Marley, pit

Marley returns home after a year
Wellington dog back after rough adventure
Stacey Wood, Dominion Post
June 9, 2011

HOMEWARD BOUND: Marley, who had been missing for a year, is recovering and putting on weight at the SPCA before going home with owner Hinetaapora Moko-Mead.

A microchip has helped reunite a lost dog with her family, a year after she went missing.

Wellington SPCA's animal rescue unit found Marley running around in traffic on State Highway 2 near Petone on Sunday, and took her to the SPCA base in Newtown.

SPCA senior inspector Ben Lakomy said Marley was extremely underweight and in a "pretty rough" condition.

Thanks to a microchip the size of a grain of rice, the SPCA was able to find Marley's owner, who had last seen her about a year ago.

Mr Lakomy said: "We rang some of the neighbours first, just to make sure she hadn't been at that address when she got into that condition, but they said they hadn't seen her there for ages."

When he rang Marley's owner in Porirua, Hinetaapora Moko-Mead, she was overjoyed. "They were very, very shocked to get a call from us, they were over the moon, and quite emotional when they came in."

Miss Moko-Mead said she had found Marley as a seven-month-old stray and taken her in. "We took her to the SPCA but then we decided to keep her.

"We paid a lot of money and got her vaccinations done, and got her microchipped and everything, and then a year ago she ran away.

"We looked everywhere for her, rang around, drove around looking."

Marley was wearing a collar with her name and phone number on it when she went missing, along with the microchip.

Marley had given birth during the year she was missing, and Miss Moko-Mead said that might indicate the dog had been stolen. Mr Lakomy said Marley was the kind of dog that might have been kept to breed fighting dogs.

The family's other dog, Rocky, would be pleased, Miss Moko-Mead said. "They're around the same age, so they're best friends, and he was quite depressed when she went missing."

Mr Lakomy said the SPCA had not found any puppies near where Marley turned up. Anyone who had seen a similar-looking dog lately was asked to contact the SPCA.

Source: http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/5118480/Marley-returns-home-after-a-year
More pictures at: http://www.wellingtonspca.org.nz/news/topics/media/