"Hiro", Balinese Siamese, San Francisco - Found!

(This letter is from Hiro's people.)
Hi Jackie

I have been meaning to email you for a couple reasons: the first is that Hiro came back! He was gone two weeks to the day, and then at 3:30 in the morning, we woke up to him meowing outside our door. He was really skinny and hungry, but fine otherwise. I wish he could find out what happened, but it looks like we will never know. Just happy to have him back.He is fully recovered from his ordeal and back to normal....one funny thing is that before he left he would only eat his dry food, or wet food with tuna. Now he will eat anything if we give it to him. Must have had to eat anything while he was gone to survive I suppose.


(These are the search details.)
Hiro is a three year old white with grey point Balinese. He is wearing a black collar, is neutered and microchipped. He is very friendly with people.

We started the search outside his front door and started to check the surrounding area. We found a track that led down a very busy street (Is there anything else in San Francisco?). I asked his people what might be down this way, and he said, "This is the way I walk to work." I asked the dogs several times along the way to check for scent on the sides and I would get a "no." So we kept going down the street, following the scent.

I tried to figure out what was happening. It appeared that Hiro had been picked up somehow. It wasn't in a car or in public transportation since we were going the wrong way down a one way street. Could he be carried? Yes, however, Hiro is 13 pounds, so it would be difficult carrying him. They would have to have some type of large bag to hold him.

The track continued down the street, crossed Market street in the crosswalk and then headed up Market going in the opposite way. The track all the way up Market street for several miles. Then it crossed again in the crosswalk and then made a left veer down a walking/bike path. The track went up the street, through a school along the paved path and then out onto the street. At this point, Hiro's people stopped the track. We still had a long way to walk back.

This is what we came up with. Hiro was definitely carried away. It was either a bike, scooter or skateboard of some type or even a shopping cart by a homeless person. Hiro's people said that homeless people definitely are seen in the area. The length of distance was too great to carry walking an uncooperative cat. I asked his people if they knew of any neighbors who were unhappy with Hiro. They said that their next door neighbor had made complaints about Hiro going into her yard because she felt Hiro agitated her indoor cat. As it happened when we first started the search, Dino followed the track into a small courtyard into a building directly to Hiro's people's apartment building. They said that is where the neighbor lives. My guess is that their neighbor had somebody take Hiro a long distance away and drop him off so that he could not make it home. However, it appears that he did make it home!

"Charlie", Shih Tzu, Tiburon

Charlie is a three year old Shih Tzu who is wearing a collar with ID and a microchip.

Day #1:
We started the search from the hotel where Charlie and his people were staying after a fire at their apartment complex. It appears that Charlie went on sightseeing trip by walking down the steps from the hotel room and then out on to the pier. From there the track made a right up the street and headed up onto Paradise Drive. From there the track went down some side streets where a woman told me she had spotted Charlie that Friday night on her street, Mar East. The track we were following confirmed the dog she saw was Charlie.

The track continued alongside some side streets off of Paradise and then back up onto Paradise where the track led into a gated and fenced area and No Trespassing signs all over. Charlie's people were able to eventually determine who the owner of the property was through a neighbor and she left messages with them to call her and the reason why.

In the meantime, we got permission from the both the property owners on both sides of the property in question to check their properties to see if Charlie could have gotton onto their property. The property on the left/north side belonged to a longtime resident, and the property was totally fenced in. I did not see any open holes in the fencing because their dogs used to escape through holes that had been patched up, and the fencing when down as far as possile to the beach, where the rest was solid rocks.

We got permission to enter the property on the right/south side of the property in question. We were taken up to the gate that borders both properties, which was as far as they would take me with the dogs without the property owner present.

Before the end of the day, we did hear back from the property owner where Charlie wandered onto. She agreed to meet us there the next morning to let us check the property. They are in the process of building a house at the top of the hill, which could not be seen from the street.

Day #2:
We all met early the next morning at the gate. I started the search from the gate to see where the track led us to. We went up the fireroad, which led us through one building in progress. The track went through that and then continued up the road. It then zig zagged up to the gate on the two property borders. The property owner said she had repaired a large cut in the fence just the previous morning. I brought the dogs to that place, and they did indicate that Charlie had gone through that, which would have been repaired after he went through. Both dogs indicated that Charlie's scent was all along the fence line like he had gone through to the other side and was walking along the fence. There were a couple of other spots where he could have crawled under the fence.

We checked the rest of the property for Charlie, but did not find him. In the middle of the top of the property was a large sleeping tent because the property owner said she and her husband would camping out there sometimes with their Irish Wolfhounds.

There were several spots along the fence where Charlie could have made it over and back to the opposite property on the south, including a place at the bottom where there was space to just walk around the fence, and both dogs indicated that Charlie's scent was there.

Since Charlie was no longer on the property, there were two options. First to check the property on the north to see if Charlie was there or to check out of the gate to see if Charlie had left the area and gone to another place. Charlie's people were going to check again with those people and have them check the property (over 40 acres)to see if they can find him.

Day #3(October 21):
I was told that Charlie was spotted on a driveway in a neighborhood, thought I was not told for over a week after the sighting because his people did not believe it was really him. This neighborhood is on the cliff above the property where we last checked over two weeks prior on the property where the house is being built.

I went to the place on the driveway, and it was Charlie's scent to the amazement of Charlie's people. Since this sighting is a very short distance from the last place, and their had been no additional sightings between the two places and times, our best guess was that Charlie was with somebody in their home during that time, and had escaped.

This track led through that property, down the street, down more streets, around on streets of parts of Tiburon and along Paradise Drive to a Beach Park.

We stopped the track down on Paradise Drive because Charlie's people had some family committments to attend to. They asked to restart the track another day from that spot.

Day #4(October 26):
We restarted the track back at the Beach Park. We followed the track along Paradise Drive. The track made a left off the main Drive and then turned a right up a street and all the way to the end of the dead end where a large two story yellow house was. This house was on the edge of a large open space. The track was around this house a few times. After talking to the home owner, she admitted to setting out food day and night for local wildlife, so we figured that Charlie found the food and stayed there eating and resting.

The track started again by going up the road and then around a large parking lot that was around an elementary school. From the school, he found a hiking trail that led up the hill and around the hillside and then down and back into another neighborhood that was on the other side of Tiburon.

The track went through an elementary school and around that and then into their parking lot and then up into another neighborhood and around that. The track went back out that neighborhood and back toward the school, past the school and again through another neighborhood. It went around that neighborhood a couple of times and then back toward the school. The track then went directly under a chain link gate/fence that was alongside the school. I said that we needed permission in order to go through that gate, but the school was already closed and nobody was in the office, according to Charlie's person.

They decided to call it a day at this point and restart another day.

"Squeak/Duke", DSH Seal Point, Kentfield

Squeak, AKA Duke, is an indoor/outdoor, nine year old spayed seal point Siamese. She is not wearing a collar, nor does she have a microchip. The last time Squeak was seen or heard was in the afternoon. Her person was sitting inside their home office and knew that Squeak had just walked outside through the cat door. From inside he heard what appeared to sound like an animal fight. He ran outside and Squeak was not longer sitting at the bottom of the stairs where she likes to sit. They did find some blood splatters on the wall of the house, and that was it. They don't know whose blood it is.

She had been missing for less than 48 hours by the time I got there.

I looked at the blood splatter and it did look like some kind of event did take place. However, I mentioned that the blood could belong to the other animal and not Squeak. She said she had not thought about that. As far as they knew Squeak did not wander beyond the house, though she had free access to come and go. There is a new small dog in the house.

The house is built on a steep hillside and the backyard goes immediately down a steep canyon with the bottom not visible.

When I brought Dot and Dino to the area, they immediately indicated the track went out the yard, across the road and up a slight hillside. Then the track stopped and turned around and came back down the hill to the street. Then the track continued up the gated off fire road, which is at the end of their street. The fire road continues for about another mile and then comes out into another neighborhood in the hillside. We tracked her into a yard with a hole in the fence. We looked through the yard, but did not find Squeak, but we did find her track leading back out onto the street and then into another yard. We followed the track around that property and then back out. This continued for several houses along the street. Each time we followed the track around the property and then back out to the street.

This led us all the way to the end of where the street dead ends, which, felt like a few miles from her home. Again, we checked all over the property and found her track around and then leading back out. Nobody along the way saw Squeak.

It was getting dark, so we needed to get back. Luckily we had flashlights and our reflective vests because there were no street lights and no sidewalks on narrow winding streets. Along the way we were still following the track and it appeared to lead all the way back to the home, an exact backtrack.

When we got to the house, the track then led around the house, down the street and then alongside the house and under it, which led to the deep canyon behind their house. They said they would continue to look for Squeak.

"Rosie", Jack Russell Terrier, Plymouth, Amador County

Rosie is a three year old Jack Russell Terrier who is wearing a collar with tags and is microchipped. She was last seen as her person was walking on their 30 acres. Her person and Rosie and three other dogs were walking toward one end of the property when all dogs suddenly ran after another animal. This was not uncommon. In the past, all dogs had returned home eventually. When Rosie did not return by the next morning, a search was started for her.

I was contacted by Rosie's person's daughter who lives in the Bay Area, and she met me there that morning and was with me during the search.

As I arrived that morning, Rosie's person had received a phone call from a neighbor on an adjacent property that she thinks she saw Rosie on her property early that morning around 6 AM near some bowls of food and water she puts out for wildlife. In between the two properties is another property of about 40 acres that belonged to a man who had stated than anybody would be shot if they came onto his property for any reason. He was uncooperative if he had seen Rosie in the last 24 to 48 hours.

We went to the property of the neighbor where Rosie had been spotted that morning and had the dogs check that. It was Rosie's scent and we followed the track all over the property and even onto the unfriendly neighbor's property, but the track then eventually led back onto the good property. Eventually the track led off the property, across a busy road and then onto another property. We attempted to make contact there, but nobody answered the door.

From there the track led off and on multiple ranches and water plants for several hours. The track did eventually go back near the house of Rosie, but then led back down the road and onto another ranch. It led up the main road for several miles and into Plymouth, which is where the fairgrounds are. As a coincidence, that same weekend there was a large blue grass festival. The track led near the fairgrounds and onto the RV park next to the fairgrounds. The track was all over the park and then led back out onto the street. By this time, it was almost dark and everybody was exhausted. We decided to call it a day, and they would continue the search on their own.

"Rohan", DLH, Orange/White Tabby, Alameda - Found!

(This is a letter from Rohan's people.)

Hi Jackie,

Rohan (from Alameda) HOME safe after 43 days!!

Where to begin??? After Dino and Dot tracked Rohan for that 3.7 mile loop on September 13, my husband and I put more posters up along that route. Four weeks went by with not a single sighting (except for one, which, after an all-night stakeout, turned out to be a different orange cat). Two weekends ago I had a "poster party" and we made an additional 70 fluorescent posters, and have been putting them up every few days. Last weekend, as you know, was the big storm, so we put new ones up on Saturday to replace the older ones.This weekend, after the last round of posters, we got several calls in a row saying that an orange cat had been seen in or around some storm drains about a mile away. It was the exact same neighborhood in which we had done our unsuccessful stake-out, so we assumed that the cat sighted was the look-alike cat we had seen ourselves (they really did look a lot alike). Chris went over to the neighborhood yesterday morning and didn't see anything.Then, last night at 8 pm, Chris got a call from an elderly couple who said they had seen a cat darting in and out of a storm drain in front of their house (about a mile from ours) just a few minutes before. They said that it resembled the cat in the newspaper and on posters they had seen. They asked Chris if he could come over right then, and he did. He didn't expect to find Rohan, but of course we follow up on all leads, so he went just in case. (I was in a meditation class at the time so I missed all of this!).
♫

He went over, stood next to the storm drain, called Rohan's name once, and within seconds he was wrapped around Chris' leg!! Chris picked him up, with no resistance from him, and brought him into the couple's house. They loaned him a cat carrier and he took Rohan home right away. He said hi to the other cats and settled right in. When I got home at 9 pm and opened the door, Rohan was walking across the living room floor toward me. I just sat down and cried. He has lost about 5 pounds but is completely uninjured.He ate three bowls of food, drank a ton of water and then curled up on our bed. I got up a few times in the middle of the night, and he followed me like a little shadow. He has been sticking close by ever since. We're pretty sure that he has been living underground in the storm drain system, which would explain the lack of sightings (and makes sense with the rain flushing him out this week).I can't even tell you how helpful it was that you and your team came out and tracked him. First, it made us feel like we weren't all alone, and gave me the confidence I needed to ask strangers for help. Second, it let us know that he had traveled almost 4 miles in one week, and that we should not restrict our search to the immediate neighborhood. In the end, I think it was the posters that brought him home, but who knows? The posters may have brought about the actual rescue, but we got through the last 6 weeks because of all the people who helped....You, the Missing Pet Partnership website, our petsitter who kept a picture of him in her house and talked to it every day, the animal shelter, our friends and our neighbors, Marta Williams....Needless to say, Rohan is grounded for the rest of his life with no driving privileges! If you are ever in Alameda, please let me know so we can have you (and the dogs) over for dinner, or at least a cup of coffee if you have time. You can meet Rohan in person. Thank you thank you for the incredible work you do.



(This was a separate letter sent to Missing Pet Partnership from Rohan's people.)

Kat & Dogs
Our outdoor-access cat, Rohan, went missing on September 5, 2009 from our home on the island of Alameda, CA. On September 13, we hired a MAR search team (Jackie Phillips and her two dogs, Dino and Dot) to track him. We found Jackie through the Missing Pet Partnership directory of MAR technicians. Jackie and her team (with me in tow) tracked Rohan in a 3.7 mile loop around our house. After 4 hours, we stopped the search around 7 pm. After Jackie and the team left, my husband and I put large fluorescent posters up along that route, designing them exactly as your website suggested. Four weeks went by with no sightings (except for one, which, after an all-night stakeout, turned out to be a different orange cat). I was starting to get discouraged, so I ordered and read Officer Albrecht’s Lost Pet Chronicles for inspiration. Two weekends ago I had a "poster party" and we made an additional 70 fluorescent posters, and have been putting them up every few days. (We also kept up our internet ads, newspaper ads and shelter-checks. ) On the weekend of October 17, we got several calls in a row saying that an orange cat had been seen in the general area identified by Jackie’s search dogs. On October 18 at 8 pm (six weeks after Rohan went missing) my husband got a call from a couple who said they had seen a cat darting in and out of a storm drain in front of their house just a few minutes before. They said that it resembled the cat on posters they had seen. I wasn’t home, but my husband went over with a can of food. He stood next to a storm drain, called Rohan's name once, and within seconds Rohan was wrapped around his leg!! He picked him up and brought him into the couple's house. They loaned him a cat carrier and he took Rohan home right away. Rohan said hi to our other cats and settled right in. When I got home at 9 pm and opened the door (with no knowledge of the evening’s events), he was walking across the living room floor toward me! He has lost about 5 pounds (about a third of his body weight), and seems tired, but is completely uninjured. Seeing him in our living room (after 43 days and nights without him) felt like a miracle. It still does. He ate three bowls of food, drank a ton of water and then curled up on our bed. We're pretty sure that he has been living underground in the island’s drainage system, which would explain the lack of sightings. I can't even tell you how helpful the MPP website was to us. First, it made us feel like we weren't all alone, and gave us the confidence to ask neighbors for help and try different search methods. The MAR search let us know that he had traveled almost 4 miles in the first week, and that we should not restrict our search to our immediate neighborhood. The expertise and support we got from your website put us on the right track and then kept us from giving up ... Which is why Rohan is now snuggling with a blanket surrounded by his family who loves him. Thank you thank you.



(These are the search details.)
Rohan is a three year old orange and white DLH/Maine Coon mix. He is not wearing a collar, but he is microchipped. He is generally friendly with people.

His people had recently moved to their new home, and had kept all four cats inside at first. Then they started to gradually let them outside. Rohan was put outside early in the morning, and that was the last time he was seen. I was called a few days later.

We picked up his track that led down the street block after block after block, which eventually turned into miles and miles around the island of Alameda for several hours. He went through warehouses, through parks, through houses and all over. His track eventually led back to the house and went past it. By this time it was raining and many of the houses were along the waterfront. Many people were not home at this time so we could not check their backyards and under their decks. His person decided to check the area more thoroughly on her own and put up posters and flyers.

See note above for the outcome.

"Braveheart", DLH, Brown/Black Tabby, San Jose

Braveheart is a neutered two and a half year old brown and black tabby who is wearing a red harness. He is microchipped and totally indoor except for a small patio behind their apartment. His people had recently moved into their apartment was Braveheart had recently started to go to sit on the patio. They also have two dogs and two more cats. The apartment complex is totally gated and enclosed. Each building in the complex is totally enclosed and centered around a single court where all the patios were attached to.

Initially since the court is totally enclosed, they thought that Braveheart was still inside or in another apartment. No sightings had been made of Braveheart.

Braveheart had been missing for almost two weeks when I was called.

The track we found led from the patio and around the court a couple of times and then suddenly led right out one of the gates onto the street. His people did say that many times the gates are propped open by people moving things in and out, especially people who are moving in and out, and there tends to be a large turn around of the tenants.

The track led out to the street and then down the street alongside a large alfalfa field that is adjacent to the apartments. From there we followed the track for over six hours all around San Jose through business parks, neighborhoods, farms, open space, more business parks, train tracks and train stations, waterways and canals, creeks, overpasses, etc. We did follow the track eventually back to the apartment complex, nearby their building. At this point they stopped the track and decided to continue the search on their own.

"Boo", Yorkshire Terrier, Millbrae

As of December 17, 2009, Boo is still missing.

Dear Jackie,
Thanks for your help this morning in trying to track Boo down. Also, please help us say thank you to Dino and Dot. They worked really hard today! Based on the route that Dino led us through, we are going to expand our search area. We will keep on looking, posting flyers, walking the neighborhood, hoping that some good-natured people will pick Boo up and return him to us or Boo may detect our scent and find his way home. Depending on how our search will develop, we may have to solicit your and Dino's help in the future.

Thanks again and Best Regards,
Jenny and David

Boo is a three year old unneutered gold, silver and black Yorkshire Terrier. He is wearing a black leather studded collar with an ID tag. He is not microchipped. He had only been with his current people for about one month. A friend was moving out of the country and decided to leave Boo with Jenny and David. Boo had been missing for a few days when I was called.

They had taken him out to their front yard and then he suddenly disappeared. They weren't sure how he got away, either up the driveway or around the back through some bushes.

There was a sighting of Boo a few blocks away from their home later than evening. We went to that spot and started the search there. The track went down the street and then cut in behind some houses to a creek that was dry at this time of the year. However, it was very rocky and rough. We followed Boo's scent all the way down the creek and then up to a backyard. It went up to the street and then headed down the street, through several neighborhoods, across live commuter railroad tracks and then down them and then ended up in a type of circle and the track went around at least a couple of times. At this point Boo's people decided to stop the search because they both had to go to work. They had taken the morning off to do the search. They said they would continue the search on their own.

About a month later I received an email about a possible sighting of Boo. Somebody had seen a lady walking a Yorkie into a senior facility who appeared to look like Boo. An employee at the facility spoke to this person and saw the dog. It was not Boo. They continue to look for Boo.

"PoPo", Shih Tzu, San Anselmo

PoPo is a spayed eight year old Shih Tzu. She is not wearing a collar, but she is microchipped. She walked away from her yard, which had several places where she could get out. She had been known to leave her yard while her person wasn't home and roam around close in the neighborhood, but she always came back or a neighbor would call to say she was hanging out there.

There was a possible sighting of PoPo at an intersection a few block from the home. We went there and checked the area, and found a track leading up into the hills. This led to a very extensive search up hills and around houses and yards and then finally back down the hill and back across the intersection.

We then followed the track down the street, into an old and deserted country club called Lagunitas Country Club that apparently was big during the 1920's and 1930's. Today it was over grown and the roads not repaired. A few people were living in the buildings here and there. The creek through the property was overgrown with broken fences and fallen trees. We followed PoPo up and down the creek and then somehow she jumped about three feet up a concrete wall into a yard and then walked out the yard and onto the street.

We followed her up the street which lead us through downtown Fairfax, onto a school field and then back out. The track led through some more neighborhoods and streets and ended up heading out toward a long road toward open space of west Marin. At this point it was almost dark and we needed to stop. I suggested restarting the track at that point another day, but she decided to continue the search on her own.

"Machine Gun", DSH, Tortishell, San Francisco

Machine Gun, aka MiMi, is a six year old, indoor/outdoor, spayed tortiseshell DSH. She is wearing a collar with ID tags and microchipped. She has been at this home for a couple months. Her person is a relative of her current caretaker. There are other animals in the home from other cats and a dog that visits. She has free access to come and go from the home.

She had been missing for several days when I was called.

There was a sighting of Machine Gun by her people that evening around 10 PM as she crossed a street next to her home. Her person said that she saw Machine Gun being chased by another cat, and she said she saw Machine Gun run into the area near the backyard, so initially she wasn't concerned until she did not see the cat the next morning.

She said she also remembers that the visiting dog of a roommate was seen chasing some type of animal down the inside stairs and out to the yard, thought she said she did not know it was Machine Gun.

We started at that point and found a track leading away from the house, down the street, through some neighborhoods, down a set a stairs, through a large empty farmer's market, down the street and through a set or projects. At this point we got a call from a neighbor that Machine Gun was spotted the night before running from her yard into the yard of another neighbor.

We walked back to the house and talked to the neighbor. It appeared to be Machine Gun since the neighbor said she was familiar with the cat as the cat regularly goes into their yard. This neighbor is directly adjacent to Machine Gun's people sharing a side yard fence.

The yard that Machine Gun was seen running into is heavily overgrown with ivy, brush and junk. The yard is very dark and covered with some type of plastic. Perfect hiding place for a cat! The chain link fence from the neighbor's yard who saw Machine Gun and this neighbor's yard is torn away sideways. The wooden fence that leads from this overgrown yard to the street has holes that is probably how Machine Gun gets from her yard out to the street. We fixed those holes from the street to prevent her from getting in and out to the street. We were unable to get into that yard because the home owner was not home. Plus the yard is so thick and unaccesible to a human that it would be very difficult to get us and the dogs into.

Machine Gun's person decided to set a trap for her in the neighbor's yard that called. Her person was concerned that MG might be hesitant about coming home because of the dog chasing her and the rest of the busy household. She said she was not able to set these things in her yard because of the other animals.

"Spencer", Golden Retriever, Castro Valley

Spencer is a five year old Golden Retriever who is not neutered, nor wearing a collar nor microchipped. He accidentally got out while some construction was going on at him home.

I got a call from his person saying that Spencer had gotten out one week ago, and that he had been found by a teenager walking in Castro Valley a couple of days after he went missing, a few blocks from his home. The teenager said he saw the flyer for Spencer and was going to take him home to call Spencer's people. According to the teenager, a BART police officer stopped him and asked him where he got the dog and the teenager said he had just found him and was going to call. The officer offered to take Spencer back to the station a couple of blocks away and call from there. The teenager reluctantly gave Spencer to the officer. A female witness said she was across the street and saw the interaction between the teenager and the officer.

Spencer's people said they never received a call from any police officer saying they had Spencer. The teenager said he called Spencer's people on the flyer to tell them what had happened. Spencer's people contacted the BART police and were told that no dog was ever picked up. They went to the station, but it was closed for the day by that time. I met them at the BART police station around 7 PM to see what was happening.

I talked to the teenager, and he confirmed the same story. I talked to the neighbor who said she saw the interaction and said the same thing, but where was Spencer? I took a look at the police station, and I thought maybe they tied him up out front and did not actually bring him into the station, and that something happened once the dog was tied up. Spencer's person confirmed that Spencer did not like being tied up or confined and probably chewed up a rope.

The neighbor who said she saw the interaction between the office and the teenager said she saw later on that day Spencer being walked by another couple who walked into a nearby apartment complex. She said she thought that they were his owners and had made it back home. She pointed out what complex it was. I took the dogs down there and we did find Spencer's scent there. It lead directly up to a door of an apartment that had a back yard. I knocked on the door but nobody was home. I walked around to the back yard and found the fence had a broken board, and I found, what appeared to be Spencer's hair on the boards. I showed it to his person and she confirmed that it was Spencer's long and gold hair.

We continued to follow Spencer's track from that yard around and around some neighborhoods for almost an hour. She then got a call that somebody had seen Spencer a few days ago in the evening get hit by a car a couple of times while crossing back and forth on a busy street a few blocks from our current location. We met her there. She showed us what direction he went down a street. She said she tried to catch him, but lost him and could not find him again.

I had Dino check up and down the street and found the track did not leave the area. I found that the track led to behind an apartment complex and then led back down the street and then suddenly stopped with nothing leading out. I tried it several times and got the same response from Dino. We checked several other areas on the street and found nothing.

My best guess is that Spencer got picked up at that spot and was driven away with their windows up. My guess is that he was injured and found in the road and taken to an emergency clinic. I suggested that they call around to all vets to see if somebody brought him in.

I called his people twice in the next few days, but I did not hear anything back about what they heard about Spencer.

"Elvis", Lynx Point Himalayan, San Jose

Elvis is a nine pound, nine year old, neutered grey and white Lynx point Himalayan. He is very friendly with other people and animals. There are no other pets in the house. Elvis is generally out in the day time and would come home when he knew his person would be home. Routinely he would stay in at night, but he did figure a way to open the screen door to let himself out, and occasionally he would, but had always come back prior to this incident.

His home is on the edge of San Jose in the hills in a gated community on the far edge of the community. There are known coyotes and raccoons and bobcats in the neighborhood. We talked to other neighbors when we found Elvis' scent leading under some wrought iron fencing out of the community and into open space. They did say they had seen coyotes coming and going from under that fence in the past. These neighbors did say they had seen Elvis in their area in the past.

In addition, we found his track leading away from the neighborhood, out a gate and into another part of the open space. There was a swing from a tree that Elvis' people's kids would come to play on here, so he may have been attracted to their scent. We did find the scent leading away from that area, down a hill, through a dried creek and back and forth over a busy street at the bottom of the hill. It then lead in and around several neighborhoods on the opposite side. The track continued down the street and in and around more neighborhoods. His person decided to stop the track at this time because she had to go pick up her kids from school, and it appeared that that track continued further down the street. She said she would continue to look for him.