Lizzie, miniature poodle

Poodle Power: Tiny dog survives eight days in the elements
By John Sents, Staff Writer
Friday, March 7, 2008

Irene DellaSilva kisses her poodle, Lizzie, after their reunion Monday at Vega Construction in Elko. Six-year-old Lizzie went missing Dec. 18 near the Carlin Tunnels and was found by two Union Pacific Railroad employees who reunited the dog with its owners. At left, Lee DellaSilva talks with the Union Pacific employees.here

ELKO - Ogden, Utah, residents Lee and Irene DellaSilva got their Christmas wish this year.

Eight days after the DellaSilvas' 6-year-old poodle, Miss Lizzie, was lost during a rollover car accident east of Carlin, a Union Pacific crew spotted the black pooch Monday morning on railroad tracks near the crash site. For the DellaSilvas, who had given up hope of finding their home-trained dog alive, the discovery of the pet has been a Christmas miracle.

“It is an act of God as far as I am concerned,” said Lee DellaSilva. “This just renews our faith in the Christmas miracle.”

Miss Lizzie's travels began after she fled the DellaSilvas' vehicle following a Dec. 18 rollover accident on Interstate 80. The vehicle landed on its top and the dog took off running through a broken window, DellaSilva said. She said rescuers kept them from immediately searching for their pet. They were forced to leave the area and could not find the dog when they returned, DellaSilva said.

“She just went running like a scared rabbit,” DellaSilva said. “By the time we rented a car and got back, it was too late. We weren't equipped for hiking down to the riverbed.” Over eight days, Miss Lizzie travelled without food through coyote territory before lying down in exhaustion on a railway trestle crossing over the Humboldt River, midway between the Carlin Tunnels and the Hunter-Banks Ranch.

“She is not a killer, she is our house baby,” DellaSilva said. “She has never had to go out on her own for anything.”

The poodle was spotted and rescued by Union Pacific's LUW 49 crew thanks to a “missing dog” poster that the DellaSilvas had provided to a UP outpost. Mike Kessler, engineer with the Union Pacific's LUW 49 crew, said a rail crew first spotted the dog on Christmas Eve but didn't stop because they assumed she was dead. He said animals frequently lie in the tracks.

 “Nine times out of 10, if they are on the track, they are dead,” Kessler said. At least two other trains passed over the dog before the LUW 49 crew recognized Miss Lizzie from the poster and saw her weakly pop her head up as the train approached, Kessler said. The crew put the train into an emergency stop and went back to rescue the dog, lying cold and desperate on the railroad tracks. They warmed her up, dried her off, cleaned her up and placed her snugly in a work bag for a ride back home, Kessler said.

 “It is just something totally weird,” Kessler said. “This just doesn't happen. Especially with something this small ... . We call her Lucky Lizzie now”

 After eight days in the elements, the poodle was about to give up, Kessler said. Still, he said she was in remarkably good condition considering that she was lost in the wild for eight days.

 “It is Christmas. What a present, huh?” Kessler said. “Fate, I guess you call it.

After finishing their shift, the LUW 49 crew - which includes Kessler, conductor Shaun Wheeler, brakeman John Tanner and student brakeman Rob Chase - brought Miss Lizzie back to Elko and called the DellaSilvas to let them know their dog was safe and sound. The DellaSilvas were reunited with their pet that afternoon in Elko.

 Holding back tears through deep breaths, Irene DellaSilva said she was overjoyed to have her Lizzie back.

 “I told God I'd give up everything to have her back,” DellaSilva said. “I felt so guilty yesterday because I was having Christmas and she wasn't.” Lee DellaSilva also was pleased. “This is the Christmas present of all time for me,” he said.

 As part of their search for Miss Lizzie, the DellaSilvas were offering a $1,000 reward. Kessler said the LUW 49 crew is donating the reward to the Dogtown Rescue organization.

 The DellaSilvas expressed thanks to everyone who helped locate Miss Lizzie and return her home.

 “My prayers came true,” Irene DellaSilva said.

Source: http://www.elkodaily.com/articles/2005/12/27/news/local_news/news1.txt
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