Our Story

In the fall of 2006, my little dog got lost.

I would usually take my little dog with me when I go to run quick errands that don’t require me to get out of the car, and she loved coming along. A certain day in November of 2006, she saw me get the car keys at the usual time and got all excited, but as I had other stops to make, before I left, I sent her to the backyard in that beautiful fall afternoon.

Day 1 - Thursday

When I returned I discovered that there was a board loose in the fence, and she found it before I did. She was no where to be found. Needless to say I panicked. A neighbor said he saw her chasing after my car when I left.

Immediately, on that Thursday evening, we started running around the neighborhood calling her name and asking everyone if they had seen a little lost dog. We searched for her until 11 that night. No luck.

Day 2 -Friday

I got up at 5, put up the signs with her photo that I had prepared the night before. I searched for my little lost dog in the neighborhood again and began looking in neighborhoods nearby. When I got back home, I got everybody ready to go to work and school. Then I searched for her some more and placed a few more signs out.

I had to go to Walmart, so I took an extra lost dog sign with me as I bought groceries for my family. And it went on like that all day, checking the surrounding neighborhoods, parks and greenbelts. Searching for my little lost dog every chance I had between my chores. I couldn’t understand it, if she was around and heard us calling, I expected her to bark back like she would always do when she was in our back yard. I didn't learn until later that dogs usually don’t bark if they are in a potentially hostile environment, so predators won’t became aware of their presence.

If someone found her our number was on her tag and collar. If she got run over we would have found her on the road. Where was my little dog? I asked people everywhere. No one seemed to have seen her. I didn’t want to think that the puppy I raised since she was 8 weeks could be dead, all because she wanted go for a ride with me. Thoughts of tragedy came to my mind along with wonderful memories of great fun moments with the family and our big dog. I tried to erase those thoughts and focus. That night, I made more signs.

Day 3 - Saturday

No phone calls yet. My family divided into two teams and we searched the greenbelts near our home calling her name. Not a peep. I placed a lost dog sign on the back of my car. I made small flyers, and handed them out to everyone I bumped into.

There was a birthday party I had to attend at a local restaurant. I took some flyers with me and handed them out there. I might have looked silly for some people, but I didn’t care. I got a lot of support from others who have dogs, love them and know it could have happened to them.

Day 4 — Sunday

By now I had placed 80 signs at the entrances of nearby neighborhoods, churches, and schools as well as passed out around 300 small flyers. I handed them to people or hung them on front doors with a rubber-band.

I got a phone call from a lady talking about a lost dog… My heart leapt thinking she had been rescued. By the time I could make sense of her words, getting over my emotions, I realized it was just a nice lady I had never met, a total stranger, who saw my signs and wanted to give me her much appreciated support and told me not to give up. I kept her number so I could call her back when I found my little lost dog.

I was at PetSmart, after having gone to Love-a-Pet and Pet Co to look at their found dogs signs, when my cell phone rang. It was my husband, he was going back to the greenbelt nearby. A gentleman had called saying he saw a little black dog that looked like the one from the flyer that was hung on his front door. She was in his backyard but when he tried to catch her she went into the greenbelt behind his house.

I was so happy to hear that. More than anything it was a confirmation she was still alive. I had my daughter with me and we headed back to that part of that greenbelt we had been to already three times. I parked the car at a nearby church and walked along the greenbelt calling for her and praying. My daughter saw an opening and suggested that we go deeper into the woods. I was terrified by the thought of bumping into a wild animal, nothing too big, but a raccoon or a possum would have freaked me out, snakes, and all the bugs… oh, my...

I took a deep breath and followed her lead. We walked slowly, and carefully for about 10 minutes, calling for our little pet. Then from the top of the creek bank, my daughter pointed at the most beautiful sight, our little lost dog, shaking with excitement as she looked up at us with her little blue-heart shaped tag reflecting in our eyes.

I dashed down that bank fearless, through the thorny vegetation, like there was no tomorrow. Like in the movies, there was a small tree trunk across the creek and our little dog was trying to cross it as the water at that time of the year was already cold. I reached the creek and grabbed her with only the fear of loosing her again, which wasn’t about to happened.

She was certainly as happy as we were. She wouldn’t stop wiggling and crying as I held her in my arms. All that wiggling was making it difficult for me to climb back up that slippery creek bank. I tried to hold my daughter’s hand and instead of her pulling me up, I was dragging her down. We stopped to breath and tried to figure out what to do next, hoping my little dog would stop wiggling soon. Let’s call dad. Hum.. Mailbox… Great timing, hubby!... Let’s try this again before we call our neighbors and family. So I had my daughter grab a hold of some tree roots and at the count of three I was up the bank, handing her a little wiggly dog. We went straight to the groomers for a nice spa bath, got her some gourmet food and a brand new dress of course.

My little dog is microchipped now and is only let outside if someone is at home. I also inspect the fence regularly.

This website was made to assist everyone who has lost a dog and to help prevent it from happening to your pet.