Siberian husky ‘Jenna’ reunited with family
Published: March 19, 2005
Jenna wasn’t talking, but she seemed to be enjoying the reunion with her first family.
The purebred Siberian husky, who ran away nearly three years ago while at a dog obedience training session in Lowell, Mass. — and later moved with its new owner to Bath — was reunited with her family yesterday.
Chris Benn, and his son, Eric, 11, formerly of Lowell, flew up from their home in Melbourne, Fla., to pick up Jenna.
Eric kept hold of the bright pink leash while Jenna was fussed over by everyone who saw her. Benn said Jenna used to sleep on Eric’s bed and when Eric found out Jenna had been found: “He was psyched.”
Eric wasn’t alone. After receiving a phone call that Jenna had been found, said Benn: “My wife didn’t sleep at all.”
Heather Benn stayed home with the couple’s other three children, while Chris and Eric flew to Manchester yesterday.
Judging by the dog hair on his black fleece jacket, Chris Benn had already given Jenna a warm welcome. He joked Jenna was preparing for her Florida trip by starting to shed the heavy winter coat she won’t need in her new home.
Benn said the three of them will drive back to Florida, to give them time to get reacquainted, although Jenna seemed to slip right back into the family circle.
Benn acknowledged being “a bit apprehensive” when he first learned Jenna had been found, but he said he was reassured about the dog’s condition and disposition by Bath Police Chief Dennis MacKay.
“Everybody who sees her falls in love with her,” said MacKay, who would have kept Jenna in a minute if he hadn’t found her owners.
MacKay and his family brought the dog to Manchester to meet the Benns, who had given up hope of ever seeing Jenna again.
Chris Benn said his wife was at an obedience class with Jenna, practicing the “stay” and “come” commands when Jenna ran off in 2002. Jenna had done the exercise several times without a problem. But, the last time, “She just kind of looked at (Heather) and ran off,” he said.
The Benns searched for Jenna, posted fliers and advertised in local papers, with no success.
Leslie Perkins, the man who found Jenna, recently told Chief MacKay he had tried, unsuccessfully, to locate the dog’s owners. Benn said yesterday: “We were definitely still around.”
Although MacKay described Perkins’ decision to keep the dog “a poor judgment call,” he said the dog was clearly well cared for and very friendly around people. According to MacKay, Perkins picked up the dog in Lowell in 2002.
Perkins is serving time now in the Grafton County House of Correction, and he asked MacKay to place the dog he called “Babe.”
One of the people staying at Perkins’ house in Bath recalled that Jenna had been wearing Lowell, Mass., dog tag No. 466 when found.
That piece of information, through a remarkable string of coincidences, led to the Benns in Florida.
MacKay said when the Lowell dog officer found the Benns’ Lowell address, someone else saw the address on the card and said a relative had bought the house and, after a few more connections were made, the Benns were located.
MacKay said it was clearly meant to be that Jenna would be reunited with her original family.
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