Dog, missing 2 years, returns
Published: March 14, 2007
Every so often since the day Angus McGee disappeared, Richard Strickler would drive around Dickinson, hoping to find him.
Angus, an 11-year-old Schnauzer, was his traveling buddy, lap pillow and best friend.
They drove to Washington state twice and to Oklahoma countless times. When Angus heard the car start, he knew it was time for a trip.
“He went everywhere I went,” Strickler said. “He loved to ride. He’d lay in the car all day and sleep in the hotel at night.”
But two years ago, Strickler and his wife, Maureen, were shocked to find Angus missing from the backyard of their home.
They didn’t know if he escaped or if someone stole him, but for almost two months they placed ads in the paper and signs on every street corner.
Slowly, the Stricklers came to realize Angus wasn’t coming home.
Just last month, Strickler threw away the folder with Angus’ pedigree information.
But when his wife was cleaning the house Friday night, with the door wide open, an unexpected guest walked right in.
He was a little thinner and had a collar that was different than the one he left with, but it was Angus.
“We’ve been praying for that dog,” his wife said. “It’s just incredible.”
They’re not sure where he’s been, but they know someone owned him recently. He’s been groomed and had the new collar.
But now that he’s back home, he’s fallen right back in his old habits.
He still plays roughly with the couple’s bigger dog and rushes to sleep next to Strickler when it’s time for bed.
“I thought it was another dog and I didn’t believe it,” Strickler said. “I finally got up out of bed. He still had the same look. He knew it was me. He hasn’t left my shadow since.”
It’s especially comforting for Strickler in the state he’s in.
Soon after Angus left, Strickler was diagnosed with throat cancer.
Now in its late stages, Strickler is bed-ridden and finds it difficult to speak.
But the comfort of his old friend cuddled up to him means more than words can say.
“I’m just happy,” he said. “I’m thanking God.”
Strickler isn’t planning on any long trips like the two used to go on.
But he’s hoping that he can gather his strength to go by the grocery store with Angus riding shotgun.
“He came back for one more get-together,” he said.
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