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Ollie, a full-blooded black Labrador retriever, wouldn’t give up on Kathy Walton in her darkest time of need.

Now, three years later, she’s returning the favor and is determined to bring Ollie back home.

The Jamestown woman is on a mission to find her lost dog. A dog that’s not just a friend and loyal companion, but a hero. She credits him with saving her life.

Ollie was barely a month old when Walton collapsed in her home Jan. 26, 2006. It was about 10 p.m., and Walton was home alone at her residence on Morris Farm Drive off West Wendover Avenue.  

Determined to finish one last task before going to bed, she went into her daughter’s bedroom to put knobs back on a freshly painted dresser when she collapsed.

She was lying unconscious — half in her daughter’s bedroom and half in a hall — when the small black puppy climbed on top of her. He started licking and licking.

“He continued to lick me in the face until I was woke up completely and was able to get up,” Walton said.

A short time later, she mustered the power to get back to her feet and dial 911.

She had suffered a brain aneurysm, and she credits Ollie with saving her life.

“All I remember is being passed out,” Walton said. “He literally saved my life. The doctor told me I would have died if I hadn’t gotten to the hospital when I did.”

Since that day, the duo have been inseparable. Wherever Walton goes, Ollie has always been by her side.

“If I go to the bathroom — he’s there. If I take a shower — he’s there. He will literally get in the bathtub and wait for me until I get out of the shower,” Walton said.

When she had gall bladder surgery last May, Ollie was at her side while she recovered at home.

The bond appeared unbreakable, until Ollie bolted from her home just after midnight New Year’s Day in fear of loud fireworks nearby.

“He had gotten up behind the pillows on my bed and was scared, but OK,” Walton said. “He got up and I thought he was going to get a drink of water, but he bolted.”

Unknown to her, a Christmas wreath had prevented her front door from closing all the way. Ollie managed to nudge the door open and hasn’t been seen since.

A three-hour search well into the morning was unsuccessful. So were fliers posted in Walton’s neighborhood and an online classified ad. 

She’s called police, fire, animal control and made daily searches at the animal shelter. Still no Ollie.

“I’ve even put socks on the corners of the lot of my house, hoping he could smell the scent of me,” Walton said. “My poor dachshund (Sammie) is so depressed that Monday was the first day he’s eaten. He just wants to lay around and sleep and every once in a while, he’ll cry.” 

She checked with the city sanitation department and no dead animals have been picked up matching Ollie’s description. That’s what Walton says gives her hope.

“You don’t think about a dog being so much a part of your life — but he’s my buddy,” Walton said. “I think that somebody has him, and I hope he’s not hurt. That would kill me.”

Contact Ryan Seals at 373-7077 or ryan.seals@news-record.com