Our dog bolted Saturday afternoon. Has not returned home. Any ideas for what we can do? Update! Abby’s home! See#110

[going_gray]

Thank you! Really, really good ideas. I’m choked up again.

Just texted our next door neighbor whose daughter goes to our nearby elementary school. Asked her if she could ask the principal if she’d be willing to send out our lost dog flyer on the school’s email system.

Teachers, staff, and parents who all live in our area! Many eyes!

Neighbor will check with the principal. That would be wonderful!

Food that we put out the past two days has not been disturbed, behind our pasture fencing and way down in our back wilderness area. Acres and acres of woods with some cleaned up areas.

DH put out roast beef slices (very smelly) on top of the kibble that is in her bowl.

She may be far, far away from this area. It is the only area back away from our neighborhood, though, that we can reach by foot or tractor. Very quiet and almost inaccessible. Has water!

Rain coming in tomorrow and Friday will make the hill really slick.

[going_gray]

MorganmaresVT, I just read one of your links. Lots of things we haven’t thought of that we can do! Thank you!

My neighbor is going to contact the principal of our local elementary school (her daughter goes to this school). Maybe we can get our flyer sent out to teachers,staff, and even parents! So helpful! More great ideas on that list!

[going_gray]

I just contacted someone from a drone group here in nc. He said that their drones are too small and don’t have the capabilities of using image locators. Heat seeking?

He did say that there is a group on Facebook that has bigger drones with imaging capabilities. He will send them my name and number. I hope someone reaches out!

[trubandloki]

@going_gray

Yes, we’ve gotten a few comments from some people from our Facebook lost dog ads. Someone posted yesterday that they saw three dogs near our local lumberyard, one black with white spots.

Abby has the typical black and white border collie markings, no spots. White stripe on face, white leggings on her front legs, and a white tip on her tail. Lumberyard is not close by. It’s hard to know.

I’m going to take a poster down to our closest rail trail entrance which is very close to this lumberyard, trail entrance is just across from the yard.

I will post it on the trail rail sign so it can be seen easily by people entering the trail. Shoot! I may take posters and put up on trees or other signs along the trail system. Can’t hurt and if someone doesn’t like it they can take them down. I can always put them back up.

DH just got back from a tractor ride into our back wilderness area. Food has not been disturbed. He left slices of smelly roast beef in her bowl.

What one person calls spots might not be what another person calls spots.
I scared dog can travel very far very fast.

While you dropping off a poster at the trail head, take a poster over to the lumber yard too.

More people knowing will only help.

[NaturallyHappy]

Is there a Civil Air Patrol or a small airport in your area? If the drones are too small, maybe a private pilot or a crop duster could look.

[going_gray]

Thank you! Yes, spotted dog could be border collie coat colors. Who knows?

We are headed soon into town to get laminated copies of our flyer. Will take one over to lumberyard as well as putting it on rail trail entrance. Have some telephone pole spots we can post flyer on as well, near traffic stops.

[going_gray]

We have a small airport near us. We will get over there and see if a pilot could help us out. Thank you!

[Nondeplume]

I had a dog that did this and disappeared for almost a month. I was broken. I continued to go out and hunt for her every day. A month later I get a call - someone had her. They had opened their door one day and she came in, jumped up on their couch and made herself at home. Two days after she ran away. What brought her home? I had been putting up flyers everywhere - it was some school kids getting off their bus that saw a flyer that was right at the bus stop. The very best of luck!

[Sue_B]

DO you have a car she likes to ride in? When we’ve lost stock dogs we’ve left one of our vehicles with a door open in the area of the last sighting. Shared that with fellow farmers/ranchers cuz it works like a charm. We had one dog bolt out on the desert, an irrigator finally caught sight of her a week later, parked the truck out there that evening, next morning she was curled up on the seat. We had been calling for her that whole week, never showed, but apparently the pickup made her feel safe.

[ThreeWishes]

I had a similar scenario. Old hound dog bolted out through! a window during a terrible thunderstorm. She was gone 3 weeks. This was all pre social media. So I did the flyers everywhere called vets offices and walked endless miles. It was a single flyer at a feed store which featured a reward that got my phone to ring. To this day I think that they would have just kept her had I not included a reward. She was a lovely dog. I happily paid it.

[going_gray]

Thank you for all your ideas. This afternoon I placed a flyer on the pedestal that is at the entrance to our rail trail. Walkers have to go to the left or right of this divider. Will definitely see the flyer.

We took flyers over to the nearby lumberyard office and they will put them up next to their check out timers. We also got over to our local airport and got the name and phone number of a private flying business that gives flying lessons.

Will check with them about using a plane to fly over our local area. Also, whether they might know someone who has a high tech drone.

Hoping to hear from a drone group that is on Facebook. They have high tech machines.

EPIC Pet Recovery has a message on Facebook telling people they are basically a two person operation and that they both have been sick this week and haven’t been able to respond to emails. And that they are swamped with inquiries. Oh, boy.

It’s now getting colder. I needed a sweater and my hoodie this morning. Yesterday we hit 81 degrees. We have rain coming in tomorrow and Friday. Lower temps too. Not happy about that.

No sightings. We haven’t seen any vultures floating around or any dead dogs on the road.

Someone in our vicinity has a small, friendly dog that runs loose all day. We usually feed her twice a day. Collar, no tags, always hungry.

Our Abby is not like this dog. Always hyper alert, hyper vigilant to anything going on. (We know when our neighbors drive home from work!)

Our other border collie greets everyone with her frisbee in her mouth. Everyone who plays with her is her friend. Dogs are so different even those of the same breed.

[Angela_Freda]

@ThreeWishes

. To this day I think that they would have just kept her had I not included a reward. She was a lovely dog. I happily paid it

I’m on a Facebook page for Beagle lovers.
I thought of this post last night when a member shared that they found a Beagle and just decided the owner clearly didn’t take care of them (because it had long nails and fleas) and they would keep the dog.
I just can’t imagine doing that.

I hope your dog is found soon.

[red_mares]

Some years ago my parents’ old JRT did a runner. She had doggy dementia and probably didn’t realize what she was doing. Anyway, she was finally found a few miles away, across a couple 4 lane roads by the river. I think the local paper may have had an brief article on them - Little Old Man Missing Little Old Dog, with a heart string tugging picture.

[OnAMission]

We had a car wreck here this past summer, a very bad one, in the middle of nowhere, literally wilderness up Wolf Creek (literally) and one of the dogs survived the wreck but was missing. People looked and looked but no sign. Three months later, when the weather turned cool, that dog showed up at a house 15 miles away. Probably attracted to the dogs at the place but he hunkered there and they were able to get him back to his surviving owners.

A turn of weather will put some pressure on; hopefully she shows herself.

[OverandOnward]

You might set a deadline for yourself that if you haven’t had any credible leads by X date, it is time to expand the search by another 2 miles or 5 miles or so. I’d probably peg a week or two after your first flyer distribution. A healthy BC can cover a lot of distance.

I know that won’t be easy as it is several times the flyers, advertisements etc. that you have distributed so far (and I know you have distributed many many many). But if you pick the most likely locations for flyers - farm & ranch, trails, etc. - that is probably more useful than trying to tack on on every lamppost (as it were). And for the ads.

As much as you are doing I think you will get her back. It is just being patient – not an easy ask, at all.

If my old lab went missing, I’d be losing my mind, too. Keeping sweet Abby in prayers!

[chestnutmarebeware]

Another idea that may have already been mentioned— I would put your flyers at every vet office ( large and small animal vets), and at pet shops, feed stores, tack shops, TSC, etc. Anywhere where animal people shop. Plus, grocery stores often have a bulletin board too.

Also, in rural areas there’s usually a small radio station that broadcasts community news, swap programs, etc. Around here, a lot of older people listen to our version of this kind of station, and I’m sure they would help you get the word out.

[endlessclimb]

Thinking of you, and sending your pup “GTF home” thoughts. Comeon girlie, home sweet home.

[Rackonteur]

Jingling and praying for Abby and you.

[Bicoastal]

Adding a few things I have learned personally or from a dog tracker. Get as many trail cams as you can afford, place them with as many neighbors as will permit, to try to identify an area of sightings. Once she’s done her initial flee, she’s likely to stick to one territory.

When you know the area she’s lurking in, bait a large humane trap with door open. Verify on a trap cam if she is entering. Then set the trap.

Low-tech tips: wherever you leave bait, put a large piece of cardboard, plywood, or a tarp down under the food. Sprinkle the hard surface with flour. When you return, see what kind of animal tracks are present. When you see paw prints in the flour, get a beach chair, a book, and your other dog and hang out for hours. Dawn and dusk are especially good.

The video about how to lure a lost dog is spot on. In Abby’s mind, this was a traumatic experience. She has gone feral. It is spooky how quickly they get spooky and behave like humans are out to eat them.

Story of hope- I know an OTCH superstar BC who fled. Dog was found three weeks later and captured by being trapped in a good samaritan’s fenced backyard.

[Spudsmyguy]

I know this is kind of gross, but urinate in several areas. She’ll know your scent and will come there.