Apologies for missing the Feel-Good Friday last week. While moving our stuff out of storage and into our new home was definitely a feel-good, coughing up my lungs throughout was not. Some upper respiratory mess (non-COVID related) decided to ascend on me late in the week, so the one-two shot of moving, and sickness left me with few brain cells to do the move, let alone write anything. I guess my body was kind enough to hold off being sick until I could be in my own bed. I appreciate that!

All that to say, you get not one, but TWO Feel-Good Friday stories! The other one will drop the usual time, later this evening.

This first Feel-Good Friday story actually started last year, and is a testament to the fortitude, determination, and resolute will of dogs. “Dog” is “God” spelled backwards, and I don’t think that’s any accident. I learn much about the heart and love of God through my sweet pups.

A runaway dog that swam 3,300 feet across the Ohio River in 2020 has been adopted after a year of training and trust-building.

Allie, a rescue dog, ran away from her owner on Dec. 5, 2020, and swam across the Ohio River from Evansville, Indiana, to Henderson County, Kentucky, according to SWNS.

Newsflash: No happy dog runs away and swims over 3,000 feet in a river. No indication of this has been reported, but my sense from the dog’s behavior is that she was abused by her previous owner.

After she was rescued one week later, Allie was brought to volunteer trainer Michelle Phillips, 51, from Boonville, Indiana, who recently adopted the pooch, SWNS reported.

According to the news agency, when Allie first ran away from her then-owner’s home, she ran to the Ohio River and spent an hour swimming across.

While she was in the river, officers with the Evansville Police, Fire and Animal Control departments tried to rescue her, but she refused to get close to them and was almost hit by a barge, according to SWNS.

Allie’s new rescue mom, Michelle Phillips, was a part of the initial rescue efforts a year ago:

“I raced down there and found several people watching her in the water and said she had gone under several times.”

Thankfully, Allie made it across to Kentucky, but she immediately ran into the woods. For a week, rescuers tried to coax Allie to safety, but she ran away from anyone who came close to her.

Eventually, rescuers were able to get Allie in a field and after six hours, they were able to fence her in and leash her.

That night, she was placed in Phillips’ care.

Phillips says all she did was sleep. No matter how exhausted, if a dog does not feel safe, they will not lie down. Allie instinctively knew she was now safe. Thank God for Michelle Phillips.

“We just brought her home and she went and laid down on our couch,” Phillips told SWNS.

Allie was extremely scared and fearful of people during her initial stay at Philip’s home for training. However, things slowly started getting better as the trainer worked on improving the dog’s trust in people. The dog that was once extremely fearful around people, is now comfortable with the presence of humans. She went outside without a leash and never attempted to run away.

While Allie was initially supposed to spend only a few months with Philips for training, she was adopted as a pet formally, earlier this month after almost a year of her successful rescue.

From the video above, you can tell that Allie feels not only safe, but loved and cared for by Phillips. Allie has found a furever home, and I doubt she will ever choose to run away.

No safety issues in this home either. For humans and for pets, furever homes make a huge difference. Allie and Michelle Phillips, as well as the O’Connell household are looking forward to a Merry Christmas.