. When she received the call from Ann, she stated she could not speak, she could only listen to the sweet voice on the other end with the best news ever. Amie’s emotions got the best of her and those emotions affected everyone in the household. Ann told her to stay and spend Christmas with her family and not worry about cutting the trip to get Roxy. Aime found it to be just “amazing” that total strangers were able and willing to help them out. She said she can’t thank Rosalie from the shelter enough, nor the nice policeman who showed his concern nor, most of all, the Exums for making their Christmas a truly special one. Nothing, not even car trouble on their journey back to Hahira, stopped this family from being reunited with their beloved dog and meeting the “amazing” family who kindly took her in during the Christmas holiday.

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