A University of Maryland student and Army reserve has been living a country song lately.
Criminal justice major Ben Terfehr, 22, broke up with his fiancée recently, leaving him alone with his 8-month-old German shorthaired pointer Ellie.
"I love Ellie with all my heart," Terfehr said. "She's just a sweetheart."
On Wednesday, he made the mistake of leaving his keys in his car as he ran inside an Annapolis-area Exxon station to get a drink. When he exited, the car was gone, and with it, his cell phone and Ellie.
"I don't care who you are," Terfehr said. "I don't care what you're trying to do with the car or all my possessions that are in the car. I just want the dog back."
Terfehr, who is set to deploy to Iraq in the spring, pleaded with the culprit to turn the dog over to police or a shelter so he can be reunited with her.
"I think I can live with it and move on because I know God has a plan, but it's tough when you leave for deployment soon, like I'm doing," Terfehr said. "You want to have something to come home to."
