13-month-old Sprocker Fern was taken from her home driveaway on April 28, 2013. She appeared for a moment before disappearing.
Her family was distraught, especially Ethan, Fern’s longtime friend, and Jodie’s son.
To find a way to be reunited, the family spent six years sharing her photo, building her army online, and keeping her name and image public.
After that, something occurred.
Fern was taken to a veterinary clinic at Twyford Veterinary Clinic by a guy who found her wandering just a few weeks after the sixth anniversary of her kidnapping.
When the vets scanned her, they discovered her microchip.
Since Jodie had updated her information consistently, when the information was scanned, she came up as the owner and received a call informing her that her dog had been recovered.
Jodie and her family came to the veterinary clinic to show their identification and meet Fern after taking a ferry from the Isle of Wight.
Every step of the way, Jodie updated her troops online.
“Wow, what a night! The call came in at 4.30 pm from the wonderful staff at Twyford Veterinary practice to say they had a dog found straying and her chip shows as being mine. As you can imagine my heart leaped and I needed to hear it several times! It was her!
“I couldn’t wait for another second so as soon as the kids were ready and Tom was home we jumped in the car and drove to the ferry. Still not really daring to believe we arrived in Reading at 8.50 pm.
“The staff were incredible and stayed on late so we could come and get her tonight. I showed the lovely nurse Stephanie my documents, ID, Fern’s chip certificate, and crime number. I was so impressed with how professional everyone was in ensuring this girl was going home to her rightful owners.
“Fern was showing a little bit of anxiety and fear towards male colleagues at the practice so I decided to approach her alone to start with.
“From the second the door opened, I knew it was her. I’m not sure she knew me but nonetheless, she was happy to see anyone happy to see her! She was particularly happy to see Ethan, best friends separated over six years ago.
“She is smelly, scabby, itchy and clearly had pups but not in terrible general condition. As I write we are sat on a ferry waiting to leave at 3 am to get home on the beautiful Isle of Wight and start the first day of the rest of her life with us.”
“Fern’s story must serve as a lesson about advocating the importance of implanting, updating, and scanning microchips”, Jodie said.
On Facebook, she continued, “I religiously updated my details on that chip and checked several times a year it was up to date. If the wonderful person who found her and took her to Twyford only knew (he will tomorrow when I ring him) how that tiny act and a tiny bit of technology have changed my life for the better.
“Whoever had her fed her well and for that I am grateful, but now she’s home where she belongs. We have so much to learn about her and a lot of adjusting to do but we will slowly make her feel like the Queen she is!
“We have so much to do and we need to go shopping for essentials. She must see the vet for a proper once over, get this skin sorted and fled, wormed, vaccinated, and neutered when she’s ready.
“The children know not to approach her or be quick around her but to be honest she has plonked herself in their laps for cuddles already! I’ve only slept an hour but I still woke to wonder if it were a dream. Our Karma caught up with us today. It was a long time coming but boy am I relieved it found me. It’s been an agonizing, heart-wrenching, sick-making, sleepless night enduring ordeal for 2272 days.”
“I am thankful for Paula who has helped from the very first day. She’s become like family to me and mine and I’ll always be so grateful to her. She’s definitely stuck with us now. I’m also so humbled by every single one of Fern’s Army who shared, sent love, messages, and searched the net, phoned me, and everything else. It’s meant so much to know I wasn’t alone in looking for her.”
Fern’s Facebook page will stay open with updates on how she is getting on.
