By Linda Wilson Fuoco, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Biscuit, a sharpei mix, was reunited with the Cawley family after slipping out of his sitter's house in Brookline while the Cawley's were on vacation.
The sad face of a Chinese Shar-Pei/beagle mix named Biscuit adorned more than 1,500 "lost" fliers distributed in Brookline last month. After two weeks the dog's owners replaced them with fliers announcing that their dog was back home, thanks to the efforts of so many people whom they wish to thank.
On the "found" flier the yellowish-tan dog with the wrinkled forehead has that happy, open-mouth look that dog lovers describe as "smiling."
When a beloved pet goes missing "you just cannot describe the stress," said Joe Cawley, one of her owners.
He and his wife, Lori, along with friends and relatives, spent countless hours looking for her. But they didn't stop there.
They called three animal control agencies to report her missing and made regular call-backs to see if she had turned up. They repeatedly called local shelters, including the Western Pennsylvania Humane Society where Joy Kealy coordinates "lost and found" postings at www.wpahumane.com.
The Cawleys printed and distributed 1,500 fliers, and Brookline volunteers passed out several hundred more.
"We got at least 100 telephone calls, and we followed up on every lead," Mr. Cawley said. "Some called to express their concern. Some said their children were sleeping with Biscuit's picture. Many called to report where they had spotted Biscuit, and we'd immediately drive over there, but we never saw her."
Several people "dropped everything to look for our dog," Mr. Cawley said. "I can't believe there are people like that."
Biscuit ran from everyone who tried to help her.
Biscuit was a little puppy when the Cawleys adopted her four years ago from a Fayette County shelter. She is loving and affectionate with Joe, Lori, their 8-year-old daughter and 6-year-old son. Biscuit is shy around strangers.
There was another problem. Biscuit wasn't lost in her own neighborhood. A family friend in Brookline was pet sitting, several miles away from the Cawley residence. Biscuit is not shy with the friend and had stayed there before, but for some reason on this visit "she squeezed through the front gate and took off," Mr. Cawley said.
On Aug. 1, the Cawley family was scheduled to go to the Delaware beach for one week. They had paid a nonrefundable rental fee but just couldn't leave while Biscuit was out there. They stayed home to continue the search.
"By Aug. 4, I thought our chances of finding her were slim," Mr. Cawley said. "And the kids were upset so we thought it would be good to get them away from home. It was a tough family decision but we decided to take half of our vacation."
They went to the beach on Aug. 4.
On Aug. 6, Joan Benson saw a tannish yellow dog in the alley behind her Brookline home. She put out hot dogs and called the cell phone number on the flier. Joe Cawley picked up the call at the beach and called a Brookline volunteer who had been dog-searching every day.
When the volunteer got to Mrs. Benson's house, the dog bolted. The volunteer ran after her, waving a leash and collar. Two blocks later she was flagged down by Madeline Huff and her grandson, Zachary, 11.
"I told her there was a tan dog lying in the bushes, and Zachary was sure it was Biscuit," Mrs. Huff said. The volunteer handed them the collar and leash and Mrs. Huff caught Biscuit-- just two blocks away from the pet sitter's house.
Mrs. Cawley's parents, Kenneth and Dianne Awenowicz, picked up Biscuit and took her to the Cawleys' house. Mrs. Cawley flew home that night and took Biscuit to the veterinarian the next day. The 45-pound dog was fine, although she had lost seven pounds.
Mrs. Cawley flew back to the beach on Aug. 7, while her parents stayed with Biscuit. The Cawley family came home on Aug. 9.
"It was a fantastic, happy reunion," Mr. Cawley said. "Biscuit went berserk. She usually is not vocal, but she was yelping and crying. It was very dramatic. The children are very happy."
As a detective with the Allegheny County Police Department, "I arrest a lot of bad guys," said Mr. Cawley, asking that the names of his children and the town they live in be left out of this column.
Joe and Lori Cawley appreciate the kindness of the many strangers who helped find Biscuit, and they hope the steps they took can be used by other people when pets go missing.
Some of the Brookline residents who searched for Biscuit are members of local e-mail lists -- TrackAPet-Pittsburgh and PghDogs. Both post information about lost pets. Go to http://groups.yahoo.com to learn more or to join.
Source: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09227/990921-62.stm
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