Kudos to Shasta Animal Control

We've always licensed our dogs, both to comply with the law and to protect the dogs in case they become lost.

We always took care to keep our dogs home or under control, so we never had reason to test having a lost dog returned. That was until my son, Jim, took our little Toy Fox Terrier, Sunshine, with him when he took my husband, George, for an appointment.

Previously, Sunny had always stayed contentedly in the van and waited. This time, however, he was gone when they returned to the van parked near Cypress Avenue and Bechelli in Redding!

In a panic, Jim looked for Sunny up and down Cypress but saw no trace of his small, white dog.

Meanwhile, the phone here at home rang.

It was Shasta County Animal Control.

"Is Sunny missing?" the caller asked me.

When I replied that Sunny was with my son, Jim, the caller responded that Sunny had been found by someone and was being held for safekeeping at a nearby motel.

I called Jim on his cell phone and told him the good news that Sunny was safe and could be picked up at the motel. Sunny had apparently been his charming little self and captivated the lady holding him.

It was a happy sequence of events for which we were grateful to both Animal Control and the people who followed through on his rescue.

This came to mind recently while talking to someone living in a different area who had an experience that turned out just the opposite. Apparently someone took their purebred, registered dog out of their yard.

Animal Control in that area had the dog. The owner's name and information were on the collar. When the owner asked Animal Control, they denied they had the dog.

They also denied the owner access to the facility to look for the dog. The owner looked through a high window, saw the dog and demanded its return. To get the dog back, they were forced to pay a stiff fine.

Kudos to our Shasta County Animal Control folks.