By any stretch of the imagination, Shay Murray was having a bad spell. Within the span of a few weeks, she had totaled her minivan, her mother-in-law became desperately ill and her own mother also took sick.

On top of that, her beloved Chihuahua had died, and during one of the frequent weekend hospital visits to her mother-in-law in Albuquerque, the family's longtime pet Sophia, a friendly basset hound, disappeared.

After an intense search, with days stretching into weeks, the family gave up hope of finding the dog again. In mid-December, Murray's mother-in-law died and the family left for several weeks to Laguna Pueblo for traditional Native American services.

At Christmas, still missing Sophia, the family donated blankets and other pet-related gifts to the shelter. "We weren't ready for another dog," Murray said. "You get so attached to them."

Nikko, her oldest boy at 16, was especially despondent. His grandparents had given him the pup when Murray was pregnant with her second boy, Hank, thinking the dog would help Nikko adjust to the new family member.

So Murray was in no mood that snowy day — rushing her boys to school and back — for any more tragedy. "I was thinking, 'just no more.' How much can a person take? I said, 'I want this new year to be better,' " she said.

At that precise moment, as her Suburban was turning the corner to their home at St. Catherine Indian School, where they work as caretakers, Sophia reappeared.

"There were her huge, floppy ears, just running up, like, 'I'm here. See me?' " Murray said. "I called Lawrence, my husband, and he didn't believe me. I had to send him a photo."

Nikko was also astounded that his dog had returned home. Murray said Nikko's jaw dropped when he noticed Sophia was sleeping soundly in the back of the vehicle.

What the family didn't know was that their dog was living a parallel life less than a mile away. And someone was equally desperate in trying to find the dog's true owners.

Michelle Roos, who lives down the street from the former Indian school, said she first spotted the basset hound, whom she named Alyce, on Dec. 16. By then, the "incredibly skinny" dog had been missing since the end of October. Roos spent weeks trying to find the owners, checking at the shelter, posting notices online and putting up posters at various pet-related businesses.

Roos, who also owns a rambunctious dog named Kona, took Sophia to the dog park and on dog-walking trails as often as she could. She also had the dog scanned for a microchip.

She eventually gave up on finding the owners and tried to find the dog a new home. Four people expressed interest in the dog, taking her on overnighters or spending some time with her.

But nothing ever took. "Something just wasn't right," Roos said.

The one thing Roos failed to do was walk around her neighborhood. "I thought dog people know dogs," she said. "Someone was bound to know her at the dog park."

And then one icy day, Roos decided her rental car wouldn't be safe on the trek to the dog park. So she walked the neighborhood. It was the first time she had seen Kona and Alyce get along, Roos said, and she watched them happily romp in the arroyo. And then Alyce/Sophia took off.

Roos said she spent the morning looking for her and returned later to search the area even more. That was the day Sophia found her way home. Roos later got word that the dog was safe.

On Monday, Roos, Murray and her four boys met for the first time. Sophia, the basset, patiently waited her turn as the human hugs subsided. The happy dog enjoys the attention, Murray said.

"She loves every dog and every human," Roos said. "I was determined not to have her go into a cage; I didn't want her to go through another hurdle, but it was, 'how much longer can I do this?' "

Murray said Sophia had never run off before. She suspects the dog simply got lonely because they were away so much tending to family illnesses.

"She just wasn't used to that," Murray said. "She got tired of being left alone."

When they couldn't find the dog, Murray said they assumed coyotes, who are prevalent in the area, had gotten to her first. But that's the past, and the future is full of good times with Sophia. Aside from playing nonstop with the boys, the dog is enjoying the company of the Murrays' two other Chihuahuas.

"She's so happy," Shay Murray said. "When she's not sleeping on the recliner or with me, she's with the boys. She's showered with attention. She knows she's the queen."

WHAT TO DO IF YOUR DOG IS LOST

Animal-welfare advocates say the first few hours are critical in tracking down a lost dog. But even more important is what to do before a dog goes missing. Here are some tips for finding your pooch, prepared by Scoop member Julie Luetzelschwab:

Safeguard your pet:

• Use bright-colored collars with tags that are up to date with current contact information, including cell-phone numbers. Pets cannot always be traced by rabies tags.

• Microchip your pet.

• Have a recent full-body digital photo of your pet handy showing unique markings.

If your pet goes missing:

• Knock on doors in your neighborhood. Someone might have seen your dog.

• Contact the local shelter, file a lost pet report and visit the shelter as often as possible.

• Place lost ads in the local media, online and in print editions.

• Hand out fliers with a photo of your missing pet and information about your pet; post at major intersections and businesses.

• Post information about your missing pet on Web sites such as Craigslist and Scoop, wwwsantafescoop.com.

• Consider using a paid lost/found pet service, www.lostmydoggie.com, www.findtoto.com.

Don't lose hope. Pets have found their way home after weeks, months and even years of being lost.

• For more detailed information and Web site links, visit www.santafescoop.com