Nekita, husky mix

Woman, with help from the Network, reunites with lost dog after more than a year
Samantha Wright Allen
July 18, 2014

More than a year-and-a-half ago, Hope Cadieux opened the door for her dog, Nekita, like she had so many times before, so the husky mix could take a run on the family’s St. Albert farm.

Nekita never came back.

But two weeks ago, with the help of the Ottawa and Valley Lost Pet Network, that lost cause became a found dog.

Nekita went missing more than a year ago, but with the help of the Ottawa and Valley Lost Pet Network, owner Hope Cadieux was reunited with the husky border collie mix two weeks ago.

“They gave me hope when I didn’t have any,” says Cadieux of the Facebook page where she posted a picture of the husky border collie cross and its two puppies that went missing in January 2013. Days later, one puppy came back but the other, Ace, is still missing. Up until early July, that was Nekita’s story, too.

“I thought we would never see her again,” says the 18-year-old of the first dog she bought with her own money.

One day Cadieux opened her Facebook feed to find her name tagged many times to a photo of a familiar-looking dog. The woman who found that dog took it to bylaw officers in Casselman, where Cadieux now lives with her family.

Cadieux says she’d been through that drill before, visiting potential pups that never turned out to be hers.

“I didn’t really get my hopes up. I thought it would be a lost cause again.”

But when Cadieux walked in the room and said Nekita’s name, she knew it was the right dog.

“She just lit up and it was really nice to see. She came up to us and started jumping on us,” she says of the dog, who is almost four. “I was overwhelmed.”

Cadieux says she never would have found her dog without the network.

“They work miracles.”

One of those miracle workers is founder Gisele Villeneuve, who started the page in December 2012. Before, Villeneuve managed a lost pet group closer to her home in Renfrew, but she thought, given how far animals can roam, the group’s reach needed to be wider.

“You never know where a lost pet will end up,” says Villeneuve, who owns four dogs. Since then the page has grown to more than 10,000 likes. She says the site tracked more than 150 reunions of pets and their owners in the first five months of 2014. They’ve since stopped counting.

“We have to go through hundreds of notifications every day,” she says, adding the group contacts the owners with any leads posted to make sure all leads are followed up. Villeneuve manages the page part-time with 15 other administrators, four of whom volunteer full time.

Villeneuve lists success stories like so many memories.

There have been feral dogs, caught and adopted or returned. An orange cat, missing for two years, returned to a “little boy who was heartbroken.” And then there was a woman who searched for a stranger’s dog for three days because the Ottawa owner was stuck in Ottawa. She found the dog.

There was also Katy Meredith, who lost her cat on her wedding day. Because of the network, Max was home three days later.

“It’s just amazing. They reconnect animals every day, and people need to know that because those people are the ones who are going to find your pet.”

Now Meredith is a regular poster, and hopes more in the Ottawa Valley will like the page and keep an eye out for missing pets.

“It works like magic, sometimes within hours,” says Villeneuve, adding it’s important to be sure the owner is the correct one — ask for vet bills, pictures and watch if the animal responds to its name. “That’s the power of social media.”

The organization even posts when deceased animals are found because it can give the family closure.

Villeneuve is quick to add it’s important to report through the proper channels as well, like the local animal shelter or the Ottawa Humane Society. She also stresses that a microchip is important to help bylaw officers identify lost and stolen pets.

“This network is a community hero. It’s so heartwarming,” she said, to see strangers helping strangers. “It will restore your faith in humanity.”

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/woman-with-help-from-the-network-reunites-with-lost-dog-after-more-than-a-year

Logan, husky

Happy ending as owner is reunited with escaped dog injured by car in Stortford
Written by Paul Winspear
Monday 27 January 2014

A DOG who was lost and injured in Bishop's Stortford has been reunited with his desperate owner.

Logan, a two-and-a-half-year-old husky, escaped from Thornbera Gardens, off Thorley Hill, at 7pm on Monday (January 27).

He was spotted near Pig Lane and was hit by an Audi, which drove off.

Another driver, a woman called Emily, chased him for a mile towards the Coach and Horses pub at Thorley Street.

An alert for people to keep an eye out for Logan went out via social media.

A story was published on this website at 11:12pm, and the Observer’s 6,343 Twitter followers and 1,222 Facebook fans.

This morning, at first light, owner Julie Brett went to the Coach and Horses and found Logan.

“Thanks to everyone who helped,” she said. “He has a cut paw and is happy to see us.”

Observer editor Paul Winspear: “It’s great to be able to report a happy ending.

“I suppose if you name a dog Logan you’ve got to expect him to like a run!”

Source: http://www.hertsandessexobserver.co.uk/News/Bishops-Stortford/Owners-desperate-plea-to-find-escaped-dog-injured-by-car-in-Stortford-20140127231146.htm

Margo, cockerpoo

Margo Goes Home: Dog Stolen in Burglary Reunited With Owner
Thieves took Margo out of her crate -- and even stole her leash
Saturday, Jan 25, 2014

A D.C. man has been reunited with his dog after it was stolen in a burglary -- and after he took to News4 and social media, desperate to find her.

A dog stolen in a burglary has been reunited with his owner after a story on News4 and social media posts with the hash tag #FindMargo.

Eric Peterson said his cockapoo, Margo, was found on Benning Road in northeast Washington Saturday morning, after a tipster saw the dog's picture on News4 or on social media.

Police responded and found Margo, as well as some of her belongings, which the burglars had stolen.

News4's Pat Collins told the story of Peterson's break-in and his desperate search for Margo on News4 on Friday. The story was popular on social media, with people sharing posts with the hash tag #FindMargo.

"She's my family," Peterson said in the interview, visibly moved by the loss of his pet.

"I mean, I don't have any kids, so I wouldn't want to equate my dog with a child, but she's my companion. She's who I come home to."

WATCH: Man Desperate to Find Missing Dog

The break-in happened near 14th and D streets in Northeast, near Lincoln Park. The thieves, who apparently broke in through a basement door, took other valuables: The TV, two iPads, a laptop.


But they also opened Margo's crate and took the 2 1/2 year old cockapoo that Peterson has had since she was a puppy. They even took one of her leashes from a hook near the front door.

Peterson offered a reward of $10,000, no questions asked. It's not yet known if that reward will be paid.


Source: http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/Margo-Goes-Home-Dog-Stolen-in-Burglary-Reunited-With-Owner-241957671.html

Another version of the story is available at http://www.lifewithdogs.tv/2014/01/dog-stolen-in-burglary-reunited-with-owner/

OD, rottweiler puppy

Homeless man helps reunite snowbird from Alaska with lost dog
Posted: Dec 4, 2013

TUCSON- A snowbird from Alaska and his six month old Rottweiler were reunited this week thanks to the kindness of complete strangers.

Teddy Tonne and his pup named "O.D.", which stands for "Outdoor Dog", share the same birthday, June 6.

In October, they traveled to Tucson from Alaska, where Tonne spends his spring and summer months.

They were an inseparable pair, until last Saturday night, when O.D. suddenly ran off. "There was no way I could chase after him and that was it," Tonne says.

Or so Tonne thought.

Little did the Vietnam War Veteran know, O.D. was headed straight to 4th Avenue and Congress Street, where he started swerving in between cars. That's when a homeless man named John Benvenga found him. "It was a pretty busy night and I'm glad he found me," Benvenga says.

Benvenga immediately set out to find the dog's rightful owner, but he quickly realized it wouldn't be an easy task. "I saw the tags and I saw he was from Alaska," Benvenga says. "So I had no idea how he got down here. I thought maybe with some traveling kids or maybe with someone who just moved here."

After contacting shelters with no luck, Benvenga turned to his friend Lizzie Mead, an animal advocate. "It became our mission," Mead says. "We were going to find his owner and bring him back."

Mead posted a picture of O.D. on Facebook and in a short matter of time the picture was shared by more than 2,000 users. Before she knew it, Mead was getting tips about O.D.'s owner. That information, along with some extensive internet searches, helped Mead and Benvenga track down Tonne's family members in Alaska, who then contacted him.

Tonne was reunited with O.D. on Wednesday. "I don't know what I would do without that dog," Tonne says.

Benvenga, who also served in the military for a couple of years, says he plans to keep in close contact with Tonne and O.D.



Of course dog owners can't always depend on the kindness of strangers to help locate lost dogs. Mead says this incident is a reminder for pet owners to get their dogs micro chipped.

Source: http://www.kvoa.com/news/homeless-man-helps-reunite-snowbird-from-alaska-with-lost-dog/

Daisy, sheltie

Daisy's Story
Lynn Miraglia, Brevard Lost Pets
May 29, 2013

“Daisy” is reunited on May 28 after missing since April 17th. Her story has a few lessons illustrated that I would like to share. The first lesson is “do not give up”.

About 3 weeks after Daisy went missing in Palm Bay, her owners gave up. (This is not uncommon so please do not judge.) In the Missing Animal Response training class that I took, I learned about this kind of response, and some of the reasons for it. For one thing, people often can't cope with the not knowing, and they need closure, sometimes any way they can get it.

Daisy's family felt that she was so skittish that she would never be caught, and that she had likely already starved. The lost report was to be closed, but Valerie Nichols read the story and offered her info to be the contact in the report in order to keep the report open on the website.

Around the same time that her family gave up, Daisy was found just a half a mile away by Amie and Courtney. Daisy was a mess, flea infested, had bites on her. She was vetted and as you can see from her photo, they took wonderful care of her! Courtney looked on the BrevardLostPets.com website but did not check as far back as April 17th, and so did not see Daisy’s report. Courtney religiously checked the website for new lost listings every few days.

The other day another female sheltie, by the name of Maggie, went missing in Palm Bay, and was reported on the BrevardLostPets.com website. Courtney saw the report, and called Maggie’s people. From speaking with them, she determined that the sheltie that she had found could not be Maggie.

Luckily, I was in touch with Maggie’s people (I am not in touch with everyone who lists a pet on the website). Allison mentioned to me that she got a call about a found sheltie but it was not a match. My ears perked up!

Skip to the end, Daisy is HOME.

Lessons: 1. Do not give up. If there were Daisy signs up, Daisy would have been home much sooner.
2. If you find a pet, especially one in rather poor shape, don’t assume s/he is abused, and please use the search function on the website to search for a particular city or gender or breed of lost pet. That function narrows the field of what you are looking for and goes back a year.

To share some of what Daisy’s family is now saying: “Thank you so much we're all crying tears of joy over here. And Daisy is happier than ever!” and “Daisy was so happy running around tail wagging. [...] I'm so thankful I listened to my friends advice to go to you.”

Let's hope Maggie, who is the catalyst to getting Daisy reunited, is home very, very soon.

Source: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=645818635432525&set=pb.345055015508890.-2207520000.1369869907.&type=3&theater

Blogger's Note: Lynn Miraglia runs Brevard Lost Pets, which is a missing pet posting website with a companion Facebook page covering Brevard County, Florida. Lynn has also been trained in Missing Animal Response by the Missing Pet Partnership.

Handover, pitbull

Homeless Man Reunited With Dog Stolen Three Weeks Ago
May 22, 2013

James Bryan, a homeless man living in Florida, woke up the morning of May 8 to find that his pet dog was missing. The dog, a blue pit bull named Handover, was the only remaining tie to Bryan's previous life, before he'd lost his farm, his home, and nearly all of his other personal belongings.

"Handover is my best friend. He's my heart and soul," Bryan told ABC Action News last week for a story about his then-missing dog. “If anybody sees him, please bring him home.”

Bryan, who lives along U.S. 19 in Hudson, Florida, feared Handover might have been targeted by someone involved with a dogfighting ring.

“I'm praying to God nobody's putting him into an arena and fighting him," Bryan said. "He is a force of nature."

Word spread about Handover's theft, and eventually Carolyn Texter, who knew Handover and Bryan from her work with animal rescues, heard and decided to help.

"That's the hardest thing I'm having right now. To even explain to my kids how someone could possibly steal someone's family member," Texter said.

Texter started a Facebook page to find Handover and, with the help of a few friends, raised a $200 reward for his return. The story eventually went viral. The Facebook page received thousands of likes and attracted the attention of local news stations. Information about and pictures of Handover was shared thousands of time. Soon, the reward money swelled to $1,000.

Wednesday afternoon, all the work paid off, and Bryan was reunited with Handover.

Handover was taken to a veterinarian for an check-up – he was healthy – and to have a microchip implanted in case he goes missing again.

So far, there's been no official word from Bryan, but on the Facebook page Texter described him as "speechless" and thankful for all the help he'd received.

As for Handover's name: He was a gift from Bryan's then-wife five years ago. As she was holding the new dog, she asked Bryan what he wanted to call his new pet. “Hand him over!” was Bryan's immediate response, and the name stuck.

Source: http://gawker.com/homeless-man-reunited-with-dog-stolen-three-weeks-ago-509407912

Apollo, chihuaua/Italian greyhound

How Facebook Helped Find a Lost Dog
Kelly Clay, Contributor
2/01/2013

It was on a windy Wednesday morning that technology writer Ryan Matthew Pierson woke up to discover the front door to his apartment was blown open by a strong breeze. His wife had left for work, and a fault in their door frame made it difficult to latch. His dogs, Rocky and Apollo, took advantage of the open entryway and set out on adventure. Unfortunately, this adventure would last several days for one of his dogs.

His terrier mix, Rocky, was found almost right away by members of his apartment complex’s staff. He was kept in the office while Ryan rushed out on foot to find his chihuahua / Italian greyhound mix, Apollo.

“Apollo is curious by nature,” Pierson said. “He’s always exploring and meeting new people.”

On this day, Apollo was seen chasing a car through the security gates and onto the busy street adjoining the property. Pierson said he chased after Apollo on foot, but Apollo had a long head start. Finding him proved much more difficult than simply calling his name.

Pierson recalled, “He was lost. He has a tendency to keep going in one direction in hopes that eventually someone will catch up to him and find him. He’s never been particularly good about turning around and coming back the way he came.”

Ryan’s wife, Angela Pierson, continued the search by car while he started making calls and posting lost dog notices on Craigslist and Facebook. As it turns out, the post he made on Facebook would be the very lifeline they needed to find Apollo.

Within hours, over 1,000 people had shared Apollo’s photo on Facebook, and within 48 hours, that number grew to over 2,500 people. Pierson said that they were receiving calls almost every hour with possible sightings and from volunteers hoping to help them find Apollo and bring him home.

It was the second night when the Piersons received a phone call from an apartment manager working over four miles away from their home. Apollo had apparently wandered on to the property in search of both humans and food. They took him in and gave him a home while they searched for the owner. That’s when Apollo’s photo appeared in one of the manager’s Facebook news feed.

“She told me he was safe,” said Pierson. “She described his personality perfectly. He spent the day sitting on her lap quietly while she worked. That’s exactly what he does at home.”

After Pierson received photo confirmation, Apollo is now on his way back home. Apollo would likely not have been found without Pierson leveraging the power of Facebook, even though he only has a few hundred friends himself. Of course, this is not the first time Facebook has helped people find their lost love ones – or things.

Pierson’s story, however, reinforces just how far our own online social networks (no matter how small) can reach – especially when we need them most.

Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyclay/2013/02/01/how-facebook-helped-find-a-lost-dog/

Boxx

Family reunited with lost dog through Facebook
Posted by Jamie Morrone
Posted: May 05, 2013 11:43 PM EDT Updated: May 06, 2013 11:06 AM EDT

NASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) - A north Nashville family thought they'd lost their dog forever when he disappeared from their lawn almost a year ago.

Facebook helps family reunite with lost dog

A volunteer group called East C.A.N. posted a dog's picture on their Facebook page, which ended up being a family's pet that had been missing for months.

On Saturday they were reunited with him, thanks to Facebook.

Bobby Lyons says when her dog, Boxx, went missing about a year ago, her family was devastated.

She didn't know how they would find the 11-year-old pit bull mix.

"I told my husband somebody's got our dog. So we were hoping that he'd return but more days passed. Because Boxx is so friendly and lovable, he had not returned until yesterday," Lyons said.

The family was reunited with Boxx after the volunteer group East C.A.N. posted Boxx's picture on their Facebook page.

WSMV Channel 4

Lyons's granddaughter recognized Boxx and contacted the group, who brought the dog home.

Lyons says she considers Boxx's return a miracle and that her family is grateful to East C.A.N. for their help.

Source: http://www.wsmv.com/story/22167134/family-reunited-with-lost-dog-through-facebook

Alfie, pomeranian

Athelstone dog missing for three days found in Hope Valley thanks to Facebook
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

Alex, husky

Lost husky who wandered 200 miles reunited with family
Dog Heirs
March 23, 2012

Alex, a 13-year-old Siberian Husky, who made a 200-mile journey in search of his owner, was reunited with his family yesterday. The dog had gotten separated from his owner when they were moving homes in December of last year.

Alex had wandered from Dahlonega, Georgia to Morganton over a four-month period, until one day he showed up in Kerri McFalls’ neighborhood. When Kerri saw the mangy and thin dog, she knew he was in trouble and wanted to help.

She right away posted what information she had on the husky to her Facebook page on March 12. "There is a husky who appears to be lost in my neighborhood. It has a collar with tags but she wont let me get close enough to her. She appears to be hungry and sad. :/ If anyone is missing a dog please let me know," she wrote.

Unable to lure the dog to her, animal control officers set up a cage outside of Kerri's house to catch the shy animal. Kerri found Alex in the cage early one morning, and took him inside to give him food and water.

Although the dog was wearing a collar with a rabies tag, connecting with his owner proved to be a bit more difficult. The phone number on the tag was for a vet’s office outside of Atlanta. When Kerri called, they told her that the owner, John Locklear, had called them in December and said he had just relocated and during the move he had lost Alex. The vet's office said they would try to reach the owner and give him the news.

While she waited, she gave the scared dog lots of TLC, treating him for worms and cleaning him up. Kerri posted: "Alex is so very sweet. I can tell he was just so scared. He's finally able to eat and rest now... *fingers crossed*!!".

A few days passed, and the vet's office had not heard back from John yet. Knowing that Alex must have really missed his family to be lost for so long, Kelli thought she would help with trying to reunite the pair as soon as possible. She again mobilized her friends and set up a Facebook page to see if anyone could track down the right John Locklear from the 100 plus listed in the area.

After some sleuthing, Jamie Lee Alison found his sister and was able to send word to her about Alex, so the sister could tell her brother.

Within just a week of finding Alex, Kerri received a call from John who was amazed to hear how far away his lost dog had wandered. The two arranged to meet so that Kerri could return Alex to John. Kerri updated her friends with the news: "Everyone has been amazing... I'm still in shock over Alex's journey and story... John is, too..."

Finally, after his epic trip, the devoted dog was homeward bound. Kerri brought a few of her friends, who had helped her, along for the reunion. Kerri described Alex's reaction to the reunion: "When Alex got out of the car his tail was wagging and he went right up to John and was so happy as if to say 'Hey, I've been looking for you. Where have you been?'"

John told Kerri he had moved to Dahlonega, Georgia from Merietta and figures Alex was trying to find his way back to their old home in Merietta when he became lost. He had not seen Alex since December 1 of last year. John said his first priority was to take Alex to the vet prior to talking to any media.

Kerri has nothing but praise for how friends and the community came together and rallied behind Alex and "supporting his mission to make it back home." Kerri posted: "Alex is truly a special dog. I feel like God put him in my life for a reason and I feel like a better person now because of him. ♥ We all did a good thing. :)"

Both parties videotaped the occasion. Here's Kerri's video of taking Alex home.



Source: http://www.dogheirs.com/larne/posts/777-lost-husky-who-wandered-200-miles-reunited-with-family
Also follow the bulletins here or here

Molly, pug

Crouch End couple reunited with stolen dog after Twitter storm
by Tim Lamden
Tuesday, January 10, 2012


A Crouch End couple are celebrating after a celebrity-backed Twitter campaign helped to reunite them with their stolen dog.

Catriona Fox, 27, admitted “falling apart” after her boyfriend Justin Liebenberg, 36, called her last Friday to tell her burglars had broken into their flat on Stapleton Hall Road and stolen their three-year-old pug Molly.

Family members and friends encouraged the couple to spread word of the missing dog online and within 24 hours there was a Facebook page and Twitter account dedicated to finding Molly.

News of the missing dog was quickly picked up by celebrity Twitter users, such as Jonathan Ross, Bianca Jagger and Joanna Page, who posted appeals on the social networking site and by Sunday evening Molly was reunited with her owners.

Speaking about the panicked 48 hours in which Molly was missing, Miss Fox said: “We haven’t slept, we haven’t eaten, we have been beside ourselves.”

Neighbours called the police last Friday after seeing two men leaving the couple’s basement flat holding a bag and the pet pug, having forced open the front window with a crowbar.

Besides Molly, the intruders made off with two laptops and a PlayStation, having ransacked the entire flat.

Miss Fox said: “What we don’t understand is why they took [Molly], whether they were being utterly horrible or whether they thought they could sell her.”

The subsequent Facebook page and Twitter account set up in the hunt for Molly quickly attracted attention from hundreds of concerned well-wishers, including an array of high-profile celebrities, who issued their own appeals to thousands.

Molly was eventually returned home after she was found wandering in Enfield by a woman who then checked online to discover the internet appeal.

Miss Fox said: “We are overwhelmed and just so pleased to have her back. The interest in it has been amazing, it’s restored our faith in people.”

Source: http://www.tottenhamjournal.co.uk/news/crouch_end_couple_reunited_with_stolen_dog_after_twitter_storm_1_1173458
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Capone, pitbull

Lost Dogs of Wisconsin help reunite dog missing for 10 months
Cindi Ashbeck, Milwaukee Animal Welfare Examiner
December 7, 2011

Capone, a dog that went missing from his Milwaukee home 10 months ago, is on his way home today thanks to Lost Dogs of Wisconsin volunteer, Cindy Vassel!

Capone is home today, after being lost 10 months

While matching lost and found pets with those listed online as she usually does, Cindy noticed a possible match for Capone. Cindy quickly relayed a picture of the potential match to Capone’s desperate owner who immediately headed to Milwaukee Area Domestic Animal Control Commission…and, sure enough, the distraught owner was reunited with Capone at long last!

MADACC generously waived Capone’s reclaim fee, but did ensure that Capone was microchipped before releasing him into his owner’s custody.

“This is not the first time a dog has been found this way,” states Lost Dogs of Wisconsin director, Kathie Dowe. “We are continually encouraging shelters to do their own lost and found matching as upwards of 70% of dogs in shelters are lost dogs, also known as strays.”

Lost Dogs of Wisconsin is the first organization of its kind in the nation. It offers free services and is staffed exclusively by volunteers.

While Lost Dogs of Wisconsin relies heavily on social media to reunite dogs with their owners, the group recognizes that consulting social media outlets alone will not bring all lost dogs home. The Lost Dogs of Wisconsin’s Facebook page, recommends additional search methods that can be used to help return lost pets to their families.

Source: http://www.examiner.com/animal-welfare-in-milwaukee/lost-dogs-of-wisconsin-helps-reunite-capone-missing-for-10-months

Airedale Lost in Newton

Lost Dog: How Twitter Saved the Day
by Beth Monaghan
Posted on: November 10th, 2011

I believe in social media as a powerful channel that has changed the opportunity for productive discourse for the better. However, in my personal life, I tend to relegate it to a tool for keeping up with friends and family, until a few Sundays ago.

I was out on a walk with my husband, Patrick, two-year-old daughter and cranky French Bulldog, Ernie. Ernie was snorting along down Beacon Street in Newton when we saw an Airedale loose, slowly meandering his way across the road until he became interested in a tree near a yellow Colonial.

While I held back Ernie with the stroller, Patrick went up to the dog and tried to find ID tags on his collar. Unfortunately, his tag only had contact information for the vet, which was closed. A call to the police station was another dead end since the dog warden was off on Sundays and the officer suggested that I could either take him to a shelter or let him go. #nothelpful

So we took him home with us. Before we left though, I snapped a photo of the dog with my iPhone and posted it on Twitter and Facebook with the #newton hashtag on the off chance someone might recognize him. Here is my tweet:

On the walk home, I hung back with Ernie and the stroller, while Patrick stayed a few paces ahead of us with the dog to keep Ernie’s betrayed anger at bay (his jealousy was pushing the fur on his back straight up and every so often he’s make a feeble attempt to lurch at the dog). #mydogisajerk

We asked everyone we encountered on our way if they recognized the lost dog, but no one did. So we settled into a plan to keep him overnight and bring him to the vet in the morning, where they would hopefully know his owners.

However, five minutes after we arrived home, I received an @ message from Peter Mahoney (@DragonDictator) who happens to be an InkHouse client and lives in Newton. He recognized the dog and had passed along my cell phone number to the owner! The owner and I spoke, and ten minutes after arriving at my house, the dog was headed back home.

Ernie was grateful he would not have to share his yard (or his pillow), and I found myself in a rare moment of disbelief that social media achieved what the police and good old-fashioned canvassing could not.

Source: http://www.inkhouse.net/lost-dog-how-twitter-saved-the-day/

Xander, Rottweiler

Dog missing nearly three weeks reunited with owner
Misty Maynard, Ledger Independent
Posted: Wednesday, July 27, 2011 10:00 pm

Josh Ginn was reunited with his dog, Xander after 20 days thanks to a local rescue group which uses Facebook in its efforts to find homes for animals.

One social networking site has proven to be pet-friendly.

When Xander, a 1 1/2-year-old Rottweiler managed to escape from his East Second Street home earlier this month, his owners, Laurie and Josh Ginn, searched the neighborhood, inquiring of neighbors and friends whether they had seen the dog. When those efforts failed, they turned to Facebook.

Laurie Ginn said she posted on her status that her son, Josh Ginn's, dog had gone missing. The post failed to get any leads.

As the days passed, Laurie Ginn said a family member checked the Mason County Animal Shelter for Xander, but with no luck.

"I actually had kind of given up," Laurie Ginn said.

It was not the first time the dog, who Laurie Ginn described as an "escape artist" had gotten loose. One time before, the dog had managed to get out of the back yard and he was found by some children at Rotary Park. He was wearing his usual collar with identification tag at the time so they were able to contact the owner.

Laurie Ginn said an attempt to make the backyard escape-proof was made and no one thought the dog would be able to get out again. Somehow, he managed to find a hole in the fence that had eluded notice. When he got out the second time, Laurie Ginn said he was wearing a walking collar instead of his usual collar with ID tag.

Laurie Ginn sent up a prayer for the dog that had been with the family since about Christmas. Laurie Ginn said the dog was given to them by another family member who couldn't keep it and it was meant to be a temporary home for him -- until she and her son fell in love with him.

Not long after the prayer, a call came in from her nephew, the original owner of the dog, who asked if the dog was still missing and told her about a photograph he had seen on the local volunteer group, the Maysville Rescue Team's, Facebook page. The group often posts photos of dogs at the animal shelter to promote adoption.

Laurie Ginn checked the page and contacted Bridget Case, who runs the group with her husband, Ryan Case.

"I called her and she was just overjoyed," Laurie Ginn said.

Bridget Case sent photos to Laurie Ginn via text and Laurie Ginn was able to confirm the dog in the photo was Xander.

Laurie Ginn learned Xander, who had been in the shelter for beyond the typical hold placed on animals, was to be euthanized. Laurie Ginn said she thought Xander might have been kept longer than usual because he was wearing a collar when he was picked up at a location past the animal shelter.

Laurie Ginn said she went to the shelter, accompanied by MRT, and was reunited with Xander.

Laurie Ginn praised both the shelter, who kept the dog past his original euthanization date and MRT for bringing Xander home. She also gave Facebook credit for the happy ending. She said she didn't think Xander, who had been missing for about 20 days, would have come home if it had not been for Facebook.

Source: http://www.maysville-online.com/news/local/article_37c2f1b8-b893-11e0-9886-001cc4c03286.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter#ixzz1TSEXwcW5

Louie, shepherd-chow mix

Louie Back Home After Huge Facebook Following
2-Year-Old Shepherd Chow Named Louie Missing
POSTED: Wednesday, July 20, 2011
UPDATED: 2:47 pm EDT July 27, 2011

HIGHLAND, Mich. -- A dog who was the subject of a social media-based search initiative since early July has been found.

More pictures of Louie at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LXKWA_b4UI

Meredith Miller, of Highland, said 2-year-old shepherd chow mix named Louie is her pride and joy.

"He means everything to us," she said.

Miller said she and her fiancee were in Chicago on July 6 and had left Louie with her parents. She said she was heartbroken when she got the call that he had gotten away.

"My initial reaction when they called was that I was standing in the middle of Chinatown crying in front of just groups of people," she said. "Because I'm emotional and I'm very attached to this dog."

Miller said she wasn't immediately able to get home to search for Louie, so she started a virtual one.

"I didn't know what else to do. There was nothing that I could do from that hotel room. So, I got on Facebook on my laptop and put it here," she said. "And meditatively, I don't remember how many there were in the beginning, but all of my friends pretty much responded right away."

Miller started the Facebook page "Looking for Louie," which garnered more than 1,000 followers.

Details on where or how Louie was found weren't posted on the page, but group members posted pictures of Louie and Miller being reunited and messages of thankfulness and congratulations.

Source: http://www.clickondetroit.com/family/28614267/detail.html
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Part 1 of the story follows:
Skittish pet rescued from hoarding situation on the run in Highland Township
By Carol Hopkins, The Oakland Press
Published: Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Louie ran away from a home in Highland Township on July 6 and has been missing since.

Meredith Brown and her fiancé were visiting Brown’s parents in Highland this month when the couple decided to take a short trip to Chicago.

The couple left their dog, Louie, at the parents’ home, but the dog ran away July 6. Brown has been trying to locate the dog, which has had a hard life.

“It’s been the worst week of my life,” said Brown, who has been frantically searching for the dog.

Louie — a 2½-year-old, 50 pound shepherd chow mix dog — is mainly brown with a dark muzzle, floppy ears and a curly tail. The dog is skittish and afraid of people.

Brown, who has resided in Baltimore for seven years and works as an elementary school teacher, has the summer off.

She and her fiancé decided to visit her parents, who live in the Axford Acres subdivision, located east of Harvey Lake Road between North Milford Road and East Wardlow Road in Highland.

The couple brought along Louie, a dog with an unusual history.

“He was in a horrible situation,” Brown said. A man in Clark County, Ohio, was hoarding dogs, including Louie.

“He had 300 dogs and 70 were dead,” she said. “This is why Louie is so scared and doesn’t trust people.”

Rescue authorities recovered the dogs and, because there were so many dogs, the Washington, D.C. shelter took 30 of the dogs, she said.

“Because our dog died, we were looking for a dog,” she said.

Brown said her parents were well-informed about Louie’s behaviors, but while Brown and her fiancé were away and her parents were home sleeping, the dog went up on a dresser, managed to open a window, tore through the screen and jumped out.

“Louie has severe separation anxiety when I’m not there,” said Brown. “He bonded with me so quickly. I was his world. He focused on me 100 percent of the time and follows me from room to room. He left to go in search of me.”

Brown’s father spotted the dog early on. After Brown posted fliers in the area and announced on her Facebook page she was searching for the dog, she received calls about people seeing him.

“I’m driving 15 hours a day but I’m always five minutes behind,” she said. Milford police contacted Brown, telling her they saw the dog and were tracking him.

“When the officer got out of his car, Louie took off,” said a weary-sounding Brown.



Brown is asking anyone who sees the dog to follow him but not to scare him away. Then call her.

“I think the only chance is if he sees me,” she said.

Brown worries her dog by now is suffering and hungry.

She said, “He doesn’t know people are looking for him.”

Source: http://www.theoaklandpress.com/articles/2011/07/13/news/local_news/doc4e1db6f595c27787923128.txt?viewmode=fullstory

Chaz, pit mix

Missing dog found after rollover accident in Mundy Township July 1
By Nyssa Rabinowitz, The Flint Journal
Thursday, July 07, 2011

This photo of Chaz was taken in March and was used in flyers and the Facebook page to try and locate the lost dog following the accident

MUNDY TOWNSHIP, Michigan — The missing dog of a Wixom couple involved in a rollover accident has been found after friends and family created a Facebook page to help search for him.

Chaz, a mixed-breed dog just more than a year old, was riding in a vehicle with the couple on their way up north Friday, July 1, to celebrate the Fourth of July weekend when their car rolled over on Grand Blanc Road near U.S. 23.

The Champions of Chaz — Reuniting Lost Dog with Owners page on Facebook had more than 425 fans by Wednesday.

“We’ve had people who don’t know us or the family going out and doing searches on their own,” said page creator Leah Dolsea, 37, of Pleasant Ridge.

The Wixom man’s sister, Susie Klimkiewicz, said her brother was treated for minor cuts and bruises but that his girlfriend was critically injured. Police and family declined to identify the man, 26, and the woman, 24.

“My brother called me from the ambulance, and I went straight out (to the crash site),” said Susie Klimkiewicz, 30, of Waterford Township. Her brother was driving the car.

But Chaz was gone when she reached the scene.

“Witnesses said that they did see Chaz fly out of the vehicle, and he landed on all fours and took off running,” Klimkiewicz said.

Then, the family got the news they had been waiting for for six days — Chaz had been found at 8 in the morning on July 7.

“A guy was on vacation for three days and came home to a stuffed mailbox,” Klimkiewicz said.

Chaz was in his backyard.

A member of the Facebook page dedicated to finding Chaz had printed flyers with her phone number, Chaz’s picture and description and distributed them around the area of the crash site, Klimkiewicz said.

One of the pieces of mail in the homeowner’s mailbox was the flyer, and he recognized the dog.

“I just drove there and picked him up,” said Michelle Guswiler, 37 of Fenton, who made the flyers.

Chaz was found about a mile north of the accident at a home by Reid Road and Torrey Road, Guswiler said.

“I’m an animal lover,” she said. “I just couldn’t stand the thought of him being scared of fireworks or hurt or something like that.”

Guswiler volunteers with an animal rescue group called Guardian Angel Animal Rescue in Livonia, which inspired her to get involved and help.

She said she would never have known the dog was missing if not for Facebook.

“I had seen a post on Facebook on Friday, the day of the accident,” Guswiler said.

Chaz was checked out by a veterinarian and give a clean bill of health apart from a small fracture on his hip, Klimkiewicz said.

Klimkiewicz said she’s not sure Chaz would have been found without the Facebook group.

“I don’t think it would have made it this far without the page,” she said. “We had a lot of help from people in the Flint area. I don’t think any of us could thank them enough.”

Guswiler said she was glad to be a part of the emotional reunion.

“It was a good reunion,” she said. “I’m happy I could be a part of a happy pet story. I think Chaz is very happy to be home.”

Source: http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2011/07/missing_dog_found_after_rollov.html
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George, staffie

Facebark campaign helps collar dog thief
Nick Ralston
June 14, 2011

Hot dog ... George back with his owner, Nahji Chu

It had only just gone dark when George, a three-year-old blue Staffie, was stolen in a brazen dognapping at a busy Kings Cross intersection.

A friend of his owner Nahji Chu had taken George for a short walk and tied him to a pole while she used the ATM on the corner of Bayswater and Darlinghurst roads. A minute later she turned back and he was gone - the latest victim in a spate of dognappings.

An elderly woman watched as a tall, bald man with his right arm in plaster untied George's leash and walked off with him about 5pm last Friday.

It sparked a two-day hunt across the inner city for George, with 20 people on foot and thousands of posters offering a $4000 reward.

A Facebook group spreading the word about George's theft attracted 900 supporters and by Sunday night #findGeorge was the top trending topic on Twitter in Sydney.

The good news for Ms Chu came yesterday morning when police spotted George walking with a man fitting the description of the alleged thief in Redfern. She had received a number of tip-offs from strangers that he was in that area.

''It just goes to show that there are [criminals] out there but they are not going to get away with crime when there is social media like there is today. It's quite a powerful tool, Facebook,'' she said.

George is not the only Staffie to be a target of dognappers recently. Shannon Bavister from Wilton had her two Staffies, Mack and Mia, taken from her backyard on Saturday. She went straight to the police after she returned home and found her gate closed but both dogs gone. They have not been found.

Asked if the dogs were being taken to be sold, used to breed or in illegal dogfights, one Staffie breeder said: ''It's a little bit of everything.''

Last Wednesday, at a dog park in Parramatta, Staffie owners were approached by a man asking if they would like to earn money by entering their dog in fights.

At Bligh Park, a Staffie named Elvis disappeared only days after he had found a home. He was returned to his owner when a woman, who had bought the dog from a man outside a nearby shopping plaza for $300, saw a ''missing'' poster.

Source: 
http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/facebark-campaign-helps-collar-dog-thief-20110613-1g0j9.html

Beast, chihuahua

Dane Cook uses Twitter to find lost dog
Beast goes missing in West Hollywood and comic gets help from social media
June 12, 2011

Social media to the rescue!

Comedian/actor Dane Cook took to Twitter on Saturday night in a panic after his beloved dog, Beast, went missing in West Hollywood, Calif.

“WestHollywood I need your help please. My dog Beast is missing in that area,” he tweeted on Saturday. “I’ve attached a pic. Email [address] if found.”

The “My Best Friend’s Girl” star added a photo of his missing companion before pleading for help, asking his Twitter followers to meet him at 1289 North Crescent Heights Blvd in West Hollywood to aid in the search.

“Thank you volunteers who are showing up! Here is another photo of Beast,” he later tweeted, with an additional picture of the adorable pooch.

Two hours later, Cook's mission was accomplished.

“We found Beast!!!! Thank you so so so much everyone for your help!!!!” he tweeted. “I am so happy right now!!!!!”

But there were those who used the opportunity for less kind purposes, and to them Cook tweeted, “And to everyone that said he was dead … you are sick f**ks.”


Source: info from many sources that will be available for a long time to come were combined in this story

Ivory, Great Pyrenees

Dog finds eventual adoptive family 54 miles from animal shelter
Sheltered dog escapes and is saved
By Matt Cozzi
Created: Saturday, June 11, 2011

Ivory is a dog that ran away to Wisconsin from Helping Paws in Woodstock. The Broncatti family eventually found the dog and traveled to Helping Paws to officially adopt the dog on Friday.

WOODSTOCK – Michelle Moberg held back tears. She’d worked with animals almost her entire life, but never had she experienced anything like this past week.

The Helping Paws kennel assistant was both upbeat and emotional Friday afternoon as a month-plus search for one of the animal shelter’s dogs came to a close after a family in Wisconsin decided to adopt the hound.

That dog is Ivory, a white Great Pyrenees mixed breed that ran away from Helping Paws on May 7 and was found 54 miles away in Mukwonago, Wis.

Helping Paws staff said they could recall one other dog who got away previously, but in that instance, the dog already had been adopted and was with a family.

“[Ivory’s] the only one that’s [ran away] and traveled as far as he has,” Moberg said. “He got pretty far. … I’d looked for Ivory for hours and hours, put ads around McHenry County. I thought we’d never hear anything.”

Ivory’s trek eventually led him to the Minors Homestead neighborhood in Mukwonago, where Karen Broncatti, whose family has two dogs and two cats, first interacted with their furry friend 2½ weeks ago.

“We would be on walks, and [Ivory] would follow us home,” Broncatti said. “Every morning, he’d be lying on the front yard, waiting for us to come out and play. We started to feed him, and got closer and closer, and finally, we were able to put a leash over his head [on Wednesday].

Moberg was able to connect with the Broncatti family through the Wisconsin Lost Dogs organization about a week ago, drove up to Mukwonago when Ivory was finally secured with a leash just three days ago, and took Ivory back to Helping Paws that same day.

Little did Moberg know, Ivory eventually would return to Mukwonago. This time, though, with a new owner.

“[The Broncattis] called me Thursday morning and said they wanted their dog back,” Moberg said. “I sent them pre-adopt information, they sent it back later in the day, and came back [Friday] to get him.”

Karen Broncatti and her son, Corey, 10, arrived at Helping Paws on Friday, elated to bring their now-third dog back home.

Cory Broncatti, 10, fed and nurtured Ivory when the dog wandered into the boy's yard

As the Broncatti family, Ivory and Moberg embraced one final time before heading back home, Karen Broncatti summed up Ivory’s journey.

“After driving this distance, I don’t know how Ivory ended up at our house,” Broncatti said, “but it must be for a good reason.

“He picked us.”

Source: http://www.nwherald.com/2011/06/10/dog-finds-eventual-adoptive-family-54-miles-from-animal-shelter/ae4iex6/
Video: http://ssm.nwherald.com/video/3912/sheltered-dog-escapes-and-is-saved/

Another version of the story at: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-talk-dog-home-06-11-20110610,0,4195267.story

Lucy, golden retriever

Dog's Amazing Tale from Alden to Indiana and Back
By: Laura Lee
Posted at: 06/02/2011 11:46 PM

(ABC 6 NEWS) -- It's a kind of journey too coincidental to believe.

Lost for nearly a week, a golden retriever named Lucy ends up a couple states away and with the help of the Internet she returns home safely.

What started out as a typical day chasing birds and rabbits ended with Lucy, missing.

"I was upset obviously, I started asking everyone," says Amber Yaw, who has owned Lucy for over four years.

"We went all the way around here and on the freeway and I had a feeling she couldn't have died," says Patti Yaw.

That's because this golden retriever was already heading east.

"The guy that picked her up was headed from Washington state to Rochester, he stopped at the the truck stop in Alden, took her collar off and asked if they knew a dog named Lucy that was out on the freeway and they had no clue so they said I guess you have a riding buddy," says Bob Yaw.

From there, she was handed over to a dog lover who promised to find Lucy's owner. "And then where does she go she lives in Nashville, Indiana and that's where she went, " says Bob.

"There really wasn't much I could do, so I created a 'Help Lucy Find Her Way Home' Facebook page, " says Amber.

At this same time, the stranger from Indiana posted Lucy on Craigslist--- fortunately, someone was paying attention.

"Within an hour someone had written on the page that she had seen on Craigslist for the 27th of May a listing for a Lucy," says Amber.

"Had we not had the Internet, had Amber not done what she did, and had the person that took her (Lucy) not put it on Craigslist, I mean all these different things had to work together," says Patti.

"It ended up being Lucy, so I asked, when I can pick up her and she said I'm in Indiana, and I said come again," chuckles Amber as she recalls the conversation.

Just by chance, her parents Patti and Bob were in St. Louis, Missouri visiting friends and decided to make the detour to Indiana.

"And met her at a gas station and as soon as she drove up Lucy got out," says Bob, "that's lucy, she gave me a hug and wrapped her arms around me."

A reunion destined to happen.

"777 was the odometer reading to the mile, from there to here in the driveway, talk about meant to be," says Bob.

"It was serendipity, who would have ever thought we'd ever find her again," says Patti.

And having a sense of humor helps. "It's nice to have her back, and she's not leaving again, she's on probation and in prison from now on," jokes Patti.

The Yaw family says Lucy is still a little shaken up from the whole ordeal, but they expect her to be okay.

They want to thank all of those who had a hand with Lucy's return.

Source: http://kaaltv.com/article/stories/s2139760.shtml
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Also see:
http://www.kimt.com/content/localnews/story/Alden-Dog-Reunites-With-Family-With-Help-From/mDBkyytAzk2RN1KEu1tf5g.cspx
and
http://www.albertleatribune.com/2011/06/02/internet-key-in-finding-lost-dog/