Cody, labradoodle

N. Massapequa family reunited with dog missing 13 days
By Tara Conry
Thursday February 27, 2014

A North Massapequa family had their hearts broken this Valentine’s Day when their dog, Cody, ran away. But after 13 days without their 8-year-old labradoodle, the Donovans were reunited Thursday with their furry companion.

“It was horrible, like losing a child,” Kerry Donovan, 52, told Oyster Bay Town Supervisor John Venditto as he picked up the dog from the town’s animal shelter in Syosset.

Kerry Donovan, 52, of North Massapequa, and his sons -- Michael, 14, and Matthew, 17, -- are reunited with their labradoodle, Cody, at the Oyster Bay Town Animal Shelter on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2014, 13 days after their dog went missing. 

Donovan’s youngest son, Michael, 14, said he was with with his mom, Mary, picking up Cody from a groomer in Massapequa on Feb. 14 when something spooked the dog and it wiggled out of its harness. Cody bolted down Broadway, heading northeast into the Massapequa Preserve.

“My heart was racing,” Michael said. “I walked through that whole preserve for about three hours by myself looking for him, but I didn’t see anything.”

The next day, Michael’s brother, Matthew, 17, spotted the dog inside the preserve, about 10 feet from where he was standing, and called out to it.

“His head popped up, so I knew it was him,” Matthew said.

But Matthew said as he walked toward Cody, the dog sprinted away and he couldn’t catch him.

The Donovans blanketed the communities with hundreds of flyers, created a Facebook page and continued to search for the dog every day, but they weren’t the only ones looking. A friend of the family had contacted the Town of Oyster Bay Animal Shelter, which deployed its staff to the area almost immediately to sniff out the dog.

Friends, neighbors and strangers also joined the search efforts, sharing Cody’s photo on social media, reporting sightings of the dog and scouting the area. On Sunday, Donovan said more than 100 volunteers fanned out throughout the preserve looking for Cody, but the dog eluded them.

Finally, on Thursday morning, Donovan received a call from shelter director Laurie Scarpa letting him know she had Cody. She said the dog had been caught by one of the two traps her staff had set up Wednesday behind homes bordering the preserve, where Cody had been spotted before. They had placed bacon donated from a local deli inside to lure him in.

“It was a long couple of weeks, we all are exhausted, but we wanted to find him,” Scarpa said.

Should he go missing again, the search shouldn’t be as exhausting thanks to a new microchip outfitted for Cody.

Aside from a roughly 15-pound weight loss and a possibly infected front paw, Donovan said Cody survived the ordeal relatively well. However, he did appear very tired.

“He’s overwhelmed by his experience, but I’m sure when he sees his mommy, my wife Mary, he’s going to go nuts,” he said. “It’s going to be a very happy night."

Source: http://www.newsday.com/long-island/towns/long-island-now-1.1732330/n-massapequa-family-reunited-with-dog-missing-13-days-1.7233276

Mika, Staffy

Family reunited with missing pregnant dog
By Chiara Giordano, Plymouth Herald
February 24, 2014

A FAMILY spoke of their relief to be reunited with their pregnant dog after she went missing.

Kirstie Logan and her daughter, Sammie-Lea Logan, were thrilled to have their Staffy, Mika, back safe and sound at home on Wednesday.

Sammie-Lea Logan and Kirstie Logan reunited with missing Mika

The Staffy went missing while six-weeks pregnant, on Saturday February 15, when Kirstie’s daughter, Leahonna Cora Skelton, was looking after her.

Owner Kirstie, from St Jude’s, said: “I’m relieved but not about her snoring waking me up at two o'clock every morning.”

Kirstie, 40, received a phone call on Wednesday afternoon from someone who had found Mika and the family dog returned home four days after her disappearance.

“I had four strangers phone me and four people inbox me as soon as it went up on the internet,” Kirstie said.

“I want to say a massive thank you to everyone who walked the streets and people who shared the post online.

“I think Mika is a very famous dog in Plymouth at the moment.”

Source: http://www.plymouthherald.co.uk/Family-reunited-missing-pregnant-dog/story-20690983-detail/story.html

Lakota, Australian shepherd

Couple reunited with lost service dog after five months
Susan Wyatt, NWCN.com
February 23, 2014

A Washington state couple has been reunited with their service dog – five months after she disappeared from their home.

The dog named Lakota disappeared from Ken and Barb Toczek's home on Oct. 9. Ken is a disabled diabetic.

A handler tracked the 4-year-old female Australian Shepard down a forest service road and determined she was picked up by a vehicle.

"We don't know who took her," Barb said. "It was hunting season at the time she disappeared. We speculate it was a hunter that came through."

The Toczeks hired an international K-9 search unit to look for the dog and posted a notice on Craigslist.

Then, on Thursday, they got a phone call from the Whatcom Humane Society: "We think we have your dog."

At first the Toczeks were skeptical because they had had a lot of leads, but sure enough it was Lakota.

"I never thought we'd see her again," Barb said.

Apparently Lakota had showed up in Bellingham, Wash. on Oct. 10, was put in a foster home, then adopted out to a man who had her until Thursday, when he brought her back to the shelter because Lakota wasn't good with the man's girlfriend's children.

Unfortunately, Lakota was without her collar and was not chipped.

"They went on Craigslist and found her picture," Barb says.

They used a pet locator phone app and sure enough, they found Lakota's family.

"So we drove up right away and picked her up," said Barb. "She's home and we're very happy, we're just ecstatic."

Source: http://www.news10.net/story/news/nation/2014/02/23/couple-reunited-with-lost-service-dog-after-five-months/5750425/

Heidi, golden retriever

Couple reunited with lost dog after burglary
Stranger takes golden retriever in on stormy night
By Jeffrey Field
Feb 21, 2014

KANSAS CITY, Mo. —A Kansas City couple came home to find their house burglarized and their beloved golden retriever missing.

"We come into the living room and the back door is wide open and the dogs are gone," said Jordan Sachoffstall.

He and Cassie Wiggs said they found their puppy, Nawla, within a few hours. But Heidi was nowhere to be found.

They searched everywhere and posted items on social media in hopes it would help get Heidi back.

They said everything seemed hopeless until they got a phone call from Wayside Waifs.

"They said that they had our baby," Wiggs said. "A good man had brought her in and he was taking care of her, letting her sleep in his bed, and that's all I wanted."

"We had to tell ourselves that somebody who loves dogs like we do is going to have her in their house and they are going to keep her warm and they are going to feed her and they are going to bring her home to us," Sachoffstall said

Matt McClain said he took pity on Heidi when he found her outside his house. He said he lives on the opposite side of Interstate 49 from Heidi's owners.

"Last night it was nasty and stormy out, and she was outside on my front porch howling, wanting someone to bring her in," he said.

He said he took her to Wayside Waifs.

"We walked in the front door and she's standing right there in the lobby waiting for us, crying. And she just ran to us," said Sachoffstall.

Heidi is now back home with her family.

Source: http://www.kmbc.com/news/couple-reunited-with-lost-dog-after-burglary/24589402