If a dog really is a man’s best friend, then Kelly Booker of Denver just got his best friend back after a four-year absence.
According to a May 7, 2015, AP story, “Booker’s 9-year-old Shih Tzu, Lilly, was found last month wandering the streets nearly a thousand miles away in Elgin, Ill., suffering from a severe infection and exposure. Her nails grew long, and people who found her said she was in bad shape.”
The pet disappeared from her Denver backyard on July 4, 2011. Kelly says he doesn’t know if Lilly ran away because she was frightened by the fireworks or if she was stolen.
According to the AP story, “Volunteers at the Almost Home Foundation rescued Lilly and nursed her back to health. She was identified by a microchip with her owner’s contact information, and Booker was notified.”
A spokesman for the foundation said the dog “got a big send-off in Illinois before she was sent home. ‘She’s getting a lot of attention. She even had her own press conference before she left.’”