Labrador retrieval

He had nearly given up all hope of finding his furry friend.

But one week later, this tail -- four legs, wet nose and floppy ears

included -- is a happy one.

On Jan. 21, a 6-month-old chocolate Labrador named Kona was snatched by

an unknown woman not far from Ryan Marek’s home on Church Street.

The plucky pooch had dug his way to freedom under a gate in Marek’s

backyard and made a dash for a nearby car wash. Employees there said an

elderly woman picked up the dog, put him in her gold station wagon and

drove away.

“I was really bummed,” said Marek, 27.

The advertising salesman was so bummed that he immediately began posting

fliers at animal hospitals, grooming parlors and lampposts, from Seal

Beach to San Clemente. He also bought advertisements in local newspapers

and magazines. The ads and fliers alone cost him more than $100.

“I really lay it down on the line,” said Marek, who took two days off

from work to hand out the fliers. “I sent one to every dog place in

Orange County’s two phone books.”

On the fliers, Marek printed descriptions of both the dog and dog

snatcher. He also included one key nugget of information: that the puppy

needed immediate medical care.

Although it wasn’t true and Kona had been perfectly healthy prior to his

disappearance, Lisa Marie Henry, a 27-year-old receptionist at the Costa

Mesa Animal Hospital, suggested that Marek include the statement on his

fliers. She said the ploy could lure the dognapper to an animal hospital,

where they might be identified.

“I talked to Ryan on the phone and he sounded so sad,” Henry said. “I

really wanted to help.”

Marek thought he was out of luck when there were no signs of Kona three

days after placing the ads. Marek, who has wavy blond hair and is single,

said his luck came in another form.

“A lot of women called and offered to help me find Kona,” he said. “But I

was a little too sad to enjoy the situation.”

However, on Wednesday, the alleged dognapper showed up at Costa Mesa

Animal Hospital to have Kona checked out. A surprised Henry -- who just

days before had advised Marek on his fliers -- immediately matched the

woman and her car with the description on the flier.

“Most animal hospitals would have said ‘yeah, sure, we’ll look out for

him,’ and thrown the flier away,” she said. “But I really felt bad for

Ryan. He sounded so bummed when I talked to him on the phone.”

While a colleague stalled the woman inside, Henry ran outside and

retrieved Kona from the woman’s car. She didn’t think to write down the

woman’s license plate number.

“I just wanted the dog,” she said.

The woman, apparently spooked, ran out of the animal hospital and sped

away.

On Monday, a reunited Marek and Kona visited Henry at the hospital. Kona

scampered about the waiting room, hopped on Henry’s lap and licked her

face.

“It sounds cheesy,” Marek said. “But I used to take Kona to a vet in

Corona del Mar. Now I’m going to take him here. How could I not?”