by Emily Griffiths, East Torrens Messenger
January 25, 2013
ATHELSTONE pooch Alfie spent three days roaming the northeast lost and alone, until social networking helped him find his way home.
Owner Nora Thomas says she contacted the Facebook group Lost Dogs of Adelaide after discovering the five-year-old pomeranian was missing from her backyard on Monday, January 7, about 8am.
"I went out to give him his breakfast and he wasn't there," Mrs Thomas, 42, says.
"We live in the foothills and the wind had blown the gate open.
"I was in shock, but knew I had to do something."
Within hours, Mrs Thomas, her husband Peter and children Patrick, 14, and Alysia, 18, had contacted Campbelltown Council and the Animal Welfare League, and plastered dozens of posters throughout the neighbourhood, all without luck.
"We thought we had exhausted every avenue, but then my daughter Googled `lost dogs' and this group came up," Mrs Thomas says.
"We were really excited that we had discovered something else to help us in our search."
The volunteer-run Lost Dogs Of Adelaide, which has been operating since November 2010, has more than 13,400 "likes" and claims to have a 50 per cent success rate of finding lost pets.
Mrs Thomas says without the help of the group, it is unlikely Alfie would have been found unharmed 10km from home in a Hope Valley reserve.
"Thanks to Lost Dogs of Adelaide, Alfie went viral (online)," she says.
"We had strangers and people we'd only met through the group helping us look for him.
"If it wasn't for that, I probably wouldn't have found him so I can't thank them enough."
Mrs Thomas says Alfie is settling back into his normal life.
"When we first found him he was in shock, but now he's back to his Beverly Hills lifestyle," she says.
"This (experience) has really made me rethink my concept of community.
"Before, I thought we were just people who lived close to one another, but now I see a community as a group of people who help each other, too."
A Lost Dogs of Adelaide spokeswoman says administrators of the site are committed to finding missing pets - mainly dogs and cats but extending to horses, rabbits, birds and other animals.
"I like to think we are the biggest organisation in SA dealing with lost pets," she says.
"We have an amazing, dedicated team of 12 animal lovers and pet professionals administrating the page and we also physically go out searching for lost pets."
Source: http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/athelstone-dog-missing-for-three-days-found-in-hope-valley-thanks-to-facebook/story-e6frea83-1226561688602
Another version of the story at: http://thestir.cafemom.com/technology/150133/lost_dog_reunited_with_family
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