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We finally had a house, 2 cats in the yard, as the song goes... and now it was time to add a puppy to the mix. Enter Aerial Bomber, who turned into one of those best-dogs-in-the-world kinds of dog.

Stressful days at work called for lunch trips to our local nursery to look at flowers. One day, fate intervened and pulled me to our local Humane Society, instead. And there was this tiny ball of gold-and-white fluff with a cut paw and no tail, looking lost. She had been brought in as a 6-week-old stray puppy. I wasn’t sure what type of breed she was, but knew in my heart she was exactly the right one for me.

Photo: Lisa Smith

Being a stray, I had to wait a few days for the hold in case someone claimed her. Adopting her wasn’t going to be as easy as I thought. That night, a forest fire was creeping towards the Humane Society and a call went out to help rescue the animals. I got there as quickly as I could, but the road was already closed. To save the building, they called in an aerial bomber to fight the fires!

Two days later, the road was open, and the stray hold was lifted. Arriving bright and early so I could be first in line to adopt her, she was gone. I was heartbroken.

Slowly that day, rescuers trickled back in, returning the animals they had saved from the fire. Staff said they would call if she was returned and, many anxious hours later, we received that call. The person who rescued her during the fires wanted to know if we still wanted her. Of course, we did! After all that, it was only fitting to name her Aerial Bomber.

Photo: Pixabay

Aerial lived up to her name. An Aussie or Border Collie mix, she loved to fly through the air catching frisbees, and ran like the wind. She learned tricks in minutes and understood every word I said. I had to change the word for “squirrel” at least 5 times because she learned every name I used, and it was her mission to keep them from our yard.

She loved everyone and every dog she met and made me smile every day. Aerial will always live in my heart. She was truly the best dog in the world.

Story submitted by Lisa Smith, from Flagstaff, AZ.

Aerial Bomber’s story was originally shared on The Animal Rescue Site. Share your very own rescue story here!