Harley, a min pin

Dog lost in 2001 is found in Broward County, returned to Boca family
Published December, 25th 2008.
By Dale M. King, City Editor

Raymond and Traci Deien of Boca Raton say it’s nothing short of a miracle. And considering the time of year, the family figures it qualifies as Christmas miracle.

Basically, Harley, a miniature pinscher that Traci received as a Mother’s Day present in 1999, disappeared in 2001. She apparently got out through a torn screen – or was stolen by a thief who ripped the screen, the Deiens said.

The family never gave up. And Raymond said he always had a feeling Harley would return. Seasons, holidays, anniversaries and birthdays went by. It was particularly tough on Traci since Harley was born on her birthday, Jan. 22. But one day in early December of this year, the miracle began to emerge from the cloud of doubt.

A min pin – diabetic, blind and poorly cared for – showed up at the Broward County Shelter. An alert worker thought to check the dog for an identification chip. The Deiens had one inserted into Harley when she was a pup. But it hadn’t been updated in years – and still listed the family’s address in California. Some detective work on the Broward animal care worker – including a lot of Google searching – located the Deiens in Boca Raton.

Long Awaited

“We knew it was the right dog,” said Raymond. He, his wife and daughter Roxanne went to the shelter at 8:30 a.m., as they were. When they arrived, they were told the place didn’t open until 10:30. So they waited. It had been seven years, Raymond figure. What difference did a couple more hours make?

Luckily, the Deiens had kept all of Harley’s medical records. “We figured one day we might need them.” And that lucky day finally arrived. The condition of the dog led the Deiens to believe she had been stolen, then hidden and poorly taken care of for years. When it appeared the animal had too many diseases for the thief to take care of, he or she put it out on the street. Luckily, the Broward County animal people were there to bring her in.

Whoever took her “never took her to a vet.” So when the Deiens were able to take Harley away at 10:30 a.m., they took her to a veterinarian. “Everyone welcomed us with arms,” Raymond said. It was pretty much determined Harley was blind because of the untreated diabetes. But “she still had a lot of life,” he said, even at 10 years old.

They ended up taking her to an optometrist in West Palm Beach who is working on the blindness. He told the Deiens he believes the dog may eventually see again – and seems already to be sensing light.

“This was early Christmas present,” said the Deiens with immeasurable joy.

With Harley back home, and the Christmas season fostering memories, Traci Deien remembered Mother’s Day in 1999 when her oldest son, Tim, who was in the service stationed in Nebraska, sent her money to purchase a miniature pinscher as a present. She did, and the family loved her. At the time, the Deiens lived in California, where Raymond was also in the military.

“I retired in 2001, and we moved to Boca Raton Dec. 31, 2000 – New Year’s Eve.” They were living with his brother while they looked for a house. Not long after that, Traci said she went to the market while her daughter, Roxanne, and son, Daniel, were at home. When Traci came home, she said, ‘Where’s Harley?” The family went to a Florida room in the house where they found a screen had been torn. Harley was missing.

“We had posters up downtown, all around the neighborhood, the whole nine yards,” said Raymond. “We never stopped looking.” With luck – and a little intervention from the Christmas season – Harley is back home to celebrate her first Christmas this century with Raymond and Traci Deien and children Tim, now 29; Richard, 27; Dan, 24 and Roxanne, 21.

Source: http://www.bocanews.com/local-news/dog-lost-in-2001-is-found-in-broward-county-returned-to-boca-family-99852.htm
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