From Stray to Family: How Zed Found His Forever Home
It started with a phone call from a friend. Her young son had burst into the house yelling about a dog in their yard. Expecting a big, possibly aggressive stray, she cautiously opened the door—ready to close it quickly if needed. But what she found was quite the opposite.
Standing there was a tiny, filthy, and very smelly Miniature Pinscher. No collar. No tags. And no one in the neighborhood claimed him.
She tried bringing him inside, but her cat made it very clear that a canine visitor wasn’t welcome. Since she worked weekends and couldn’t leave the dog alone, she called and asked if we could keep him temporarily—just for a couple of days—while she figured out what to do.
We agreed. It was just going to be a short-term stay. Or so we thought.
Before heading home, I asked if she’d checked for a microchip. She hadn’t, so we planned to stop at the vet first. But even before we got there, we had already fallen for the little guy. We pulled into a pet store and walked out with food, toys, a bed—we just knew in our hearts he belonged with us.
At the vet, a tech scanned for a chip and found one. Our hearts sank a little when we heard he had an owner, all the way across town. This pup had clearly wandered far. The vet called the listed number, and when someone answered, they simply said:
“I don’t want him anymore. Do whatever you want with him.”
We were stunned. Sad, yes—but also relieved. Because now there was no question: he was ours.
We updated his records, took him home, gave him a much-needed bath, and officially named him Zed.
That was four years ago. Since then, Zed has become a beloved part of our family. He sleeps in our bed or cuddles up with our daughter, who loves to dress him up. And he never seems to mind—in fact, he thrives on the attention.
When our baby boy was born, Zed instantly took on the role of tiny guardian. Despite the tugging, poking, and clumsy toddler love, Zed remains endlessly gentle—always watching, always patient.
He may have started as a stray, unwanted and forgotten.
But now, Zed is home. Truly, finally, and forever.
