“We opened the door and were looking to see if the dog had any tags, when it suddenly jumped in, right into Jackie’s lap,” Kelly Olynyk recalled.
At that second, he knew they wouldn’t be going out to lunch, he stated. Their mission had modified.
“Jackie loves dogs — all dogs,” stated Kelly Olynyk, 32, who first informed his story to the Salt Lake Tribune.“There were no tags on the dog, and she said, ‘If it was our dog missing or lost, we’d want someone to help out.’”
The couple, who has a pair of dachshunds at home, appeared up animal shelters within the space to see if the pleasant blended breed pup had a microchip. But once they drove to the shelters, all of them have been closed.
“A friend suggested we try an emergency vet, so that was our next move,” Jackie stated. “Finally, we found one.”
The Olynyks realized from the emergency vet that the canine had a microchip and her title was Harley. The telephone quantity listed on the microchip had been disconnected, however the proprietor’s handle was not removed from the place they have been.
“We were feeling pretty good, thinking, ‘Okay, we’re going to get this dog home,’” Jackie stated. She and Kelly drove to the home and rang the doorbell. The person who answered gave them a puzzled look.
“They were like, ‘Um, that’s not my dog, and I’ve lived here four years,’” Kelly stated.
The Olynyks determined to enlist assist from buddies to assist observe down the proprietor, since they’d her title and situated her on social media.
“She hadn’t responded, so we were emailing her employer and asking her friends on social media to call us,” Jackie stated.
While they waited for a response, she and Kelly stopped at a drugstore to select up pet food and treats for Harley.
“She wasn’t famished, but she really seemed to enjoy eating the treats,” Kelly stated.
He and Jackie have been hungry, too, in order that they returned to their lodge downtown and took Harley to their room so they might seize dinner on the lodge restaurant, he stated.
“When we closed the door [to the room]she started whining and we’re such suckers we decided, ‘Okay, she’s coming to dinner with us,’” Jackie stated.
“Even though it was cold, we asked to sit outside so the dog could be with us,” she stated. “Everyone thought we were crazy, but the three of us sat outside and ordered appetizers and had our little Christmas dinner together.”
Harley was notably keen on the bread Kelly fed her underneath the desk, Jackie stated, noting that her 6-foot-11 husband “is a softy in that way.”
While they have been consuming, one in all Jackie’s buddies, Tina Meksavanh, texted and stated she had related with somebody in San Antonio who might take the canine in for an evening till the shelters reopened the following day.
“Lots of people had been trying to figure out where the dog could go,” Meksavanh stated. “But almost everyone was out of town for Christmas.”
She knew the Olynyks weren’t giving up.
“They’re both the kind of people who would do anything for anyone,” Meksavanh stated.
The person who might take the canine for the evening was headed out to see a film, however she texted Jackie to depart the canine within the yard, Jackie stated.
“We got there and put her in the backyard, but when we drove off, we turned around after like 30 seconds because I was feeling bad and started crying,” she stated.
When they returned to the home, they noticed that Harley had already escaped the yard, Kelly stated.
“We opened the door, and she jumped back into Jackie’s lap again,” he stated, estimating it was 8:30 p.m, about 9 hours after they’d began on the lookout for the canine’s proprietor.
“Kelly knew then we had to keep trying or we were going to have to keep her,” Jackie stated with fun. “I think that’s what kept him going.”
She stated that she and Kelly met at Gonzaga University about 15 years in the past when he played basketball there and led the Bulldogs to their first No. 1 nationwide rating. They every graduated from the college with accounting levels.
While the Olynyks have been deciding what to do subsequent, Jackie’s telephone rang.
“It was Harley’s mom — one of her friends had seen our messages and gotten in touch with her,” Jackie stated.
“When I talked to her, I didn’t mention the dog’s name, but she did,” Jackie stated. “That’s how we knew we’d found the right person. And everything had become connected.”
So after a 10-hour day, she and Kelly then drove 10 minutes to the girl’s home.
“She opened the door and the dog jumped into her arms,” Kelly stated. “It was awesome.”
“Harley recognized her right away and was giving her kisses,” Jackie added. “The mom was in disbelief and shock, just so happy. It was like a little Christmas miracle.”
The Olynyks have been shocked when the canine’s proprietor informed them concerning the day Harley went lacking.
“She said Harley had been stolen from her four years ago,” Jackie stated.
The canine’s proprietor declined to be interviewed by The Washington Post, however she informed the Olynyks she’s had a tough yr and that getting her canine again has given her hope for the long run, Jackie stated.
The subsequent day, the the Utah Jazz beat the Spurs130-118.
“We’re now texting back and forth, and we plan to stay in touch,” Jackie stated. “It was her birthday the other day, and I sent her and Harley some presents.”
The canine’s proprietor nonetheless doesn’t know that Kelly performs for the Utah Jazz, he stated, and he’s superb holding it that manner.
“It was just one of those ‘If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again things,’” Kelly stated. “There were so many dead ends, and if we had stopped at any one of those, we wouldn’t have gotten to where we did.”
