A yellow Labrador Retriever by the name of Kota Bean is known in her family for being a very successful escape artist.
Not only was she able to escape from an electric fence that was damaged after a storm hit Macon, Georgia, but she also escaped from all other barriers that confined her.
However, her most recent breakout was different.
Escape Artist
Kellie Deck Tuten took to her Facebook to explain how, no matter how hard they tried, they could never keep Kota contained.
“We have been through countless crates, kennels, cages and all sorts of ways to contain her during the very few hours we needed her contained,” wrote Kellie.
Luckily, whenever she would run away, she would never go too far from her home. Her parents would usually find her, and when they wouldn’t, she would come back on her own a few hours later.
However, with her most recent escape, daylight was running out and Kota was nowhere to be seen.
The Tuten family quickly jumped to their feet and started a search party. They were distributing flyers and contacting every Macon animal shelter, hoping to get some information about their beloved dog.
The family did everything they could think of in order to be reunited with their girl. However, as a year went by without a trace of Kota, they started giving up.
This was soon about to change.
A Very Familiar Face
Scrolling through Bibb County Animal Shelter’s website, the family came across a very familiar face.
They shared it with a general location in the description, and that’s when I saw her. I KNEW it was her.
Kellie was able to recognize the area where Kota was last seen and decided to contact her friend living nearby.
Kellie’s friend confirmed that she was indeed Kota wandering the area, and she informed her every time she saw her. Kellie would rush to the place where Kota was last seen, but Kota would be gone as soon as she arrived.
As much as this was frustrating, Kellie didn’t lose hope. She was also contacted by another rescuer who had more information about Kota since her escape.
Lisa Wood … had been feeding my dog twice a day, took in her (not 1 but 2 litters of) puppies and found them all loving homes.
Lisa stated that she saw the pup recently, but had no idea where she was hiding her latest litter of puppies.
Lisa and Kellie joined forces and were determined to not only find Kota’s puppies, but also bring her home where she belonged.
Rescue Mission
Even though they got close to Kota on multiple occasions, they didn’t have luck capturing her. However, Lisa did manage to slip a collar with a GPS tracker over her head, allowing them to follow her to her hiding place.
However, when they got to the location, they were met with another problem.
Kota ran up to a drain pipe and sniffed and then ran back several feet and laid down. We were pretty certain the puppies were in there … but we couldn’t hear or see them.
Calling in for some reinforcement, the team, along with Amy Beth Wall and Sean Wall, were able to cut into the tunnel, allowing them to have a better reach for the little family.
Hours of digging later, the rescue team managed to pull four adorable puppies out of the drain pipe.
Even with the babies safe, the rescue mission wasn’t over. They were still missing mama Kota, who was too scared to join them.
It wasn’t until the next night that we were able to get Kota to jump in the car with us and the puppies and come home.
The rescue mission was a success, and Kota, along with her little family, was finally back home safe and sound.
New Life
The puppies settled into their new home in no time, but Kota needed some time to adjust.
She is still warming back up to us. She doesn’t have much interest in coming inside, which is a huge change from before. But she comes to greet us when we go sit in the backyard.
Even though Kota enjoys getting cuddles from her hoomans, she still needs some time to heal from the frightening world outside her warm home.
She doesn’t seem interested in her old toys or anything either. It’s been hard for us because it just makes it seem like she’s unhappy here, but I think it’s more so that she’s still traumatized from having to fight to be safe.
The Tuten family decided to take their time and allow Kota to adjust to her new surroundings at her own pace, hoping that she would start feeling comfortable again.
For the time being, they are glad that their Kota Bean is back where she belongs and delighted to have four adorable puppies running around their yard, bringing smiles to everybody who sees them.
