Any dog, anywhere!

Lessons from a Lost Dog Reunion

Bonnie

December 16, 2012

Years ago when I was living in Berkeley, I found a dog at the park a couple blocks from my house.

I brought it home, and put it in the backyard with my dog. I put up flyers all around the park and the surrounding couple blocks. I called the pound and other places I could think of (this was before the internet).

The dog was very sweet, but skinny and had no tags and I assumed it was a long term stray, or abandoned.

Three days later I got the strangest phone call. The girl on the phone asked if I still had the dog.

When I said yes, she said she had taken long walk that day. At the end of her walk she saw my found dog flyer. She said the description of the dog sounded a lot like the dog described on a lost dog flyer that she saw at the beginning of her walk.

She said she didn't remember where she saw the flyer but she told me her route, street by street.

I got in my car, drove to where she started her walk, and walked the route until I found the lost dog flyer.

I called the number, and a very happy and crying older man came and collected his very happy dog. He had the dog's collar which had tags but which the dog didn't wear in the house ( I don't understand why people take their dogs' collars off in the house).

I learned a number of things from this.

1. Put up flyers in a much larger area than you think (the dog had gotten lost over 2 miles from where I found him.
2. Don't make assumptions about a dog's status from tags or skinny-ness (it was a picky eater).
3. Don't be afraid to make a phone call (thank goodness for that girl who called me!)
4. Don't take off your dog's collar in the house, they might get out of the house.
5. Don't give up.

My son and I always read the lost and found flyers and are awaiting the time when we can find two that match.

Thanks, Bonnie, for submitting a wonderful story to Lost Dogs Found!