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/

Border Collie in McLean VA

Border Collie in McLean Reunited With Family
May 30, 2011

This picture was taken by the person that found this dog,
and posted to Facebook. The people that lost the dog
posted an ad without his picture but with his breed.

Debra's goal is to keep dogs out of shelters, however she can do it. She chooses to focus on helping people find their lost dogs, knowing that this would mean that some of those dogs would never end up in shelters.

To that end, she established a Facebook page devoted to promoting lost and found dogs in the Washington DC metro area. She has devoted much time to getting the page known to local people, posting notices, following up, and dispensing tips and advice. To get it started, and still, this involves finding existing ads and re-posting the info to the Facebook page -- such as from Fido  Finder, Pets911, Craigslist, Oliver Alert and more.Once the page became known, individual people who have lost their dogs post to the page, so many of the postings originate that way.

On Saturday, May 28th, someone found a black & white dog wandering near her McLean VA home.  She turned to Facebook, and found the page that Debra administers. She smartly took and uploaded a photo of the dog she found on the notice she posted to the page.

Meanwhile, the family that lost the dog must have received the by now is age-old: post to Craigslist. They either didn't have a photo handy, didn't know how to upload it, or otherwise posted their ad with no photo. But fortunately, their dog is a border collie, so it helped to name that identifiable breed in the Craigslist ad.

Not long afterwards, Kate, who volunteers for a rescue in the area, was for some reason looking on both the Facebook page and on Craigslist, and realized that the found dog in picture could be a border collie. Since both the family's lost dog and the woman poster's found dog were in McLean, it was easy to figure that it was the same dog. She commented to that effect on the Facebook page.

Debra posted a link back to the Facebook page on Craigslist. The border collie's people found that ad, and found their dog -- the same day he was lost! - through the combination of the Craigslist and Facebook ads.

Long live Craigslist and Facebook!

Source:  https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=226988883978666&set=pu.215700451774176&type=1&theater

True D, Australian shepherd

Dear Fido Finder,

Thank you SO VERY MUCH for finding my sweet dog, True D.

She is an old girl that never leaves our side. This morning she chased out of the yard after some deer and got disoriented. We were out posting signs, emailing neighbors and searching for her for 8 hours today. I decided to post on your website in case she had traveled further than we expected, outside the radius of our signs.

Right before I was going to bed tonight, I got an email from you that someone may have found her. I called the number to find a student at the local college had found her and been taking care of her all day.

True D had wandered into an inter-mural practice about 4 miles from home. The girls took her home, fed her and played with her all day.

Thank you so much for creating this site and for helping us locate our sweet dog. We will all sleep better knowing she is safe at home!!

Best,
Kylan
Chapel Hill, NC

Stinky, chihuahua

American reporter & return dog-napped pooch to its family 6 years later
Sandra Jordan, The St. Louis American
Posted: Tuesday, March 22, 2011

It's a day she hoped for when Amy Meley's Chihuahua, named Stinky, returned to her rightful home in south St. Louis. It's a shame dogs can't talk like humans, because Stinky had quite a journey.

After hearing a gunshot on Memorial Day weekend, Stinky ran off family property into the woods and made her way into the middle of Highway 143 near Edwardsville, Illinois. Witnesses told Meley that vehicles pulled over to keep from running over the pint-sized pet. But one person, described by witnesses to the canine caper as a blonde woman in a white Dodge Durango, did more than pull over.

"'I saw a woman with her on Sunday night driving down 143 right by the VFW Hall,'" a witness told Meley a few days later. "This woman picked her up and put her in the window of her car. We were all talking to her, saying ‘oh this dog is so cute - this has got to be someone's dog. The woman reportedly said, ‘Oh, she's so cute I might just keep her.' When witnesses protested, the lady reportedly said, ‘I'm just kidding.'"

But she wasn't kidding.

"She went into the VFW, turned around and went back into 143 and she said she turned into Ginger Lake Estates complex," Meley said.

That was the last time anyone saw Stinky.

"I started putting flyers up in the neighborhood that said thank you to the woman in the white Durango who picked up Stinky...please contact me if you need a reward ... I would drive and go back through Ginger Lake a few hours later and they'd be pulled down."

That was in 2005.

Meley was heartbroken. Someone stole the dog she rescued from a shelter in Chicago. Meley and her family plastered the subdivision and the Edwardsville area with laminated flyers; she put ads in the newspaper; she visited veterinarian offices; St. Clair and Madison County animal control offices; she posted her lost dog online; bugged the crap out of the police department and even offered an award at one time, but no Stinky. She became known as ‘The Stinky poster lady."

Photos of Stinky remained on her bedside nightstand, on her refrigerator and even on her mom's refrigerator. Meley kept her beloved dog's bed, her clothes, and her toys - all in hope that one day she would return. Stinky was 8 years old when she was reported stolen.

Meley now has - four big dogs - all pit bulls - all rescued animals, although two are foster dogs. Everyone who knows Meley, a seventh grade science teacher at Ritenour Middle School, also knows about Stinky, long gone and ever present at the same time.

Meley also began volunteering at Stray Rescue, in hopes that what she experienced would never happen to another family.

Fast forward to midday Sunday March 13. My husband and I were driving home in North St. Louis County when I noticed what at first appeared to be a weird looking squirrel foraging for something to eat from a yellow food wrapper. Upon closer approach, the squirrel turned out to be a little dog - a Chihuahua. Not only was it strange to see a food wrapper on the sidewalk in that particular area, it was even stranger to see a tiny pet without a leash or its owner.

It seemed the dog was oblivious to being only a few feet from a well-traveled road with fast-moving cars. My husband was thinking something would eat this dog up, because it's so small. As I was thinking it, my husband, Cardell Jordan, asked if I thought we should go back and get the dog and find out who it belonged to. We made a u-turn to grab this little fellow out of harm's way and get it back into the yard or house it escaped from - probably in one of the nearby subdivisions.

Or so we thought.

"I went over to where we saw her. She was walking in the grass, so I called her and she turned around and she started coming to me, like she was really needing some help," Jordan said. "So we kind of met, and she let me pick her up and I brought her back here."

He could feel all of her little rib bones.

"She was really shaking like she did not have a lot of balance," he said.

When he got back into the vehicle, we wrapped her in a towel and took her home. She had no collar, so our best hope was that she had a microchip that could identify her owner on Monday when the shelter and the vet's offices were open.

The dog may have been on its last leg because her eyes were red and looked very weak. It was starving - and ate every morsel of dog food we put in front of her and she drank plenty of water as well. The dog must have been out in the elements for a long time. Her nails were quite overgrown, but they were cut evenly across.

She didn't make a sound - and she slept on the towel in a crate that belonged to our little dog, which kept returning to the crate to check on the visitor's well-being.

In the meantime, our daughters created "Dog Found" posts on Facebook and I posted the same on lost pet websites. I also searched online for any missing Chihuahuas fitting her description within 50 miles of the St. Louis area. On fidofinder.com, I found a tan female Chihuahua missing from Dunlap Lake, Illinois. I thought I had a hit, until I clicked only to find that dog, named Stinky, disappeared in 2005.

"It couldn't be the same dog," I thought at the time.

The weather was nice on Sunday during the day, but the temperature dropped very cold that evening and produced a pretty good snowfall. We don't think this dog would have made it through the night.

Back in St. Louis that same evening, a friend visiting Meley asked her about the dog's photo on her frig, which stood out among all of the pit bulls.

"That's my original baby - that's Stinky. Someone took her six years ago," Meley explained. "I don't have to worry about her because Stinky is always here with me."

Microchip check

Promptly handling the most pressing item on his "Honey Do List," Monday after work, my husband took the dog to be scanned for free at St. Louis County Animal Control North, located on Seven Hills Drive. The dog did have a microchip and the owner was called and a message was left. Rather than leave the dog at the pound, my husband decided to bring her back home, at least for the rest of the week, where we could work on fattening her back up and helping her regain her strength while the shelter worked on contacting the owner.

I asked my husband if the shelter said who the owner was.

He said "No," by this time looking annoyed at what he suspected was the start of an inquisition.

I asked if the shelter mentioned what was the dog's name.

"Oh yea - it's Stinky," he said.

"I saw that name on one of the web sites, but the dog was reported lost years ago," I told him.

"The shelter said she was reported stolen in 2005 or 6," my husband said.

My husband was right.

I did have more questions, but not for him - they were about the dog.

Where had she been all this time?

How did she get from Edwardsville, Illinois to North St. Louis County in Missouri six years, 26 miles and one state away - not to mention crossing the Mississippi River?

This explains why she had no collar.

This explains why there were no missing dog flyers in the neighborhood.

This pooch is a "hot" dog!

The phone call

Weley's husband Riley heard the message first. It was the call his wife had waited almost six years to receive. When he eventually got Amy to listen to the message, she had a hard time believing what she was hearing.

"This is ridiculous that this animal control would call me - how did they get the wrong number?" she said to her husband, who said to her "They didn't. It's the microchip. They scanned her - it's like a barcode."

Meley then asked, "Could they have taken her microchip out and put it in another dog?"

He said, "No, they wouldn't do that. You are talking crazy - it's Stinky.'"

The next ring was a second call from St. Louis County Animal Control.

The big reveal

Needless to say, my husband received several happy, tear-filled messages and conversations with Amy the next day, who eagerly wanted to arrange the pick up.

Parent teacher night at her school delayed the reunion until late in the evening.

No problem - we would all end the evening on a high note.

Amy Meley came to the door and gave each of us a big hug. Then we brought out her now 14-year-old little furry bundle.

"Oh my God," as she covered her mouth then held out her arms. "Stink! What's up, girlfriend? Hi Momma!" Meley said as she finally got to cuddle her long lost family member. "I never, ever thought I would see her again."

Meley just sat on the floor with her dog and shed tears of joy.

Back home

"The pit bulls love her," Meley texted the next day. "She's still a little hesitant. She slept with one of our dogs on Thursday night."

On Friday, Stinky visited the veterinarian, and Meley said although she probably has lost some hearing and vision, she looked pretty good, considering everything.

I hope Meley believes in microchips for pets again. Losing Stinky made her a cynic over the years.

She would tell people "those chips don't do any good unless somebody good finds them."

Microchips are good.

And so is my husband, even if I am biased.

And what a lucky dog.

Source: http://www.stlamerican.com/news/local_news/article_ad800016-54d5-11e0-9f96-001cc4c03286.html
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Maizey, yellow lab

Lost dog reunited with owners thanks to good samaritans
By Maria Lindsay
11/18/2010 - South Side Leader

Jesse Carvill and his daughter Avery are shown after being reunited with their dog Maizey, who was lost for about five days. The dog was found by Quick Clean Car and Pet Wash owners Paul and Linda Doerr, who took Maizey in and put signs in front of the business in an effort to find her owners.

GREEN — A lost-dog story has ended well for one Green family, thanks to a little luck and a dog lover who happened to find the pooch.

Paul and Linda Doerr, owners of Quick Clean Car and Pet Wash Store, found an older female yellow Labrador wandering on Ashwood Road Oct. 20 at about 9 p.m.

“We are dog lovers and we could not turn our backs on one wandering around, so we took her in,” said Paul Doerr, adding that he and his wife own two Labradors — a yellow one and a chocolate one.

Paul Doerr said someone had come to his home earlier in the day looking for the owner of the dog and had apparently let her loose when they failed to find its owners.

Doerr said the dog was well fed and cared for, but she had no collar, just a red “shock collar” worn by pets contained by an electric fence.

“Someone cared enough to keep her contained, but she was dirty as if she had been running through a stream,” he said.

The Doerrs washed and cleaned her at their business.

“My wife wanted to call her Daisy,” said Paul Doerr.

Paul Doerr said he and his wife called three veterinarians in Green to see if anyone had reported her lost and to find out if the dog had an identifying microchip but were unsuccessful in identifying the owners.

He decided to put large signs about the dog in front of the business, which is located at the corner of Mayfair and Massillon roads.

“Our pet groomers at the business wanted to adopt her, but we decided to give it some time,” said Doerr. “The owner apparently was on Craig’s List and saw notes about the dog posted at our business.”

Owner Jesse Carvill contacted Paul Doerr Oct. 25, and soon the dog, which actually was named Maizey, was reunited with him and his young daughter Avery, who live about half a mile down the street from where the dog was found.

“When they were reunited, the dog perked right up and was overjoyed to see her owners,” said Paul Doerr.

Paul Doerr said Carvill told him he had been having problems with his electric fence, and the dog somehow got out.

Carvill could not be reached for comment by presstime.

“They were lucky. This was one of the few good-ending stories,” said Paul Doerr. “It emphasizes the need for why dogs should have a microchip or wear a collar with a license or identification tag at all times so it can be identified when it goes missing.”

Source: http://www.akron.com/pages.asp?aID=10859

Nevada, black lab

YC dog found alive month later in Roseville
By Nancy Pasternack/Appeal-Democrat
2011-01-15 00:31:46

She hadn't turned up at a local animal shelter, or been spotted during neighborhood searches, or found dead on a highway.

Nevada, a seven-year-old black lab was reunited with the Poland family after being missing from Dec. 9 to Jan. 8. Savannah, 9, from left, Bailee, 13, Melissa, Samantha, 8, and Cody, 15. Cody is holding Miley. Photo taken Friday, Jan. 14, 2011, at the Poland's Yuba City home.

Nevada, a 7-year-old, gray-muzzled, black Labrador retriever, had wandered from the southwest Yuba City yard of her owners — a family with four kids — and had not been home in four weeks.

"She doesn't like to be away from us," said Melissa Poland, who, along with her husband, exhausted themselves searching and worrying, and eventually, resigning themselves to the likely fact that she was lost forever.

Meanwhile, in northwest Roseville, animal control officers had been frustrated in their attempts to trap a shy, graying black Lab that had been spotted by a driver on Dec 9 — a mere three hours after Melissa Poland first began to get the word out that her dog was missing.

On Friday, a skinny, freshly bathed Nevada relaxed in her Yuba City living room, surrounded by her favorite pack of humans.

Her constant canine companion, Miley the Chihuahua, nuzzled her and settled in nearby.

The mystery of how Nevada wound up in Roseville, and the gratitude over her return still is overwhelming for the family, said Melissa Poland.

"I think she got in the back of somebody's truck," said Samantha Poland, 8, who, like everyone else in the family, has considered a number of scenarios to try and resolve the question that is unlikely to find resolution.

One of Samantha's sisters suggested someone might have taken Nevada deliberately.

During the dog's absence, the parents tried to convince them — and themselves — that someone had simply fallen in love with Nevada and had taken her to a new, loving home.

Miley "was very sad and depressed," in Nevada's absence, Poland said. "She hid under the kitchen table. She didn't want to go out. She had been Nevada's shadow."

Her 15-year-old son, she said, was devastated.

He had received Nevada as a puppy to keep him company after difficult surgeries related to his cerebral palsy.

"Cody was the most upset of all," said his mother.

But three weeks after Nevada left home, the situation seemed hopeless. The family's search for her, after all, had been epic.

They had posted photos and descriptions and checked Craigslist and Petharbor.com., scoured all nearby neighborhoods almost obsessively, and checked local animal control.

Melissa Poland also called the office of the veterinarian where Nevada had first been microchipped to provide an updated address and telephone number.

In the end, it was one stranger's determination to find Nevada's owner that got her home safely.

On Jan. 7 — four weeks to the day since she left home — the dog was successfully trapped.

Hungry and exhausted, she had finally given in to the temptation of food in a baited cage.

Though the dog was no longer wearing her collar, Roseville Animal Control Officer Laura Morin knew she had a home, according to Melissa Poland.

She checked the frightened animal for a microchip — a move that met with success and relief.

But a call to the Yuba-Sutter Veterinary Hospital, where Poland had recently updated her dog's address, produced nothing of value.

"They told Laura that the dog had been chipped there, but that they had no idea where the owners could be located," Poland said.

Undaunted, Morin scoured the Internet for a match, and that did the trick, Poland said.

"She kept Nevada with her the whole time. She even fed her KFC for lunch," Poland said.

The family had been at a birthday party in Lincoln when they got the call.

Skepticism led to joy when they arrived at the Roseville Police Department and saw their long lost dog.

"We were shocked that she survived," said Poland. "She's spent her life indoors, and she's such a home body."

There were smiles all around on Friday, one day after Nevada finally seemed caught up on sleep and showed a hearty appetite.

"She's the dog with nine lives," Poland joked. "If only she could talk."

Source: http://www.appeal-democrat.com/articles/gray-103107-southwest-animal.html
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Lucy In South Carolina

Lost dog after 3 weeks reunited
Nancy White, shared on MyPetSpace
June 9, 2009

Hi All, I have a very warm & fuzzy story to share. It is also in my local paper {the Herald Independent in Winnsboro, SC 29180}

Three weeks ago there was a lady and her husband traveling, and they stopped at exit 48 on I-77 only to realize their dog was not in her kennel in the back of the truck bed. Not sure where they lost her, they looked for her at the exit 48, and nothing. Both very upset, they had to continue on their trip to a bible concert.

Well, not 20 minutes after they left, a Fairfield County sheriff officer found this sweet & lovable dog. Instead of bringing her to our local "kill" shelter, they brought this dog to my grooming & boarding shop in Winnsboro about 1/2 hour away from where she was found.

I said sure, I would take her in and try to find her owners with fliers, ads etc . Well, I posted mostly in OH as I was told that is where her family was traveling from.... I put it on the Pet FBI list and Craigslist in OH; she was broadcasted on OH radio station and still nothing. I posted her on Lost & Found and Pets on Craigslist in OH, Charlotte and in Columbia, SC. I put up fliers where she was found and nothing............

Three weeks later, I said, “OK girl, I tried, and now let’s find you a new home.” So I posted on Craigslist "Where R U" and "Lost dog in need of new family". I did this on a Friday and I got so many replies... I answered all of them, and a lady came into my shop and she said "Nancy, I would like a larger older dog, do you have one?" I replied "Yes" and she then said, “Well, could you hold her for me until Monday?” I said yes.

Well, Monday came and I never saw nor heard from this lady. I wrote everyone back who wanted her, to tell them I had a lady coming for her on Monday but that she was a no show....

But there was a reason GOD sent this lady into my shop, and "Lucy" was going to be reunited with her family again!

Yep, I placed one more ad and this time I wrote "Are you out there?" and put it on Craigslist again in Charlotte and Columbia, under Lost & Found and also under Pets..... Not 20 minutes later I received an email from a man saying......."My daughter-in-law & son lost their dog, and she looks just like this girl. Please hold her until I call them to confirm." I wrote back as fast as I could with excitement and tears of joy... OK

Well, the phone rang and it was "Lucy's" mom ... now she even had a name. Wow, I thought, GOD sent that older lady into my shop to hold onto Lucy because I was going to find her owners and SOON!

They drove up no sooner then we hung up and three hours later saw Lucy again for the first time in almost one month.

They have since called to tell me she is going to Tennessee to see her dad. He travels with his job and this was his dog ... He called me and said he cried as he looked at her picture every night on his cell phone.

And NO she was not microchipped....... that was the first thing I checked... so please get your dogs chipped!

It was a great story, and to this day I cannot believe I got her back to her family.... how cool was that!

I had fliers up at the Wilco gas station and they had fliers up at the Shell station........... right across the street on exit 48.

Nancy White
Pet Shack Of Northside

Source: http://www.mydogspace.com/forums/10-media/topics/1734-lost-dog-after-3-weeks-reunited

Koby, malamute/husky

OLIVER ALERT FANS HELP GET DOG BACK AFTER SEVENTEEN MONTHS!!!
Dawn H Wilson, Oliver Alert

On July 28 at 11:29pm, Denise Wirth Stover uploaded a picture onto Facebook’s Oliver Alert page of a dog that had been lingering around their neighborhood. Denise posted, “This Malamute/Husky has been wandering around the south Paulding County area of Ridge Road/Seals Road area for a couple of weeks. He finally just came up to us tonight and asked us for some food and water. We let him in and obliged. Let me know if you have any idea where he belongs.”

Less than 24 hours later, an official Oliver Alert notice was published onto Facebook. Oliver Alert has almost 2,000 fans that help share postings of lost and found animals. On that day, Tracy Lee Yates reposted the Oliver Alert information of the found Husky onto her personal Facebook page.

On July 30 at 5:55am, Royce Underwood noticed the Oliver Alert posting on his Facebook News Feed made by a former high school friend of his, Tracy Yates. The dog looked like his son’s lost Husky who had been missing for over a year. Royce commented on the Oliver Alert posting, “Does this guy have a bad back leg? My son’s husky “Koby” disappeared out of our yard. We put up posters and put up signs all over. We truly think someone took him out of there.”

On July 31, I logged onto Oliver Alert and noticed an urgent plea from Kristie Brown-Underwood stating, “To Denise Wirth Stover… I have been desperately trying to contact you. My sons Husky Koby has been missing for a year. The picture you posted looks just like him. He has a tuft of white hair on his neck, and when he was a puppy he broke his leg so he limps a little. please contact me. – Kristie”

By the time, Denise and Kristie connected, the Husky had gotten away again. However, the Underwood’s had a renewed sense of hope and a specific geographic location of where to go.

Kristie Underwood’s son raced to Paulding County, Georgia, which is 2 hours away to find this dog and see if he was Koby or not. Kristie’s son found the dog and the “gentleman” who had been keeping the Husky for two weeks would not give him back. Certain that this was their Koby, the Underwood family would take whatever action was needed to bring their beloved dog back home.

After several heated conversations as well as calls to authorities and Koby’s former vet…the man keeping the husky called and said, “come get him.”

On August 2nd at 12:23am, Royce Underwood joyfully updated the Oliver Alert page with the message, “FOUND!!!!! after 17 months. Original posting from Denise Wirth Stover.”

Through veterinary records, the Underwood’s were able to verify that this husky was in fact their lost dog, Koby.

The sweet words of seeing, “He’s Home” makes this a great Success Story not only for the Stover, Yates and Underwood families but, for me as well, the girl who started Oliver Alert.

Thank you Oliver Alert fans…You might “like” Oliver Alert, but we love you!!

Source: http://www.oliveralert.com/success-stories/

Zeb, Australian Shepherd

Zeb, come home: Dog crosses 520 bridge in rush hour
A dog is home safe after a harrowing trip on foot across the 520 bridge.
By Susan Gilmore, Seattle Times staff reporter
Originally published Thursday, February 3, 2011 at 11:38 AM

Zeb is home safe after a trip on foot across the 520 bridge

Good thing he didn't make his break this spring. He might have faced a hefty toll.

It was rush hour, after all, when Zeb made his escape across the Highway 520 bridge.

Zeb, an Australian shepherd, was back home Thursday in his Madrona home after his owners found him across the lake in Hunts Point, two days after he fled the Eastlake home where he was being cared for while his owners were out of town.

Owner Megan Ferestien said she thinks Zeb, who's 6 years old, was trying to get home. "He should have taken the Arboretum exit, but missed it," she said.

Friends who had been caring for him posted notices on Craigslist and received reports of him crossing the 520 bridge on Tuesday afternoon, weaving across the eastbound and westbound lanes. Drivers reported that cars on the bridge were driving defensively on Zeb's behalf, slowing down to protect the wayward pooch as he made his way east.

The Washington State Patrol tried to capture the dog, but he eluded troopers by jumping over a jersey barrier. Reports kept coming in to Craigslist. The State Department of Transportation tweeted that a dog "walked entire length of 520 bridge!"

The dog was spotted in Medina. Friends searched for him Tuesday night through Wednesday, before Ferestien and her husband, Dana, found Zeb about 8:30 a.m. Thursday hiding in Hunts Point.

He was starving, said Ferestien. He smells bad and has a torn paw, but otherwise seems healthy.

"Both my husband and I are now firm believers in the power of social media," Ferestien said. "Without friends spreading the news through various networks and strangers responding to Craigslist postings, I don't know if we would have been able to narrow our search and bring him home.

"This is a feel-good story," she said. "He's a special little guy. It's a miracle he made it across 520."

She later joked about it all.

"It's a good thing we won't get a ticket in the mail because he crossed without his transponder."

Source: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2014119359_dogescape04m.html

Toby, hound mix

Happy story!!! Reunited with my Toby after 2 months!!!
Posted to Craigslist Raleigh by Mandy
Date: 2010-12-27, 7:02PM


Toby, long before he went missing

So for all of you who may have had a pet go missing recently, or at all, and you are worried and heartbroken, this is the story for you!

The past 2 months have been the worst months of my entire life! My 3-year-old, 75 lb baby, Toby, a hound mix whom I adopted from the shelter and have raised since he was born, and spoiled every second of his life, ran away Oct 30th from the back yard.

I have been frantically searching every day since without any hope, sightings that were never him and almost nothing to go on. Yet, still I posted signs, family members did everything they could to help me and at 2 months later I was about to go door-to-door again.

Well today, a normal day at work, turned into the day I got my Toby back.

I had just posted on Craigslist again and this morning at work I got multiple phone calls and emails about another posting that looked just like him. It WAS him!!!

This is the picture posted by the wonderful family that took Toby in and reunited him with  us

This wonderful family had taken him on on Christmas Eve and taken care of him and for that I am eternally grateful! They contacted me today and we went and got him and brought him HOME!

I have no clue what he was doing before Christmas Eve for the past 2 months and I'm afraid I'll never know, but there are just a few scratches on him, and besides the fact he's lost 20 lbs, he's perfectly healthy! He was 75 lbs when he ran away and 54 when I found hilm.  He has since been microchipped, and he is no longer allowed outside of the house without a leash! 

The moral to this story is "never give up" and keep posting on Craigslist even when you think it's not helping and no one's reading! They are reading and miracles do happen!!!

Thank you to all who contacted me today and who've kept up with the Toby search over the past 2 months! We are very happy to have him home!

Oh and after looking for Toby every could of days at the Wake County pound, we adopted another couple of puppies for Toby to come home to!  Check back for a picture of the whole family.


-Mandy

Original Source: http://raleigh.craigslist.org/laf/2131788665.html

Maggie, jack russell terrier

Westside Watcher Reunited And It Feels So Good
Lost Journey of Maggie Has Happy Ending
Kathy Johnson
November 5, 2010

Last night I was reunited with my dog after 21 days of her being lost in the Temblor Mountain Range.

Maggie is a four year old Jack Russell Terrier who weighs less than 20 pounds. I've had her since she was 8 weeks old.

In the days preceding Oildorado (Taft's 100 year celebration) Maggie got out of my yard. She had been nervous because of the gunfire from the "Hoosegow" even though I had tried to keep her inside and calm. After weeks of searching I had just about given up hope of ever seeing her again. Yesterday though, a friend saw her picture on Craigslist and I drove to Simi Valley for a very joyful reunion. My dog was found, nearly starved, by a BLM consultant after 17 days of being lost. She was found near the Painted Rock site on the Carrizo Plain National Monument. Or rather, they say, she found them.

Maggie was first seen near Painted Rock on day twelve by a BLM employee who couldn't catch her. Five days later she scratched on the door of a mobile home at 9:30 pm. The wife of a BLM consultant, who was staying there for a few weeks, took her in and cared for her. Maggie was emaciated and her paws were sore. Her rescuers cleaned her up and took her to a vet to make sure she wasn't seriously injured. They contacted people in California Valley and the surrounding areas to see if anyone had lost her. Determined to find her family, they listed her on Petfinder and other lost dog lists.

In the meantime, I was putting flyers up around Taft and contacting local dog shelters and rescue organizations, sure that Maggie was somewhere in Taft. I couldn't imagine that she had gone far. I thought she had been found by someone who decided to keep her. When she got out, she must have run, terrified, into the fields. With every gunshot she probably ran further and further until she was lost.

The terrain between here and the Painted Rock is 20 miles as a crow flies. It contains the rugged Temblor Range which runs in northwest-southeasterly direction along the borders of Kern and San Luis Obispo Counties and is one of the California Coast Ranges. The peaks within the Temblor Range average about 3500 ft above sea level.

Taft has been designated as a gateway community to the Carrizo Plain National Monument which is a flat plain about 12 miles wide on the other side of the Temblor Range. A few years ago I took a tour of Painted Rock which included a 45 minute walk to access it. I saw a lot of wildlife and heard a rattlesnake in one of the caves of Painted Rock. It's the habitat of predatory animals such as coyotes, hawks, mountain lions, tarantulas and more. Maggie must have spent at least ten days crossing the mountain range before coming to the Carisso Plain, just trying to find home. It's terrifying to think of her out there, alone.

When my friend showed me the Craigslist ad, I couldn't believe I was seeing Maggie's picture! I emailed the couple who had cared for her. They had fallen in love with my courageous little dog. They were determined to find her true family so when they called me they insisted I email them a picture of her. I told them her name was Maggie. They had tried to find out her name and went through a list of dog names. When they came to the name, Mattie, she came alive so that's what they called her.

The family had already returned to their home in Simi Valley so off I went with my friend, who found her on Craigslist. I confessed that I was a little nervous that Maggie would prefer to stay with her "new" family after her dramatic rescue. I shouldn't have worried because as soon as I went in the house and called her name, she jumped in my arms and wouldn't quit licking my face. She would hardly leave my side until we left.

Joe and Terry Simon, the couple who rescued her, are wonderful people. He is a consultant for the Bureau of Land Management and was hired by the BLM to do the study on the Painted Rock. I will always be grateful that they were there. They took extraordinary measures to reunite Maggie with her family. It was a celebration in their home, which was filled with their extended family members. They refused to take any kind of reward or recompense for their expenses.

I'm very grateful to have my little dog home again after she went on her own incredible journey.

Source: http://www.taftindependent.com/News/ViewArticle/2359

Topaz, lhasa apso

Facebook Reunites Dog With Owners After 4 Years
by Josh Loposer
Oct 14th 2010 @ 4:00PM

After being separated from her family for four years and by thousands of miles, a Lhasa apso named Topaz is home again thanks to social networking. And they say Facebook is good for nothing but wasting time at work!

According to Time magazine, good Samaritan Diane Stess-Kirschner met Topaz when she found the dog wandering alone outside her home in Tamarac, Fla. "I felt something sniffing at my leg, and there was this dog," Stess-Kirschner told the Sacramento Bee. "She was a little grungy. She looked up as if to say, 'Can you help me?'" Upon taking the animal to the vet for a check-up, Stess-Kirschner discovered that Topaz was microchipped, and that the dog's owners were named Glen and Casaundra Greenfelder.

Attempts to find the Greenfelders by phone and search engine proved to be dead ends. It was only when she tried Facebook that Stess-Kirschner found some promising leads. She came up with two hits for Casaundra Greenfelder. Not knowing if either was the woman for which she was looking, she posted a comment about "a little blond dog" on both of their Facebook profiles.

The Greenfelders -- Glen, Casaundra, and their children, Jordan and Makenna -- hadn't seen Topaz in four years. Before relocating from Tampa to Sacramento, the family had placed Topaz in what they believed was a good, caring home. Somehow, the pooch had wandered her way 200 miles across Florida from Tampa to Tamarac.

When the Greenfelders received Stess-Kirschner's message, Glen Greenfelder called and asked about Topaz by name, which Stess-Kirschner had not provided. She knew then that she had found Topaz's family.

The Facebook communication from Stess-Kirschner convinced the Greenfelder family that they were meant to be with Topaz again. "I still can't believe it," Casaundra Greenfelder told the Sacramento Bee. "I'm still in shock."

Last Friday, after having her professionally groomed, Stess-Kirschner crated Topaz and put her on a flight destined for California and the waiting arms of the family who had missed her for four years.

Source: http://www.pawnation.com/2010/10/14/facebook-reunites-dog-with-owners-after-4-years/
Also see http://www.news10.net/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=99691&provider=top

Faith, siberian husky mix

After almost four years, owner and dog are reunited
By James Hart, The Kansas City Star
Posted on Wed, Oct. 13, 2010

A Gardner woman has been reunited with her Siberian husky mix almost four years after she lost contact with her beloved dog.


Dana Klint said she “was in tears when I found it was really her” after reconnecting with Faith, a 15-year-old husky mix


Dana Klint of Gardner was reunited with 15-year-old Faith over the weekend thanks to the Pet Connection, a no-kill animal shelter in Mission. She saw photos of the dog, nicknamed “Medora,” online on Saturday and reclaimed her Sunday, she said.

Klint had given up hope of ever seeing Faith again. She lost contact with the dog after leaving her with an ex-boyfriend about four years ago and hadn’t seen the animal in two years.

“I was in tears when I found it was really her,” Klint said.

Faith had apparently been living on the street for several months before she was taken to the Kansas City, KS animal control shelter. Thanks to the Humane Society’s Ray of Hope program, which takes animals from the Kansas City, KS, shelter and places them with no-kill shelters and volunteers, Faith was placed at the Pet Connection.

Faith didn’t have a working microchip or any other official identification, but Klint produced old photos of her dog that matched Faith’s distinctive markings, Pet Connection founding director Melody Kelso said. The ages line up, and the dog acted like she knew Klint. The shelter is confident that it’s the same dog, Kelso said.

This isn’t the first time that Pet Connection has reunited a missing dog with its original owner, though none of the other cases involved such a long gap of time, Kelso said.

On Monday, Faith was settling in with Klint. “You can still feel her ribs,” Klint said. “I’m still working on putting some weight on her.”

Source: http://www.kansascity.com/2010/10/12/2307038/after-almost-four-years-owner.html
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Zorro, Cavalier King Charles

Local lost dog claimed by false owners
By Taryn Fitsik
Posted: Oct 13, 2010 6:35 PM EDT

Albany, NY--A local dog is reunited with its owners, after it was first lost and then claimed by strangers, in an alleged effort to make money.

But it was a happy reunion Wednesday for Binah Bindell and her dog Zorro, who has been missing since last Friday, and then allegedly claimed by a false owner.

"What they did by claiming a dog that was lost is stealing, and this dog is worth over $2,000," says April Orcutt.

Crcutt volunteers with a local animal rescue group, and when she found out her neighbor's cavalier king charles spaniel was missing, she jumped into action.

Orcutt located the man who had found the dog, and found out he had put an announcement on Craigslist, not knowing who it belonged to.

"Three hours later he got a call from two women, who said this was their dog, and who came and collected the dog," says Orcutt. "The dog acted like he knew them, and they also brought a little girl with them. The girl got on her hands and knees and said come here Charlie, and the dog ran to her."

Orcutt says through more research online, she found out the dog had been placed on Craigslist and e-Bay classified, and re-sold to a woman who lives in Ticonderoga for $400.

Orcutt contacted the woman, which ultimately led to today's reunion.

Both the dog's owner and Orcutt says the whole ordeal points to something bigger, how they believe the alleged "false owners" are called "flippers", falsely claiming a dog as their own, and then selling it.

Luckily for Bindell, her story has a happy ending.

"I thought I would never see him again, but I had this gut feeling, I was going to get him back," she says.

Bindell believes to know who the alleged false owner is, and has contacted the Bethlehem Police Department, wanting to press charges.

Police say the entire case is currently under investigation.

Source: http://www.wten.com/Global/story.asp?S=13319345
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Katie, chihuahua feist mix

Dog missing 7 months reunites with family
By Valerie Broadway, The Herald Sun
July 2010

A happy reunion after seven months’ disappearance of Katie, a Chihuahua/Feist mix, is shared by (from left) Terran Tysor, daughter of the owners; Melissa Taylor, the Chatham Animal Rescue and Education volunteer who cared for Katie after the dog was found; Pam Ard and husband Andrew Ard — and of course Katie (held by Taylor) and her littermate, Missy, who helped to identify her.

PITTSBORO — Some say it’s a miracle. Others label it a great stroke of good fortune. Whatever else the curious case of Katie may be, Chatham Animal Rescue and Education (CARE) in Chatham County said the little dog’s return to its owners after a long absence is unprecedented in the agency’s 20-year history.

Katie, a Chihuahua/Feist mix, was reunited with her family after disappearing almost seven months ago. The fiancé of the family’s son was looking to adopt a dog and was conducting a search on Petfinder.com when she ran across a picture of Katie posted by CARE under the name of Sasha. She had her fiance take a look at the picture and called his mom to share his suspicions that this could be long-lost Katie. Mom, Pam Ard, immediately contacted CARE.

Katie disappeared from the Ard family home on Christmas night 2009. The family searched for Katie around the many acres of farm and forest around their home to no avail. Due to Katie’s age they thought maybe she had wandered off to die. But the family was haunted by thoughts of what could have happened to Katie.

Meanwhile, in early January, CARE volunteer Melissa Taylor, a foster caregiver, was called by Chatham County Animal Shelter’s personnel. It was the last day the shelter could hold an older Chihuahua mix that had been turned into them as a stray. They knew Taylor had a soft spot for fostering older dogs. Taylor picked up Katie from the shelter and has fostered her in her home ever since.

Katie was examined by a veterinarian and estimated to be about 9 years old. Additionally, she had an irregular heartbeat. Potential adopters were interested in Katie, but ultimately the people didn’t want to take on the commitment of adopting a dog with health issues. Taylor and her family were prepared to keep Katie in the event she was never adopted.

After getting home from work and receiving Pam Ard’s message, Taylor arranged to meet with the Ard family first thing the next morning. It was the moment of truth. Was Sasha indeed Katie?

Katie didn’t offer a lot of emotion at the reunion, so there were a few minutes of comparing pictures the Ards brought, and scars and bumps on Katie. The family also had Katie’s littermate, Missy, with them. It didn’t take long to determine that Sasha was indeed Katie. And the biggest shocker, Katie is 20 years old. The reunion was emotional to say the least — everyone was in tears. Pam Ard called her son to let him know Katie was found.

The family is thrilled to have Katie back and is extremely appreciative for all CARE — and especially Taylor — did for her. “Melissa was truly Katie’s guardian angel,” Pam Ard said. “I have no doubt that divine intervention brought Katie back home to us. Katie isn’t our pet; she and Missy are our family. A lot of love and joy has been received from those two little four-legged blessings during their twenty years!”

Once they were back home, Katie immediately visited each of her favorite places to lie down and then she and Missy snuggled up in the dog bed together and sniffed and licked each other. They were a little slow to recognize each other when first reunited, but it was all coming back now.

CARE had Katie micro-chipped, as is routine with fosters. The Ard family plans to have all of their pets micro-chipped and will no longer allow the dogs to go outside unattended.

Source:  http://www.heraldsun.com/view/full_story/8579964/article-Dog-missing-7-months-reunites-with-family?instance=most_recommended

Kiwi, shih tzu

Man, 77, reunited with stolen dogBy ERIC CARPENTER
THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Oct. 6, 2010 2:00 p.m.


ANAHEIM – After 12 agonizing days, a 77-year-old Anaheim man has been reunited with his beloved dog, stolen along with his truck.

His 2004 Toyota pickup is back in the driveway, too. But more importantly, 8-year-old Kiwi is again parked in the black shih tzu's favorite spot at the front doorstep.

My nightmare is finally over," said Don Peck, watching Kiwi scamper around his home.

"I'm so thankful to everybody who helped me," Peck said. "I never thought I would get him back."

Peck, a retired electronics worker, wants to thank a lot of people: His neighbor, Peggy, who printed dozens of flyers; his 12-year-old neighbor, Chelsea, who made him a bottle full of paper stars with the phrase: "Lucky Stars to Bring Kiwi Home."

He wants to thank the countless strangers who offered prayers and hugs and distributed the flyers.
But mostly he wants to thank his daughter-in-law Valada Smith, responsible for bringing Kiwi home – from 1,800 miles away.

Peck's nightmare began Sept. 22 when he came out of a 99 Cents Only store in Anaheim to find his truck gone along with his dog that had been resting in the back seat; the truck window's had been cracked open to keep him cool.

Three days later, Peck got a call from police that his truck had been found – towed after being parked illegally in a lot below a nearby Anaheim apartment complex. The truck was fine. But after paying $250 to get it back, still no sign of Kiwi.

"It was like a death in the family, like losing a child," said Shirley Sanders, Peck's fiancée.

Peck couldn't sleep. He spent his days distributing flyers and following leads. He spent nights tossing and turning. He lost 12 pounds.

Back in Indiana, his daughter-in-law couldn't sleep either.

"I know how much he loves his dog. And I love that man," Smith said. "So I did what I could."

Every night when Smith got off from her job waitressing at 9 p.m., she came home, took a shower, then immediately jumped on the Internet to look for Kiwi.

She checked every shelter in Orange County. She tried OCpetfinder.com.

No luck.

On Sunday, she decided to check lost-and-found ads on Craigslist.com. She looked at the Orange County and Los Angeles areas. After hours of searching, she followed a link to an animal shelter in Downey.

"About the 20th one down, I saw this small black dog listed as a Pekingese. And I thought, 'That's got to be Kiwi.'"

That was 3 a.m. Indiana time, midnight in California.

The phone rang at Peck's house. He feared it was too good to be true.

But when the sun came up, he knocked on his neighbor's door to look it up for himself on her computer.

"Kiwi has a cloud on his right eye," Peck said. "It was him. And his tail was down, so I knew he was sad."

A Los Angeles County animal-control officer had picked up Kiwi wandering near Beach Boulevard the day after the theft, miles from the store. And he was up for adoption.

Trouble was, the Downey shelter was closed Monday. Peck and his fiancée called anyway and said they were coming.

Once they arrived at the locked door, they showed a staff member a Register story about the dog being stolen. The door opened.

"When they first brought Kiwi out, he wouldn't even look at us," Peck said. "Then they got him on a leash, cleaned him up a little bit and brought him back out."

Once Kiwi saw Peck, his tail began to wag. And Kiwi wouldn't stop licking him.

Back home, Kiwi ran inside the house and straight up the stairs to his water bowl. Peck had been changing the water every day, anticipating Kiwi's return.

Back in Indiana, Smith was elated.

"When I told the people at work, everybody was in tears," she said. "We are so happy."

Happy doesn't begin to describe the emotion Peck is feeling, he said.

No suspect has been arrested in the theft. But Peck has everything he cares about.

And he’s getting a microchip with pet identification implanted in Kiwi, just in case.

"I'm not really religious," Peck said. "But I asked God, 'Why did you do this?' And I prayed. Everybody said prayers.

"Now I feel like they've been answered," he said.

Source: http://www.ocregister.com/news/peck-269674-kiwi-dog.html?nstrack=sid:584578%7Cmet:102300%7Ccat:0%7Corder:4
Related story: http://www.ocregister.com/news/dog-268066-peck-truck.html

Cambria, airedale terrier

Couple reunites with lost dog after it was offered for sale
By Sarah Dallof
July 1st, 2010 @ 5:54pm

WEST VALLEY CITY -- The 4th of July is no holiday for pets. In fact, shelters fill up with dogs and cats who get scared and bolt during fireworks shows.

A West Valley couple lost their dog following a fireworks display. But the person who found her didn't try to return the dog -- they tried to sell her.

Airedale Terriers aren't too common in Utah, so 1-and-a-half-year old Cambria is often the center of attention.

"She's a puppy, she loves everything," said Cambria's owner Brendan Cochrane.

Well, almost everything. Saturday, fireworks spooked her.

"Somebody opened the front door to let somebody leave, and that's all the chance she needed. She took off," he said.

Brendan and his wife Katelyn Cochrane went door to door looking for Cambria. They contacted shelters, vets and hung fliers at gas stations.

Then, a family member alerted them to a want ad for an Airedale Terrier on KSL.com Classifieds.

"I just had a feeling I needed to call this person, so I called and said if somebody approaches about selling an Airedale, we lost ours Saturday night," Brendan said.

The woman Brendan spoke with said in fact someone had contacted her, offering to sell an Airedale for $100.

Brendan gave her a description of Cambria and her collar. The woman called the seller back, then called Brendan.

It was his dog that was for sale.

"It's unfortunate people would try to make money than reunite family members," Katelyn said.

Brendan called the seller, who agreed to return Cambria. They met at a neutral spot, Cambria lunging to get back to her owner.

Once back, she was a bit tired and thirsty but otherwise okay.

This small family has some advice for all pet owners this upcoming holiday: "Make sure you keep them secure, even if it takes putting them in a room away from the front door," Katelyn said. "I wish we'd done that."

The Humane Society of Utah also suggests you turn on music to mask the sound of fireworks and close the blinds to shut out flashing lights.

B&W medium female

To Fido Finder:

Wanted to tell you that I LOVE THIS SITE!

I am always finding stray dogs and trying to find their owners. Tonight I found a dog wandering the downtown streets of Denver, limping, panting, with bloody feet.

She came willingly and I took her home after a quick visit to the vet to make sure nothing life-threatening was going on.

She had water, dinner and a rest and was feeling much better.

She didn’t have on tags and no chip, but her pinkish-orange collar had written in hand what I thought said “Silly Dog.”

I hopelessly googled “lost dog denver” and found your site. I’d never heard of it before. I was skeptical, but filled in the form, uploaded a photo, and waited.

I got two possible matches within the hour. The second one listed a dog named Silky. No photo. Medium. Female. Black and white. Lost today.

I sent my info in – and...Silky’s dad Spencer called – near tears!!!

Neither of us could believe how well Fido Finder worked!!!

She’s home with dad and our dogs, Boots and Biscuit are much happier too!

I’m telling everyone I know!

Ann W.
 
Source: http://www.fidofinder.com/lost-dog-success-story.php?id=1050

Luke, hound mix

The Daily Item, Sunbury, PA
Owner finds missing pooch on shelter website
By Karen Blackledge, The Daily Item
September 16, 2010

SUNBURY — Jennifer Cooper never gave up searching for Luke, her family’s 12-year-old Siberian husky mix who had escaped from her backyard and disappeared more than four months ago.

Dylan Cooper, 4, of Sunbury, pets Luke, who disappeared on Dylan's birthday

After Luke ran away by digging a hole at the end of the fence at their Wolverton Street home on May 6, she put out what she called an “all-points bulletin” for him.

“I put up fliers everywhere in town — in Shamokin and in Selinsgrove and lots of places,” Cooper said.

She listed Luke on amberalertpets.com, and a friend created a Facebook page, “Help Find Luke,” which attracted 135 members.

Nightly, she would look at the SPCA and petfinder websites to check for Luke’s photo. The family also has a beagle mix adopted from the Danville SPCA and a pit bull-hound from a Harrisburg shelter.

“Days and months went by without any sightings or anything,” Cooper said. “I was getting very discouraged, but my heart told me he was out there somewhere so I kept looking.”

Luke disappeared the day she was holding a fourth birthday party for her son, Dylan.

“I was busy doing other stuff,” she said. “He was in the yard with our two other dogs. I was surprised he left his buddies.”

Luke wasn’t wearing a collar or license because Cooper had just given him a bath.

Months later, Cooper was looking at petfinder.com and saw a dog she thought was Luke at the Danville Adoption Center of the Pennsylvania SPCA.

She called to get a better description of the pooch and was told he had been adopted after being at the shelter for three days. The dog had been taken to the shelter by Milton police.

An SPCA employee called the woman who had adopted the dog, and she agreed to have him tested for epilepsy because Luke has epilepsy.

“He has seizures on occasion. I can’t imagine how many he had without his medicine,” Cooper said.

When Luke’s identity became clear, the woman who had adopted Luke returned him to the SPCA. On Monday, Cooper’s boyfriend, Matthew Osman, brought Luke home.

“I don’t know quite know what happened to him,” Cooper said. “He has a couple of scabs and minor wounds. I gave him a flea bath Tuesday. He’s just skin and bones, but he’s starting to come around.”

They have fixed the hole in the fence.

“From now on, I will watch him when he goes out,” Cooper said. “He is happy to be back with his family, and we are going to give him all the TLC he needs to get back to his former health.”

Source: http://dailyitem.com/0100_news/x721418003/Owner-finds-missing-pooch-on-shelter-website
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Brooklyn, viszla

Brooklyn the Viszla's Story
as told in a thank-you note from her pet parent, sent to his listserv
May 3rd, 2010

Thank you all for the emails, phone calls and visits…we are very fortunate to have such incredible neighbors and we can’t say thank you enough.

For those of you who are interested…we have a story that should probably include the name Lassie somewhere in the title.

As you know, we lost Brooklyn on March 23…a very sad day. Our adventurous pup was sauntering about with our Nanny Marta and little Miss Olivia making their second loop on Wilton Avenue. Brooklyn was distracted by something and made off between Jay and Shanna’s house and Chris’s house for a peek at a squirrel or two. Needless to say… Brooklyn never made it home that depressing Tuesday. And on top of that, our daughter was being woken up by the clanking of the dog tags so Mr. Bright Guy had the brilliant idea of “no collar Tuesday”.

So we had fliers made up…I think to the tune of 750 and had a few dozen posters made. Ben O’Toole and his clan of friends manned their bikes, and we plastered the neighborhood. We called all vets within a 50 mile radius and visited the local shelters regularly. We took out ads in the Washington Post and Craig’s List. As desperate as we were, we brought in a professional dog tracker, sent out a Pet Amber Alert and I hate to admit it, but we even succumbed to the hair brained idea of reaching out to a psychic…all of which were a total bust. It’s amazing what we will do in times of desperation.

And then the secret weapon…Robin Siegel. Robin lives in the area and happened upon one of our posters and shot me an email….”what can I do to help?” I’ve never met her and yet she treated us like we were her family and inspired us that we were going to find Brooklyn .

Last night, Robin came across an ad on Craig’s list about a Vizsla found in Virginia, and she responded to it. Well don’t crack the champagne yet…it wasn’t our dog.

BUT…the woman, Jessie, who found that dog had come across another listing of "a Lab/Hound mix" that was happened upon in Luray , VA …101 miles from good ole Silver Spring. The woman wrote  Robin back to say “Sorry to bug you again, but we noticed this other dog (not the one we found) - I'm not sure how the humane society comes across their dogs, but we thought it worth sending to you.”

Robin passed on the note to me. I saw the adoption notice, which included a picture and immediately woke my wife…we both insisted that this was our dog. Now the picture was not a close up so we weren’t 100 percent. I drove to Centreville this morning to the humane society farm…incredible facility…someone left those folks a LOT of money.

Anyway, there she was running in a field. All the dogs announce my arrival with a chorus of barks, which grabbed our little reddish brown friend’s attention. And it’s safe to say that the staff did not need any evidence of ownership other than the massive howling, panting and whimpering…I’m speaking of the dog’s owner. Brooklyn was doing her own dance.

Now, we doubt Brooklyn made her way to Luray, Va on her own accord. We figure someone driving on Forsythe had the good intentions of caring for a collarless dog…and may have attracted her with a ham sandwich…then again a smile and a high pitch “here pup” would have sufficed. And then simply fell in love with her.

Brooklyn was found with a new collar, plump in the belly and still had her glistening coat…she was obviously well cared for. Our knucklehead dog was found on US 211 by Wallace Road …right next to the Days Inn Motel. She was scooped up by the Humane Society, given the name Annie and put up for adoption. So we surmise that on Friday her new trustees must have put her in the yard and gone off to work. And Miss Escape Artist must have had enough with her new landlords and hopped the fence looking for a way back home.

And here we are…six weeks later…we are like a pup with two peters…just loving life.

So lessons learned: leashes; micro chips; tattoos and determination in finding your dog…a family member…that our daughter Olivia calls “Sister”. And having good people like Robin Siegel who care enough to just help a strange family and their dog reunite. We offered Robin the reward money…she graciously refused. We will be making a donation to the Humane Society in Robin’s name.

WOOF
Brandon, Andi, Olivia and Brooklyn

Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/robinsiegel/4461566886