She was cold and wet after somehow getting lost when she went to get her overnight toilet stop.
Shannon and a friend who lived near the Linwood Laundromat in Buckleys Rd saw the confused Ruby as they went for an early morning wash.
Less than a mile away, Ruby’s concerned family was looking for her when the temperature dropped below freezing.
For the next two and a half days they would continue to search, not knowing what had happened to her and fearing she might have been stolen.
Ruby stared at Shannon and his friend as they approached the laundromat. He thought it was the dog that belonged to a homeless man who frequented the area.
So I approached Ruby, but she left. Shannon later found her curled up in a “wet and cold” ball near a bus stop.
He walked with Ruby back to his house nearby.
She was happy to go and after giving her some of her dog biscuits, she curled up on the couch.
Ruby stayed with Shannon for the next two nights, trying unsuccessfully to locate the homeless man in Linwood that he thought belonged to Ruby — unaware that Ruby’s owner Sam Mano was desperately posting on social media in an attempt to track her down.
The order started last Wednesday night when Ruby, who doesn’t wear a collar at home, went outside for a bit.
Mano, who has had Ruby since she was a puppy, went looking for her for a few hours after she didn’t return.
“There’s this fear that people will take dogs for whatever reason … it’s not a nice feeling when a family member goes missing,” Mano said.
The next morning, Ruby still wasn’t back, so the Mano family started posting to Facebook community groups and lost and found pet pages, hoping someone would know where she was.
In total, nearly 500 posts were shared and more than 100 comments from people showing their support for the family.
On Saturday, Shannon’s friend saw the social media posts and realized that the labrador was not the homeless man’s dog.
I contacted the Manos to see if Ruby was theirs. He was amazed that Ruby had come as far as she had.
“That’s quite a distance for such an old dog, especially cold at night… no poor soul should be left outside in this cold weather,” Shannon said.
A $300 reward for Ruby’s return came at a “useful time,” Shannon said.
When Mano arrived at Shannon’s house, Ruby jumped up and down excitedly as soon as she saw his car.
“If you know Ruby, her tail flies 100 miles an hour. Yes, she was quite happy to see us.”
Mano said Ruby’s return was a community team effort. It was great to see the reactions.
“The general public was amazing… [we had] offers from strangers to help distribute flyers,” he said.