One man and his two dogs were faced with a task that only they could solve, and after a long unexpected journey, this man and his dogs became local heroes.
Hitting the Ground Walking
Mark White was taking a stroll through the park with his two dogs on a beautiful Saturday morning. Mark was a quiet guy, who lived alone with his two pooches. These dogs were Mark’s entire world since he was somewhat introverted and was content with his life with just him and his dogs.
Man’s Best Friends
Mark White lived in Michigan with his two pups named Belle and Crew. Mark spent the majority of his social time with his dogs, and he loved to walk them around the town parks that he lived by. Fortunately, he decided to be in the right place at the right time on this fateful day…
Blowing Off Some Steam
Mark brought his dogs on an unusually long walk that day. The weather had been so bad for the entire Winter, and now that Spring was here, Mark needed to get out of the house and into nature. His pups thanked him for that! When turning the corner after walking through his local park, Mark was stopped by somebody who seemed a little unhinged.
Turning a Corner
The man that stopped Mark seemed to be in his 70s, and he walked shakily with a cane. Nobody was around them, and the man was trying to communicate something to Mark, but he was so worked up that he couldn’t speak. Mark attempted to calm the man down, but tears began to roll down his cheeks, as he took deep breaths and started to form words…
Letting it All Out
The confrontational stranger kept Mark captive in the exchange until he had calmed himself down enough to speak. Feeling obligated to help, Mark sat the man down on a bench next to them, all the while his dogs were barking furiously because of the stranger’s odd behavior.
Vanished in Plain Sight
The man stated through tears that he was looking for his wife, but she disappeared. He was sobbing because he was old and not able-bodied enough to search for her. Mark attempted to calm him down even further, stating that she couldn’t have gone far, and she was probably looking for him as well. Then, the man told Mark something that pressed the urgency of the whole situation…
Oh, That’s Why
The old man explained that he had been out on a walk with his wife Terry, to get her out of the house. Terry had advanced dementia, which made it incredibly difficult to live with her. The old man had loved her for a very long time, and he made a commitment to taking care of her, through thick and thin, in sickness and health.
An Invasive Disease
Dementia is a terrible chronic illness that typically affects those who have Alzheimer’s disease. There is no cure for either of these diseases and generally, people who suffer from symptoms of Dementia and Alzheimer’s decline until they inevitably die. However, Terry’s symptoms were within a range of treatment with medicine, and on that day she had forgotten to take a dose…
Wandering Off
People who suffer from Dementia tend to disregard their surroundings, disassociate, and delude themselves into a different mind-frame. There is not much to do to prevent those who have these kinds of illnesses from wandering off. The best course of action is to stick near them at all times, just in case they have an episode, which the old man did, and somehow she just slipped through his fingers.
Mark Steps Up
Mark could not ignore that this man needed his assistance, as he understood the situation they were dealing with. Mark was walking the same way the old man was and struck out with him to search for Terry. They stopped passers-by and inquired about the old man’s lost wife, but nobody they stopped had seen Terry at all…
Time Was Fleeting
As the sun went down, the old man grew more and more anxious about his lovely wife. As Mark and the man walked through the woods in search of Terry, Mark secretly began to lose hope of finding her in the thick of the trees.
Finding an Opening
As Mark and the old man reached a clearing, they silently watched the sun set together. As the temperature dropped, Mark broke the silence to say “We need to find her as soon as possible, I can stay out with my dogs, you might want to take a break.” The old man insisted on staying, and he turned around to walk out of the forest with Mark. They sauntered back to the park where Terry had gone missing, their spirits were low…
Getting Creative
Mark and the old man began interrogating everyone they could find in the park, asking if anyone had seen an old woman, showing them pictures of Terry, and asking if they had known of anybody who passed through the park that day that might be able to chat with them. Unfortunately, no progress was made in this attempt.
Sensing Something’s Amiss
Mark’s dogs began to act strangely, they were jumping on their leashes and barking, trying to push forward in front of Mark and the old man. Mark thought this was strange but ultimately chose to ignore this sign, was he making a grave mistake?…
Taking Drastic Measures
Mark and the old man decided that they would contact the police regarding this problem. The police contacted local volunteers to assist in the search, which was great for Mark and the old man because the sun had already gone down and it was getting increasingly difficult for them to see.
The Missing Piece
The police’s assistance did not make much of a difference, as they were too far spread out and did not have the tools that typical searchers would have, like flashlights. That’s when Mark returned to the spot in the park where his dogs went crazy. The two pups were exhausted but sprung to life when they reached the location they last reacted to. Mark suspected something was up, so he released his dogs off of their leashes…
Still A Mystery
Dogs have a history of sensing things innately, Mark is unsure how they caught on to something so intensely driving, but he knew that following his dog’s lead was probably their best bet in finding Terry.
Questioning Their Motives
Mark was skeptical of his dog’s behavior, but they were so hell-bent on finding whatever they were chasing, sprinting after them was the only way he’d get them back after they were done sprinting! The dogs started leading Mark back into the woods where they had given up on trying to find Terry…
Darting Through the Trees
Mark was sprinting through the forest holding a flashlight in one hand, following his dogs. They had run at least a mile by now for sure, and Mark was getting exhausted. That was until a shiny object showed itself in the grass where Mark was shining his flashlight.
Spectacles Out in the Wild
The old man couldn’t keep up with Mark and the dogs, so there was no way to identify whether these glasses belonged to Terry or not. They did seem new, and would potentially belong to a female person. Mark started to get anxious, thinking that something sinister might have happened to Terry that would have caused her to drop her glasses on the ground…
Seeking Answers
Mark called out to the police officers that we’re searching in the nearby area. He had a feeling that these glasses belonged to Terry, and that they were on the right path to finding her. Unfortunately, calling out for Terry yielded no results whatsoever.
Stepping Out Further
The sky started to turn black, and the night was in full swing. Mark’s vision was solely dependent on the flashlight that he was holding, but he pushed forward. He used the desperation of the old man, and his empathy drive him deeper and deeper into the woods.
Surrounded By Trees
Marks dogs started acting strange once more as they pushed further into the woods, now easily three miles away from civilization, no police officers in sight. Mark swallowed his anxiety and trusted his dog’s intuition as he followed their lead.
Clearing Things Up
Mark’s dogs ran them towards a clearing in the woods. They stopped and started frantically sniffing the ground, running from point to point and finally settling on a direction. When Mark turned his flashlight in the direction that the dogs were pointing him in, and what he saw made his heart skip a beat.
There She Was
Mark saw a figure, sitting still on a tree stump. Mark called out to the figure, but they didn’t respond. After taking several steps forward, Mark could see that this person was an older woman. Mark lept and ran as fast as he could towards the figure person on the stump, he was positive that this was Terry.
It Was Terry
Mark called out to Terry, she turned around confused, seemingly on many different levels. She was confused as to why this stranger was calling her by her name, and why she was in the middle of this forest alone. But, the sight of Mark’s dogs cheered her up enough for her to drop her guard and snap out of her delusion.
Returning Home
The walk back felt like it took a quarter of the time than the walk into the woods. Mark was elated, Terry was confused but compliant. Mark could not wait to return Terry to her loving husband.
A Shocking Twist
When they emerged from the woods, Mark and Terry were shocked to see an ambulance, directly where Mark had left the old man.
Poor Health
The old man had been so anxious for so long, and was so exhausted from searching for his wife all night, that he had collapsed in the parking lot of the park where Mark and the pups left him earlier.
Turning the Tables
When Mark and Terry arrived at the hospital, they found the old man attached to breathing tubes, and apparently, his heart had slowed down because of the shock and anxiety, but doctors assured the pair that he would make a full recovery. It is here that Mark learned the old man’s real name, Carl.
Positivity Ensues
Mark retired for the night, bringing Terry with him to the waiting room in the hospital lobby. He made sure she was safe and comfortable, and Mark fell asleep in the chair he sat down on, with his two pups asleep underneath.
A Happy Turn of Events
When Mark awoke, he was told that Carl had made a complete turnaround, and would be back on his feet in a short period of time, but for now, he had to stay in the hospital until they cleared him for dismissal. Terry was still asleep next to him, she hadn’t moved since they sat down!
Returning to Normal Life
When Mark went home, he received a call from the hospital, stating that Carl was to be released that afternoon, and he had his tearful reunion with Terry, who had been supplied with the proper medicine that she needed. The doctor said that Carl would not stop singing Mark’s praise, and was telling the story of his dog’s bravery to anyone who would listen.
Such a Happy Ending
Crew and Belle received honorary local hero certificates because, without them, Terry might have never been found. This just goes to show, trusting in your animal’s intuition might save someone’s life down the line.