Family reunited with dog after 3 years; Microchip allows owners to be located in Calgary.

With all the sad, angy or just horrendously appalling articles in the news, it's a treasure to find one upbeat. Well this should give you all something to smile about in The Orilla Packet & Times. It's also a valuable lesson why you should have your pets microchipped.

Family reunited with dog after 3 years; Microchip allows owners to be located in Calgary
Posted By Nathan Taylor

The Varley family is complete again.

Abigail the Rottweiler was reunited with her rightful owner, Jason Varley, Saturday in Ramara Township, three years after the dog disappeared in Midland. Varley took a red-eye flight from Alberta to retrieve the pet.
Nathan Taylor

Just a few days ago, they were looking at photos of their Rottweiler, Abigail, "talking about her, wondering how she was doing," Jason Varley said.

"Abby" went missing from the family vehicle three years ago while Jason and his wife, Claire, were having a Sunday breakfast in Midland.

It was a busy December day in Midland. The Santa Claus parade drew a large crowd to the downtown area.
The Varleys, who then lived in Waubaushene, parked in a downtown lot and left Abby in the vehicle, as they often did when they went out. Abby would always be waiting patiently, Jason Varley recalled, when he and his wife returned.

So, when they finished their breakfast and returned to the lot to find Abby missing, "we knew she was taken," Jason Varley said.

"It was too late. She was gone," he said.

The Varleys searched tirelessly in Midland, Orillia and elsewhere for their lost pet. A $1,000, then $2,500, reward was offered for her return.

The couple has moved four times since Abby disappeared. With their one-year-old son, Connor, they now reside in Calgary, Alta.

The hope they lost over the past three years returned with a phone call Friday from Allen Robinson, a canine control officer with Ramara Township.

Abby had been located at an apartment complex in Ramara. The superintendent brought the dog to an Orillia shelter before Robinson and his wife, Diana, also a canine control officer, retrieved her.

Assuming the dog was stolen, Diana Robinson checked with the breeder, who confirmed that hunch.

Abby was scanned with the hope of finding a microchip that contained information vital to getting the dog back to its owners. It was determined Abby had the chip, which was registered with the Canadian Kennel Club.

"(Jason Varley) thought it was a joke when I called him," Allen Robinson explained. "It took me probably five minutes to convince him she was found."

Varley boarded a red-eye flight in Alberta at 12:15 a.m. Saturday, arriving in Ontario about 6 a.m.

Saturday afternoon, an emotional Varley was reunited with the family's "first kid."

"We lost a legit family member three years ago, and we've got her back now," he said. "Now she gets to go and climb some mountains."

It's an overwhelmingly exciting time for the Varleys. As well as getting back their dear Abby, they're expecting another child in November.

Orillia OPP Const. Fred Lebarr, who is investigating the theft of Abby, advised people to have a microchip - about the size of a grain of rice - implanted in their pets and update the Canadian Kennel Club when they relocate.

Lebarr is seeking to speak with a person of interest in relation to the case, he said.

Saturday's reunion was a positive break from a lot of the day-to-day business police deal with, he added.

"When there's a win, it's nice."

There were no signs of abuse when Abby was found.
ntaylor@orilliapacket.com