The Prodigal Son

Three weeks ago Jason and I drove by the Animal Shelter here in town and I said "You know, I should just call them again - even though it's been 3 months, and see if they ever found a beagle on the side of the road...just for closure." Jason then responded with "I sure would like to find that Benny before we move." To that response I gently told him Benny was gone and I just didn't think there was much hope for that.
That was 3 weeks or so ago.
Today I drove by the shelter again and it reminded me I never did call. So I looked the number up on my navigation system on my phone and, though I felt entirely stupid for even calling - I called just to check.
Surprisingly they said they actually have a dog that somewhat matched his description. I then re-explained that he doesn't really look like a Beagle and gave some more specifics about him (trying to save myself the pointless trip). Then I said "The dog's been missing since Mother's Day." I got a sympathetic "Oh - this dog was just brought in the other day...but you can come look if you want?"
What the heck. I was in the area, so I stopped by. No high hopes. Zero expectations. Feeling quite ridiculous to even be going, to be honest.
The worker leads me back to the cage, I peek in (kind of nervously for some reason)...and folks, I met eyes with MY beagle that I had assumed gone forever. That's right - it was Benny. My eyes welled up with tears and I looked up at the worker and exclaimed, "That's my dog!!!!"
He was 15lbs lighter, unbridled in his behaviors and the pound said he was brought in a few days ago, covered in fleas and ticks, found wandering the streets. I asked what street, and sure enough, it was the street I lived on when I first brought him home as a puppy - clear on the other side of town.
So after all this time, our prodigal beagle whom we loved to hate, has returned. we're now again a family 5, going on 6. :)
We might have terrible luck with dogs getting out, but we sure have amazing luck with finding them!