had been hit by a car and he would never see her again.

But, in fact, the mutt had been living the high life at a nearby millionaire's estate in Somerset.

The eight-year-old "pond dog'' swam across Ely's Harbour from Scaur Hill to Mr. Robert Stigwood's Wreck Hill estate.

When he recovered her this week, Mr. Riihiluoma found Kahlua was no worse for wear and had even gained a few pounds. After the dog made the quarter-mile swim across the harbour, it was not clear whether she was unable to find her way back.

"If I found myself walking around a $20-million estate, I might have hung around as well,'' Mr. Riihiluoma said.

Taking him for a stray, the caretakers at Mr. Stigwood's estate fed and cared for Kahlua along with the Australian-born multi-millionaire's own dogs. Mr.

Stigwood, a producer and longtime Bermuda resident, counts Grease, Jesus Christ Superstar, and Saturday Night Fever among his credits.

Kahlua disappeared on July 9 when the Riihiluomas were off the Island and a friend was dropping by to give her food.

"We came back a couple of weeks later to find out that our dog had disappeared,'' Mr. Riihiluoma said. "We really assumed that the dog had been hit by a car and we'd never see her again.'' But while walking along the water this week, he was sure he heard his dog's bark. "It was coming from far away across the harbour,'' he said. "It was quite windy. It was hard to really hear it.'' The family got into a boat and approached the Wreck Hill estate, "whistling, and shouting and feeling pretty stupid,'' Mr. Riihiluoma said.

One of Mr. Stigwood's caretakers arrived and confirmed "an ugly brown fluffy dog'' had been hanging around. "The kids were ecstatic,'' he said of his two children.

The dog's collar and tag had apparently come off during the swim. Government veterinarian Dr. Neil Burnie said the case demonstrated that Police, the SPCA, or Government should be contacted whenever a stray dog was found.

And licences should be worn by dogs as tags, not kept by owners as receipts, he said.

SAFE AND SOUND -- The mutt Kahlua is back with the Riihiluoma family.