It’s been almost two years since our boston terriers got out and were actually gone overnight. This was one of my worst nightmares because at the time the boys were getting out through our garage more and more. The door did not close all the way and if you went out you had to shut it manually or they were so quick – they got out. I decided to write down this incident when it came to a conclusion because it was so crazy. Here’s how it went:
Saturday, May 22, 2010 – 4:30 p.m.: Dogs get out of garage by way of kitchen and run faster than I’ve ever seen them down to the end of our street – then disappear. They were totally unresponsive to my voice, as usual. Morons.
5:15 p.m.: Dogs reported as missing with Animal Control. They had gotten out before and had a record with Animal Control. They were picked up fairly quick last time because they were trying to start fights with other dogs. Two against one. How cruel. Animal Control had no reports on this day. I was angry and said “Okay. I hope they don’t come back. I’m tired of worrying about these dogs!”
As night fell, my opinion, as well as my anger, changed to sad and worried. There were still no dogs, no calls, but the good news is they have microchips in them. I was hopeful. If they hadn’t gotten hit they would be okay I thought as I drove around the neighborhood one more time.
After putting Lucy to bed, I began thinking where people call to check on missing persons. I couldn’t call the Police, a dog’s equivalent is Animal Control who had already been notified. I then got the idea to call Animal Hospitals because people start checking hospitals when people go missing. There was only one animal hospital in Lexington. I called there and was astonished to hear ONE boston terrier had been there just an hour before! A man had brought in a black/white dog matching their description and he was not injured. Thank God. There was hope. I asked if they had the dog, expecting a yes. The answer, instead, was they had an old scanner and scanned for a chip and told the man how to find their owners. The man had not yet called and I was livid at the animal hospital for not keeping the dog or getting the man’s name or calling me or something. I, of course, went over to the animal hospital to give them a piece of my mind and ended up crying in there. Too emotional. Too embarrassing.
I called the microchip company and reported them missing. I then realized the chip # they had (that’s all the information they kept) was Norman’s (B-1) and couldn’t figure out why the man had not yet called. I left my information again in the event the man came back. It was also apparent to me at that time that the brothers had split up. I was more worried than ever that Kevin was injured.
We listed them on Craigslist and I sent emails to all the local shelters with no response. My last ditch effort was Facebook. It should have been the first resource I used, but I hadn’t been a member that long and didn’t realize how valuable they could be under these circumstances. I sent a Facebook message to my friends. with pleas for my missing dogs. It was going to be a long night.
Sunday, May 23, 2012: It turned out one of my friend’s friends had had one of the dogs, but he had gotten away. Really?!!!? I called the woman that next morning and she said she didn’t know where the dog went, but she knew of someone else who found another b/w dog. She was a woman who worked at the local Speedway gas station. It had seemed we had found Kevin (B-2). I obtained her numbers from the Speedway and sure enough he had the spot and it was Kevin (B-2). Turned out he had taken up with her dogs and slept in her bed overnight. No kidding.
Here’s the twist. Back with Norman (B-1). This day was also our eldest daughter’s high school graduation where she was graduating with honors. The speech and all. We arranged to pick up Kevin (B-2) later. He was in no rush and neither was the woman it seemed. She had the day off and was enjoying Kevin, as were her dogs.
Meanwhile, at graduation I received a call from a man who had Norman (B-1). This was the same man who had taken Norman (B-1) to the animal hospital the previous night. It seemed he did not get to go inside, but got to spend the night in the fenced in yard. Yes. You guessed it. He ran away again. You might say this dog has “boundary issues” or maybe just “issues” to begin with. By the time the people called me Norman was on the run again and picked up, interestingly enough, by the same person who found him first (the friend of a friend on Facebook). It’s a small world.
So to recap: Norman (B-1) – ran away from our house, ran away from first lady who found him, was found again by man and then found again by first lady. Kevin (B-2) – needed to run away only once because he was treated so well and got to sleep in the bed.
With both dogs back safely we ordered collars with their names and our telephone number boldly printed on each one. The dogs have gotten out since then, but thankfully not as much and for never as long as the afternoon, evening and morning of May 22 and 23, 2010.
The end
Whew! That’s a long story to tell!
For another fun story about my dogs, click here.
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