Armed with a golf club, Shirley McMillan of Cochin carefully opened the bathroom door after a neighbour said a big animal had gotten into her house, which was for sale.
McMillan opened the door and her beloved dog Chase jumped out. As of Tuesday, March 6, Chase had been missing for 23 days.
“I didn’t go in, I was afraid to go in, I pushed the door as far as I could and out came my dog,” McMillan said. “It was unbelievable.”
Chase went missing on Feb. 11. McMillan had phoned police and the radio station, driven to nearby First Nations, Medstead and Glaslyn, put up posters, and made Facebook posts. She’d even posted a reward.
McMillan isn’t sure how Chase got into the house. She said she thinks a family member of the homeowner was at the house around Feb. 11 and might have left a door open by mistake, allowing Chase to sneak in.
“The doors were locked and nothing was broken into,” McMillan said.
Chase drank the water in the toilet. A window in the bathroom faced McMillan’s house. McMillan said it was upsetting to think that Chase was “trapped there all this time and watching us.”
“He must’ve seen us going in and out all the time,” McMillan said.
Another neighbour one night heard a dog barking, then said he looked out the window and saw no dog.
On March 6, family members of the homeowner went to Cochin to check on the house. McMillan said they shovelled their way into the house. After realizing an animal was in the bathroom, they asked McMillan for help.
After taking the dog to the vet's, McMillan said Chase lost nine pounds but was in good health.
McMillan said she left Chase's bed out for him along with food in case he came home.
"I'm happy he's home," McMillan said.
