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Justin Scott from California works in an ambulance with his wife Sarah. One day, while on duty, the 911 operator received a call from a person who was in desperate need of help. She turned out to be one of Justin's best friends. The man immediately left for the call, but he did not manage to save his friend.
Surviving the tragedy was not easy. Justin could not come to terms with the death of his friend and blamed himself for not saving him. Gradually, he began to sink into depression and at some point realized that he could not do without help.
It was decided to take home a dog that would be able to heal the emotional wounds of the man and return him to a normal life. Justin and Sarah went to all the local shelters and talked to a hundred dogs until they happened upon Shelby, a short-legged, short-eared dog in the parking lot. Then, when the funny dog looked at Justin, the man realized that he had found a true friend.
"I looked her in the eye and said, 'I saved you, now you save me,'" Justin recalled. "She did so, she pulled me out of the depths of hell."
From that very day, Shelby became an integral part of the family. She accompanied the owner everywhere - and was also always by his side during trips. When the family went camping in the mountains on Independence Day, it was decided to take Shelby with them.
Everyone was in good spirits anticipating a fun weekend, not yet knowing that the trip would turn into a real nightmare. As soon as the travelers arrived, Shelby got scared, broke off the leash and ran into the forest. Justin knew this area well - the impenetrable forest, steep slopes and cliffs did not promise anything good. The man decided to go in search of the pet, before trouble happened to her.
Until the very night, he wandered through the forest, shouting the name of the dog, and then he was forced to return to the camp. At night, Justin set up traps with food, hoping that the smell would help the dog return. But Shelby never came back, but several bears visited the campsite. Justin knew that their short-legged dog would not be able to cope with these dangerous predators and decided to continue his search in the morning.
The dog was nowhere to be found. 13 days passed, but there was no lead that would lead Justin to the pet. He didn't even know if she was alive.
“Shelby,” Justin wrote on Facebook, “you've always been there, saving me from trouble. We'll get you back! We will never give up! I saved you once, and I will save you again.”
After returning home, the couple turned to a non-profit organization dedicated to finding missing animals for help. Her manager, Babs Fry, personally searched for Shelby by car, sent out directions and interviewed local residents, moved by Justin's story. A day later, she managed to get the first important information: the dog was seen five kilometers from the camp.
Employees of the organization immediately began combing the area and setting traps with food and water. But it didn't help - days went by, and the dog never showed up.
And then the call again: someone noticed Shelby very close to the house. Babs rushed to check the traps, and found a dog in one of them! The animal was whole and healthy, only slightly emaciated and dirty.
Soon the dog was returned home. The long-awaited meeting turned out to be very touching - no one could hold back tears. For 28 days, the family was looking for a pet and now they could not let her out of their arms. Here's how it went:
Shelby is fine now. And Justin never gets tired of thanking fate for sending him his precious dog — and bringing it back again when there was almost no hope left.
