The Feel-Good Story of the Day

There's always heartwarming news around but it's extremely hard to find. Treat yourself today to this letter send to the Houston Chronicle from a reader:

HURRICANE Katrina resulted in many tragedies, including thousands of homeless dogs. Sometimes though, good things can result from even the worst misfortunes. One of these dogs, Zoey, a Rottweiler, was taken from a shelter to the Friends of the American Rottweiler Club in September. She was about 18 months old and had recently lost a litter of puppies through a miscarriage. Both of her eyes were severely infected, and she had wounds on her face and head. Zoey was first transported to a foster home, to be under the care of Helen Garcia, nursed back to health and then spayed. Just before Thanksgiving, she was adopted by Traci Colvin and her two children in Seguin.

On the evening of Dec. 10, Colvin's son Kendell was ill with a respiratory infection. She had spent several hours trying to get him comfortable; and, finally, at 3 a.m. he fell into a restful sleep. She was grateful to be able to crawl into bed herself.

Around 5 that morning, Zoey began barking at Colvin's bedside and would not stop, even when commanded. The mother wearily got up and, assuming Zoey needed to go outside, put the dog out. However, the dog just stood by the door and continued to bark. Colvin scolded Zoey, but finally let her back into the house. Zoey ran down the hall and continued to bark.

When Colvin went into the hallway, she found that the breaker box was smoking and a cord was smoldering. She quickly called for help and when the fire department arrived, a firefighter told her that her mobile home could have gone up in flames in a matter of minutes. Sometimes a good turn deserves a payback.

LEW OLSON Magnolia