A cheerful dog wearing heart-shaped sunglasses at a sunny outdoor café for The Sunday Fetch Edition 04

The week in dogs, fetched for you.

Good morning, dog lover.
This week: a Labrador learning to walk again, a senior Shih Tzu’s 1,000-mile reunion, border collies on World Cup duty, dog-world updates worth checking, and Kenworth — our retired road legend Pup Crush.

Koda the Labrador during his recovery journey, from stroller adventures to wheelchair walks and lake days.

The Lead

Koda, the Labrador who refused to give up.

The morning after his fifth birthday, Koda went outside for what should have been a normal potty break. Then all four legs gave out.

A spinal stroke left him paralyzed from the neck down. His human, Natalie, was told he would likely never walk again. But Koda had other plans: hospital care, hydrotherapy, stroller adventures, wheels, lake days, and eventually, the wobbliest kind of comeback.

The bottom line: this is not just a recovery story. It is what happens when a dog keeps trying — and his person keeps finding ways to help him move forward.

Read Koda’s story →

Quick Fetches

01

Bear-country dog walks need more than good vibes.

A close grizzly encounter in Alberta turned one woman’s dog walk into a very clear reminder: cute trail, serious rules. Keep your dog leashed, check local wildlife warnings, carry bear spray where legal and appropriate, make noise, stay alert, and never assume a “quick walk” can’t become a wildlife storyline.

Read the encounter →

02

If you use puppy milk replacer, check this recall.

Puppy milk replacer is one of those products people may not think about until they really need it. That makes recall details especially important. If you are bottle-feeding, fostering, or helping a very young puppy, check the product information, lot details, and what to do next.

Check the recall →

03

A Brooklyn puppy-store lawsuit puts “adoption” language under the spotlight.

New York’s attorney general sued a Brooklyn pet store, alleging it kept advertising and selling puppies after the state’s retail pet-sale ban took effect. The part worth watching: the case raises questions about how “adoption” language can be used when the source of a puppy is not clear.

Read the case →
Illustration inspired by Apollo’s story, showing a senior Shih Tzu; not a photo of Apollo.

The Heartwarmer

Apollo vanished in Florida. His microchip found him in New York.

Apollo, a 13-year-old Shih Tzu, slipped out through a gate in Florida. For more than two months, his family searched, waited, and hoped for the kind of call no missing-dog family can stop imagining.

Then a shelter in Long Island scanned a microchip and found the people who had been missing him from more than 1,000 miles away.

The bottom line: No one knows how Apollo made it from Florida to New York. But his microchip gave rescuers the one thing they needed: a way to bring him back to the family that never stopped waiting.

Read Apollo’s reunion →

Tiny reminder

Make sure the way home still works.

Apollo’s story had a happy ending because one scan led rescuers back to his family. Take two minutes this week to make sure your dog’s microchip, collar tag, and backup contact are up to date.

Illustration by The Fetch inspired by two border collies helping keep geese off a World Cup training field in Toronto

Culture Bite

World Cup prep? Toronto has border collies for that.

Before visiting teams arrive at a World Cup training pitch in Toronto, two border collies named Ben and Sally have their own pre-game assignment: keep the Canada geese off the field.

The dogs patrol the Centennial Park facilities twice a day, five days a week, helping protect the turf from birds that are messy, territorial, and apparently very interested in international soccer.

The geese are not on the roster.

Read Ben and Sally’s story →

Also in dog culture

Your rescue dog may need an agent.

PEOPLE’s 2026 World’s Cutest Rescue Dog Contest is taking submissions through July 24, which means adopted dogs everywhere have a few more weeks to send in their best photo, origin story, and highly persuasive face.

Enter your rescue dog →
Kenworth featured as Pup Crush of the Week

Pup Crush of the Week

Meet Kenworth, the retired road legend.

This week’s Pup Crush has the kind of presence you earn, not learn: road-tested charm, old-soul confidence, and a very clear understanding that retirement should involve soft places to nap, people who adore you, and absolutely no unnecessary rushing.

Meet Kenworth →

Dog Lover Check-In

What’s your dog’s unofficial job title?

Ben and Sally have goose patrol. Kenworth has retired road-legend energy. Your dog may not have an official title, but we suspect they have assigned themselves one anyway.

Chief Window Inspector? Kitchen Floor Quality Control? Neighborhood Squirrel Analyst? Full-time Emotional Support Shadow?

Hit reply and tell us your dog’s unofficial job title.

Could your dog be our next Pup Crush?

We’re always looking for dogs with main-character energy.

Send us their name, a favorite photo, and what makes them impossible not to love. Snack inspectors, couch thieves, velcro dogs, rescue sweethearts, and dramatic side-eye artists are all welcome.

Submit Your Pup

Thanks for spending part of your Sunday with us. We hope today gave you one good story, one useful reminder, and one more reason to look at your dog like the tiny legend they are.

See you next week. Until then, keep the treats close, the gates closed, and give your dog an extra kiss from us.

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