Guest Column: Our Sato Gem

By Guest

By Susan Tamasi

Spring has sprung! A beautiful season with bright flowers, birds singing, warmer days, longer, fun-filled nights, and for our family, adopting another rescue dog.

In May of 2006, I was a guest writer for the Citizen and wrote a story, “Adventures of Tulip,” sharing the story of our beloved rescue dog from Hurricane Katrina. Since then, we adopted another pup named “Marley,” which we later changed to “Winston.” One look at his wiry black hair, blonde eyebrows, and long beard makes grown men giggle — he is our young pup with an old soul.

Three weeks ago, our family adopted another rescue pup — this time from Puerto Rico. Her name was originally “Lupe,” which means wolf — but in looking at pictures of her, I felt there was a more fitting name. I chose “Dahlia,” both for my love of flowers and the female name’s Spanish origins, meaning dignity and grace. Recent events have shown me that she is also a warrior — and perhaps still carries a bit of wolf energy with her today.

There are wonderful organizations helping save these dogs through local foster parents, donations, and mostly word of mouth. Sally Izzo is the founder of Safe and Sound Satos, but to me, she is an angel. (“Sato” is a slang term in Puerto Rico for a small street dog.) I knew about this wonderful organization from my oldest son Matthew, who rescued his beautiful dog “Sasha” with their help. Sally shared several photos of dogs, but when I saw the adorable face of Dahlia in her crate, I just knew she was the one. Once my daughter Andrea helped convince my husband to bring Dahlia home, it was time to start the process of bringing her to Canton.

Dahlia has only been alive for four months, three of which were spent as a stray. Her journey has not been easy. Living on the streets of Puerto Rico, these mixed-breed and unwanted strays are often dumped on the beaches of Playa Lucia — which is known as “Dead Dog Beach” to those inhabiting this small island and the tourists who vacation there to relax. She was then rescued by Safe and Sound Satos and brought to a foster family before adoption by our family.

The flight home from Puerto Rico was delayed until 1:30 a.m. because of high winds and rain. Picking Dahlia up and driving her home with Andrea from Logan Airport was surreal — she was finally in our arms. All was good … until we arrived home and she immediately slipped out of her harness and ran away into the cold, dark, and muddy woods beside our home. Andrea and I were in shock. We felt sick. A nightmare that lasted 46 hours. This is where I learned about Dahlia’s warrior spirit.

After she escaped, the hours dragged by as we worried another night in the woods would mean Dahlia could be in serious danger from coyotes, foxes, and other wildlife. Daylight came and by mid-afternoon I started to give up hope, until I spotted her in the woods from my neighbors backyard. At this point, news of Dahlia going missing had spread and we had received guidance from a local organization, Missing Dogs Massachusetts, and two helpful volunteers named Cindy and Erin. Cindy emphasized the importance of which way Dahlia ran. Dahlia headed right for our other neighbors’ back deck and we learned Dahlia had been hiding beneath their grill — right next to the woods. With her safe spot beneath the deck established, we needed to establish a separate place to attract her to fresh food and water located in a safe trap, monitoring her location around this area with trail cameras set up by Missing Dogs Massachusetts. Once this was in place, it was back to the waiting game.

Later that evening, around 5 p.m., we received a text from Cindy telling us Dahlia was outside the trap sniffing around — she had grown hungry and needed to eat. We all immediately stopped where we were in the house and hoped this would be the last time we would have to experience this suspense. Andrea happened to already be standing by the window and saw Dahlia eating the pieces of hamburger around the trap. Dahlia stepped her front two legs into the trap, only to step out and circle the trap several more times. She suddenly was captivated by the big chicken strip hanging from the back of the crate and her curiosity finally led her to fully enter the crate. With all her weight entirely in the crate, the trap door was triggered and closed behind her safely. We got her back!

Susan Tamasi with Dahlia

We loudly cheered inside the house and cried tears of joy when greeting our sweet baby girl from outside the crate. Our sleepless nights and sick sorrow were met with an overpowering sense of relief and joy. Our nightmare turned into a happy ending and a positive memory for our family. Our little miracle pup was safe and sound in her forever home!

A huge thank you to Missing Dogs Massachusetts. Cindy, Erin, and Lauren were the saviors who helped bring Dahlia back home safely. The outpouring of love, compassion, and support from family, friends, neighbors, and the entire town of Canton undoubtedly helped bring her home and our family can’t thank you enough.

When I wrote the story about our rescue dog Tulip back in 2006, I mentioned it was ironic that she was also born in the spring. She was a welcomed breath of fresh air at the start of a new season — coming into our lives for a reason. She completed our family. With Tulip now gone, I would like to believe she was also with us that day Dahlia escaped — guiding our precious sato gem back home. Once again, our family is complete.

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