Story submitted by Zara’s owner, Tarina Strydom
Professional photography by Xany Jansen Van Vuuren
My name is Zara and I’m a one-year-old German Shepherd girl. My parents got me when I was just eight weeks old and, according to my mom, I was the smallest of all my brothers and sisters. Apparently, I’m still a small girl for my breed, but with a lot of love and attention, and my mom and dad getting me a partner in crime, a German Shepherd male named Loki, I grew into what my dad calls a Beautiful Girl. I have two other brothers as well, Zeus the Pomeranian and Odin the Schnoodle.
Today I’d like to tell you what happened to me just over a month ago.
“Hold on!”
It was the day my mom and dad got married, and my parents, my three brothers and I were on our way to Grandma and Grandpa’s house as they were going to look after us until Mom and Dad got back from their honeymoon.
It was late afternoon and we were almost there. We were sleeping on the back seat when suddenly we heard a loud bang and Dad shouted, “Hold on!” Before we knew it, the car had rolled and we came to a stop at the side of the road.
I got such a fright that I leapt out of the car and started to run. My mom and dad called me, but as I looked back at them, I saw the horrific scene and dashed off. Many people were stopping at the accident scene, which scared me even more, and the only thing my brain told me to do was to sprint off, and so I did. Dad ran after me for a while, but I was too scared and too fast for him to catch me.
Mom said that Loki, even though he broke his back, still protected her and wouldn’t allow anyone, not even the paramedics, near her without Dad being there.
Missing in action
The next day, Grandma immediately posted on Facebook that I was missing and had been in an accident. She pleaded with people in the area to please look out for me. Mom and Dad even set a reward for my safe return.
The plea was shared on many, many groups and the news spread fast and wide. A very nice couple, Leopold and Vicky Welman-Gerber, who live near the accident scene, immediately responded and started searching for me in the area.
Unfortunately, I only respond well to my mom and dad and was too scared to react to them calling me. I mean, I didn’t know Aunt Vicky and Uncle Leopold at all, and I’d always been taught not to talk to strangers. What was I supposed to do?
Apparently, many people contacted Mom saying they saw me and that they thought I was here or there – and every time it wasn’t me. Mom said she didn’t want another dog if it wasn’t me, and she was so emotional she cried all the time – it was all Dad could do to comfort her.
In hopes of finding me, Grandpa, Aunt Anchen and Mom’s nephew, Ju-Anru, searched for hours around the accident scene, but to no avail.
A call from an unknown number
One day, while my mom and dad were walking back from the beach to have a coffee before heading back to the guesthouse, she received a call from an unknown number. She calmly answered her phone and the man, a truck driver named Nico, informed her that he was at the side of the N12 about 1km from the gate of the farm Jonkershoek, near Kimberley (which is about 2km from where the accident took place). Nico had seen me and tried to call me, but I refused to go to him and ran away again. Once he told Mom what I looked like and that I still had my collar on, she got so excited the whole of Victoria Bay heard her.
She thanked him and immediately phoned Grandma and Grandpa, who were closer to the area, to go and search for me. Yet again, she was unable to maintain a soft voice and the whole restaurant (while Dad tried to calm her down) heard her excitement.
Next, she phoned Aunt Vicky, who was even closer, to go and look for me before I disappeared again. Grandma called Uncle Leopold, and he and Aunt Vicky and her children all rushed out to look for me. They quickly found me and stayed on my trail for quite some time while I sprinted to get away, as I was still in a state of shock and feeling bewildered.
Into the bush
Grandma and Grandpa arrived a while later – their 4x4 had never driven so fast before. At first, they drove right past the bush in which I was hiding. The farm’s owner himself, Uncle Stoffel, found me cowering in the bush and called Uncle Leopold to let him know to come back.
Grandma had brought Loki with them. Loki, who was still in a lot of pain and scared, didn’t want to crawl into the bush to get me, but Grandpa wasn’t giving up and decided that he’d crawl in and get me. And so he did. Once Loki laid eyes on me, he couldn’t get to me quickly enough.
During the whole search and then finally reuniting me with my family, Mom stayed in contact via telephone – and the whole of Victoria Bay intensely listened to hear if I’d been found. Grandma video-called mom immediately as Grandpa pulled me out and she could see that I was found safe and sound.
Safe and sound
Mom and Dad took me to the vet to be checked out. I didn’t show any signs of injury or malnutrition, except I cried loudly when anyone got too close to me and I was covered with ticks. You see, I like to hunt little bugs in our grass and used that skill when I had to find food during those six days I was in the field. Luckily for me, it rained the weekend after the accident and there were water puddles in the field.
The vet told Mom and Dad that I was only bruised, like they were, and there was nothing seriously wrong with me. Grandpa powdered me every day for all the ticks on me and Mom bought me a tick remedy, which cleared any that were left.
So that’s my story. Thanks to the generous and loving hearts of my grandparents, Aunt Vicky, Uncle Leopold, Uncle Stoffel and Nico, I survived a terrible car accident and spent six days in the field before I was found and rescued. I walked away unscathed, except for a small fear of car rides. We’re all doing great, and Loki is being kept as still as possible for his back to heal.
Thank you for listening to my story.
