When I was growing up we had moved to a area that was more into the edges of a big city in southwest, Pa. We had a small beagle that we kept in our house. One morning she got out the door and ran into the woods and did not come home.
We searched the woods calling her name over and over, trying to figure out what had happened to her. She had her tags so we were confident if anyone found her we would get a phone call.
Three weeks went by and then one day we heard a dog barking in the woods. My dad went to investagate and found a stranger with our dog. It seems he had found her and had kept her in his garage for the past 3 weeks. His lame excuse was that he thought she was homeless, even though, her collar and tags were still around her neck.
We got our dog back and I guess my dad told this man he better never steal someone elses dog again.
Have you ever had a pet run away or get lost from you? If so share your experience here.
The rescue Main Coon I adopted, did a runner this weekend. His owner an old lady passed away about a month ago, and I adopted the guy. I am so upset and lost at the moment. I keep calling and searching for him, I bothered the neighbors, called all the local vets and NSPCA and still nothing. The guy was just starting to feel at home, and now this happens.
Maybe this is the same case as yours, where who ever found him, decided to keep him as their own. I just pray that if that is what happened that he found a good home and somebody that loves him, and not some hungry guy that intends to eat him.
I've lost a dog once, he was an elderly chihuahua, we had been living in our new house in town for around 6 months and then he was gone, we never saw him again. We guessed that he must have either been taken or he wandered off. We called the local pound and shelters but had no luck, I've always hoped he was taken in by a kind family if he wandered off. someone said he might have gone away to die in private but I hope that was not the case. It makes me sad to think like that
I have lost a cat back when I was 5 years old. This was my first pet and I was upstate on vacation. We were all pretty much near the woods with roads surrounding us. I assume the cat ran out through the back door and we never saw her again. I remember I would always ask about her and cry but my parents somehow changed the subject. My mom has told me now that I was very sad and she always tried to change the subject as quickly as she could. When we moved back home that summer we went to the pet shop because my mom told me that my cat went to heaven. We all still do not know what happened to her=/.
03-20-2013, 09:42 AM, (This post was last modified: 03-20-2013, 09:44 AM by trishgl.)
You are lucky that you were still able to retrieve your pet. Our German shepherd we kept in our yard since we did have a half acre property when I was a kid. Unfortunately once someone left the gate open too long and our pet ran. We looked for weeks, printed and gave out flyers around the neighborhood and the surrounding area but no one returned our dog. Now I am really careful and make sure our chow is in the house when we open our gate. Although she's never tried to bolt before I don't want to chance it.
03-29-2013, 11:51 AM, (This post was last modified: 03-29-2013, 11:52 AM by 4sweed.)
When I was much younger my husband and I , owned a beautiful german shepard. One night he disappeared off his chain and we searched all over the fields and woods for him. We finally found him dead, someone had stolen the dog and shot him for sport.
It was a sad time for us and also wondering how someone could be that cruel to an innocent creature, who was never loose unless we took him for walks on a leash. Some people can do the worset things to other people's beloved pets.
We did have a beagle once. They are notorious hunters, and will take off running when they pick up a scent. That guy was probably using your dog as a hunting dog. But I am glad you did get your dog back. But yes, we did lose our dog one time. He is a black lab that we have had for several years. One day we were out in the yard doing work and had Nash out there with us. We called for Nash and he was not there. We looked around and he was gone. We searched everywhere and talked to neighbors and he was nowhere to be found. He was gone for the rest of the day and night. The next day I called the shelters and sure enough they had Nash. Someone saw him wandering around and they turned him in. Nash did originally have his collar and tags but somehow it was not on him anymore it was lost. So we immediately went to go get him. And we were all very happy to have him home. He never took off again, and I am still not sure why he did it the first time.
I was talking with a relative today who said his dog disappeared for four hours one day last week. He is surrounded by highways and was very worried about his dogs safety. At the end of the fourth hour the dog returned very dirty and with a dead chicken in it's mouth. My relative was glad the dog came home as it is 13 years old, but he wonders where in the world this dog found a feathered chicken in the middle of a big city.
Yes, when i was a kid, we had a cat that really closed to us because he was only our pet. We slept with him and eat with him too.
One time, my mother and i, went to the market to buy some foods but when we came back to our home the cat was already gone. We really did not know what happen to him. Since then, he was totally disappear. We miss him because he's really good and friendly.
My grandfather had a dog that he adored and treated just like his child. The dog would often follow my grandfather around whenever he left the house. He was a well trained dog and this was in the rural areas where leashes were not necessary. After my grandfather's sudden death, the dog would still get out of the house around the same time my grandfather would have gone out and come back a few hours later. Less than a month after my grandfather's death, the dog was struck down by a bus while returning home. I was still a young kid and seeing the dead dog lying a few feet from our entrance was the most heartbreaking thing to see.
Wow! You are so lucky that you got your dog back. Those weeks without her must have been so hard.
Losing one of my dogs is my biggest fear and just thinking about it makes me want to cry. One of my dogs is so untrusting of other people that I fear he would run from anyone trying to help him if they found him. My other two dogs are so sweet and loving and trusting of everyone that I fear someone might decide they would rather keep them than get them back to me. It's probably irrational, but it's my biggest fear in life... When I leave my house, I double check the door 5-6 times to ensure I closed it all the way and locked it properly. I make sure all of my apartment neighbors know how to contact me and what to do if something happens. Of course, they're also all chipped and tagged.
05-29-2013, 07:13 PM, (This post was last modified: 05-29-2013, 07:14 PM by Kyama3.)
Over the years I have lost many pets, at least 3 in memory. Before I was born, many other pets passed too, and we still have some old photos of them. Most of the pets that we have owned have been dogs, the dog that I grew up with as a child had a very upsetting and unfortunate death. It was basically shot up the rectum by our neighbours. It really pains me to recall this and angers me too, but yes that it what had happened. It bled to death because it was lying in the garden before we could get to it
I have never lost a pet, and it's a big fear for me. I have two cats that have lived indoors their whole lives. If they somehow got outside, it would probably be very scary for them. They never learned how to deal with traffic, and the only people they ever met were friendly to them, so they would probably be too trusting. They both have microchips, but no ID collars, since they really hate collars and I'm afraid they might hurt themselves. But even if I did, I doubt that anyone would check for their owners or if they have chips. Where I live, common mentality is that it's normal for cats to live outside, so I would probably never see them again... I really hope I'll never have to go through this.