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Happy birthday to Krystionah Celia-Snow Dickshinski!

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MMI graduate Frank Kost,returns with contrbution

<p>FRANKLIN TWP. &#8212; Murphy&#8217;s skill of opening closed doors landed the 5-year-old canine in a dangerous situation on Valentine&#8217;s Day.</p><p>After his owner, Dallas resident Louis Czaja, left for work at 10 a.m. Sunday, Murphy applied his knowledge and began opening doors in his home, starting with an upstairs room.</p><p>Eventually, the Vizsla found his way out of the home on Michael Drive in Dallas and explored the neighborhood.</p><p>&#8220;Murphy has learned to open the latch door knobs (French door knobs),&#8221; Czaja said. &#8220;I must have forgotten to close the garage door.&#8221;</p><p>Temperatures Sunday hovered between the single digits and teens, creating a life-threatening situation for the pooch.</p><p>Miguel Rivera found Murphy in the yard of his Park Street home in Dallas early Sunday afternoon.</p><p>&#8220;I brought my dogs outside. They were overly curious about something I could not see,&#8221; Rivera said.</p><p>When he returned his dogs to his home, he saw Murphy come around the corner of the yard.</p><p>&#8220;I tried to call him over, but he did not come,&#8221; he said.</p><p>Rivera started a game where he turned his back to the dog, then turned and faced him.</p><p>&#8220;The dog turned his back to me and then turned and looked at me,&#8221; Rivera said.</p><p>Rivera repeated the behavior while slowly walking toward Murphy. Gradually, the distance between Murphy and Rivera lessened.</p><p>&#8220;He (Murphy) came and sat down by me and let me pet him,&#8221; Rivera said.</p><p>Judging from the dog&#8217;s appearance, Rivera determined the canine had been &#8220;exposed to the elements&#8221; for a while but was also someone&#8217;s pet. He took Murphy inside.</p><p>&#8220;I offered him (Murphy) food and water, but he would not take it,&#8221; Rivera said. &#8220;The dog seemed very well behaved, smart and well-mannered.&#8221;</p><p>Rivera&#8217;s wife, Desalle, suggested taking the dog to Blue Chip Farms Animal Rescue on Lockville Road in Franklin Township.</p><p>&#8220;I plugged in the address to my GPS and the dog jumped into my car,&#8221; he said.</p><p>Marge Bart, owner of the no-kill shelter, could tell Murphy was someone&#8217;s pet.</p><p>&#8220;He was neutered and well cared for,&#8221; she said.</p><p>But the dog did not have a collar and was not micro-chipped, which made finding his owner a challenge.</p><p>Bart and her staff of volunteers posted a photo of Murphy on Facebook.</p><p>&#8220;We have a 90 percent rate of reuniting owners with their pets,&#8221; Bart said. &#8220;Social media is a big part of that.&#8221;</p><p>When Czaja returned home about 6 p.m., he was heartbroken to see Murphy was gone.</p><p>&#8220;I went into a panic,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I called everyone I knew.&#8221;</p><p>After two and a half hours of searching for Murphy, Czaja heeded the advice of a friend and contacted Blue Chip.</p><p>&#8220;I did not anticipate anyone would answer the phone,&#8221; Czaja said. &#8220;I was surprised when someone answered.&#8221;</p><p>Bart had Czaja describe his dog in detail, including Murphy&#8217;s age, personality traits and identifying marks. Once she confirmed Czaja was the owner, Bart made arrangements for Murphy to go home Monday.</p><p>Murphy greeted his owner with a wagging tail.</p><p>Czaja learned to keep Murphy&#8217;s collar and tags on him, even when the dog is in the house. Also, he will &#8220;make certain the garage door is closed and locked.&#8221;</p><p>Czaja and Rivera had not met prior to this incident, but Czaja is &#8220;very thankful&#8221; Rivera took the time to help Murphy.</p><p>&#8220;I can&#8217;t express in words how appreciative I am,&#8221; Czaja said.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Marge Bart, of Blue Chip Farms Animal Refuge in Franklin Township, took custody of Murphy, a 5-year-old Vizsla found on Park Avenue in Dallas Sunday until his owner could be found. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/web1_TDP21816Returnedhome-4.jpg</photo0><caption0>Marge Bart, of Blue Chip Farms Animal Refuge in Franklin Township, took custody of Murphy, a 5-year-old Vizsla found on Park Avenue in Dallas Sunday until his owner could be found. </caption0><photoCredit0>Clark Van Orden | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Fw-3a_TTL02192016_dog_rescue_PHOTOS_and_cutlines-2.zip">
<div class="neCaption"></div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Fw-3a_TTL02192016_dog_rescue_PHOTOS_and_cutlines-2.zip</photo1><caption1></caption1><photoCredit1>Clark Van Orden | Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/web1_TTL-02192016-dog-rescue-1-2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Murphy, a 5-year-old Vizsla owned by Louis Czaja, of Dallas, escaped from its home and was rescued by a Miguel Rivera, a neighbor. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/web1_TTL-02192016-dog-rescue-1-2.jpg</photo2><caption2>Murphy, a 5-year-old Vizsla owned by Louis Czaja, of Dallas, escaped from its home and was rescued by a Miguel Rivera, a neighbor. </caption2><photoCredit2>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader </photoCredit2></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/web1_TTL-02192016-dog-rescue-2-2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Murphy, a 5-year-old Vizsla, escaped his home in Dallas where he lives with Louis Czaja, through this interior door next to the garage. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo3>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/web1_TTL-02192016-dog-rescue-2-2.jpg</photo3><caption3>Murphy, a 5-year-old Vizsla, escaped his home in Dallas where he lives with Louis Czaja, through this interior door next to the garage. </caption3><photoCredit3>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader </photoCredit3></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/web1_TTL-02192016-dog-rescue-3-2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Showing he&#8217;s happy to be back home, Murphy, a 5-year-old Vizsla licks his owner Louis Czaja, Dallas, right. The dog escaped from its house and was rescued by Miguel Rivera, left. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo4>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/web1_TTL-02192016-dog-rescue-3-2.jpg</photo4><caption4>Showing he&#8217;s happy to be back home, Murphy, a 5-year-old Vizsla licks his owner Louis Czaja, Dallas, right. The dog escaped from its house and was rescued by Miguel Rivera, left. </caption4><photoCredit4>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader </photoCredit4></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Eileen Godin</p><p>egodin@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Eileen Godin at 570-991-6387 or on Twitter @TLNews.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

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Murphy returns to his Dallas home, thanks to the efforts of a quick-thinking neighbor