"Mr. Kitty", DSH, Grey Tabby, Pacifica - Found!

Mr. Kitty is an indoor only, three year old, neutered, grey tabby DSH. He is not wearing a collar, and he is not microchipped.

A window got left open by mistake, and Mr. Kitty could not be found anywhere in the house. I recommended looking both throughout the house and outside. We scheduled a time to do a search.

I got a call early the next morning that Mr. Kitty had returned!

"Pepper", Australian Cattle Dog mix, Black, Pacifica - Found

Pepper is a neutered, two year old, black, Australian Cattle Dog mix. He is wearing an orange collar with no tags, but he is microchipped.

There were sightings of Pepper back in Pacific and on Skyline Drive, near where he was lost, but there had not been sightings for a couple of days. We decided to start the search from there.

On my way to meet Pepper's person, I passed what appeared to be a medium size black body on one of the freeway ramps from Northbound 280 to Southbound 1. I was unclear exactly what I saw, and due to the location, I was unable to stop or turn around. I continued on my way to meet Pepper's person, and I told her about the sighting when I arrived.

We made our way back to the ramp, and she confirmed by Pepper's collar that the body was Pepper. She had a small car, so we were able to pull aside into a small area and park. I went back to the spot and pulled the body off to the side as I dodged traffic coming around the ramp.

Pepper's person could not back up to the body, so she drove around again and came up to the ramp and pulled off sooner to where I had the body. We quickly put the body into the back of her small station wagon and drove off, back to Pacifica to where my van was parked.

Due to the condition of body, it appeared Pepper had only been deceased for a few hours.

"Casey", Boxer, Fawn, San Bruno - FOUND!

On August 3, 2011, I received the following text message from Casey's person:

"Wonderful news! We found Casey this morning in South San Francisco thanks to calls from folks who saw the posters. It was Georgia's scent that she came to immediately and mama Lisa's voice. Thanks for all your help!" 

Search details:

Casey is a seven year old, female fawn boxer with natural ears and natural tail. She is not wearing a collar, but she is microchipped. Casey is very shy of people, and escaped from her yard when the regular gardener left the side gate open when he went back to his vehicle. 

There were no confirmed sightings of Casey, so we started from her home. For the next two days we followed the track through San Bruno, South San Francisco, Daly City, Pacifica and San Francisco. The search was stopped in San Francisco late one afternoon as we ran out of daylight in the Mission District. We were so do another search when Casey was found that day!

Day One:


View Casey Track in a larger map

Total Distance: 24.17 km (15.0 mi)
Total Time: 6:54:51
Moving Time: 3:53:41
Average Speed: 3.49 km/h (2.2 mi/h)
Average Moving Speed: 6.20 km/h (3.9 mi/h)
Max Speed: 14.71 km/h (9.1 mi/h)
Min Elevation: -2 m (-7 ft)
Max Elevation: 202 m (664 ft)
Elevation Gain: 1167 m (3828 ft)
Max Grade: 1 %
Min Grade: -7 %
Recorded: Thu Jul 28 12:49:55 PDT 2011

Day Two:

View Casey Track Day Two in a larger map

Created by My Tracks on Android.

Total Distance: 25.92 km (16.1 mi)
Total Time: 4:54:22
Moving Time: 2:53:03
Average Speed: 5.28 km/h (3.3 mi/h)
Average Moving Speed: 8.99 km/h (5.6 mi/h)
Max Speed: 106.68 km/h (66.3 mi/h)
Min Elevation: 4 m (14 ft)
Max Elevation: 183 m (599 ft)
Elevation Gain: 958 m (3143 ft)
Max Grade: 7 %
Min Grade: -9 %
Recorded: Sat Jul 30 14:42:07 PDT 2011

"Pumpkin", White with Orange Patches, DSH, Fairfax

Pumpkin is a indoor/outdoor, female, adult orange and white DSH. She is wearing a purple collar with a bell and ID tags, and she is microchipped.

There was a sighting of Pumpkin a couple of days after she was last seen by her person. A neighbor across the street saw Pumpkin in his yard.

We started the search there and found her track leading quickly away from the unfenced and hillside yard. It did appear she was chased from that yard because the track when into some very steep and wooded hills and canyons. It then went down a hillside and then out onto paved roads.

We continued the search for several hours when her person stopped the search and said she would keep looking for Pumpkin.




View Pumpkin Track in a larger map

Created by My Tracks on Android.

Total Distance: 16.64 km (10.3 mi)
Total Time: 5:37:50
Moving Time: 5:13:39
Average Speed: 2.95 km/h (1.8 mi/h)
Average Moving Speed: 3.18 km/h (2.0 mi/h)
Max Speed: 20.93 km/h (13.0 mi/h)
Min Elevation: -13 m (-43 ft)
Max Elevation: 97 m (317 ft)
Elevation Gain: 261 m (856 ft)
Max Grade: 33 %
Min Grade: -20 %
Recorded: Fri Jul 22 14:36:44 PDT 2011

"Myla", Pug, Fawn, Oakland

Still missing as of August 24, 2011

Myla is a one year old, female, spayed, fawn Pug. She is not wearing a collar and is not microchipped. She was recently adopted from a shelter by Pug rescue and was staying at a foster home when she got out of a yard with a gate left open by accident.

There were a couple of sightings of Myla for a couple of days after she went missing. We started the search from the last location. We followed the track for four hours when the foster coordinator, who was walking with us, called off the search. She said the group would continue to look for Myla.

View Myla Track in a larger map

Created by My Tracks on Android.

Total Distance: 9.49 km (5.9 mi)
Total Time: 3:10:12
Moving Time: 1:38:12
Average Speed: 2.99 km/h (1.9 mi/h)
Average Moving Speed: 5.80 km/h (3.6 mi/h)
Max Speed: 12.78 km/h (7.9 mi/h)
Min Elevation: 161 m (529 ft)
Max Elevation: 332 m (1089 ft)
Elevation Gain: 429 m (1409 ft)
Max Grade: 0 %
Min Grade: 0 %
Recorded: Wed Jul 20 16:38:34 PDT 2011

"Allure", Greyhound, White with Black, Pittsburg

Still missing as of August 24, 2011.

Allure is a 70 pound, spayed Greyhound who is white with black patches. She is wearing a collar with ID tags and is microchipped. She was last seen in her backyard in the middle of the night. She and the other Greyhound broke through the fence into a neighbor's yard and then got through a broken board in that neighbor's yard. The second dog returned home the next morning. There were no sightings of Allure after she went missing.

We found a track leading away from the house and eventually into a large open space governed by the local water district. Her person stopped the search after six hours.

View Allure Track in a larger map

Created by My Tracks on Android.

Total Distance: 460.40 km (286.1 mi)
Total Time: 4:25:31
Moving Time: 2:06:33
Average Speed: 104.03 km/h (64.6 mi/h)
Average Moving Speed: 218.28 km/h (135.6 mi/h)
Max Speed: 2431.38 km/h (1510.8 mi/h)
Min Elevation: -14 m (-47 ft)
Max Elevation: 13952 m (45775 ft)
Elevation Gain: 446 m (1463 ft)
Max Grade: 20 %
Min Grade: -229 %
Recorded: Tue Jul 19 13:27:47 PDT 2011

"Bear", English Bulldog, Red Brindle, Pacifica - Found

Bear is a one year old, dark brindle English Bulldog.

I got a call from his people while they were out of the country. Both English Bulldogs were in the yard, but Bear was missing. It was automatically assumed that Bear was stolen out of the yard, and the search went far and wide looking from him, while they were still on vacation. There were no sightings or calls.

After his people returned home from vacation about two weeks later, Bear was found deceased in the cover and gated pool in the backyard. I was told that the caretaker looked in the pool and they looked in the pool when they returned, but he was not found for about 48 hours later when they uncovered the pool to take a swim. 

"Kishmish", Yorkshire Terrier, Silver and tan, Pescadero

Still missing as of August 24, 2011

Kishmish is a three year old, neutered, silver and tan Yorkshire Terrier. He is wearing a collar with ID tags and is microchipped.

Kishmish was walking with a dog walker south of Pescadero when he got spooked by a noise and took off. He was not on leash. He was spotted by a man and his daughter on Highway one a couple of days after he went missing. They were driving in a car, and they said he appeared to be lost, as he ran up and down the highway, south of the turn off to Pescadero. They did not stop to help him because, as the man said, "He is not the kind of person to stops to pick up a dog on the road."

We started the search from there and followed the track for over 10 miles from the coast and into the hills. The search was stopped as we ran out of daylight.

There are three maps because the GPS was having a hard time.

Track one:


View Kishmish Track 1 in a larger map

Created by My Tracks on Android.

Total Distance: 529.71 km (329.1 mi)
Total Time: 15:19
Moving Time: 1:31
Average Speed: 2073.28 km/h (1288.3 mi/h)
Average Moving Speed: 20955.75 km/h (13021.3 mi/h)
Max Speed: 14.56 km/h (9.0 mi/h)
Min Elevation: -7 m (-22 ft)
Max Elevation: 195 m (640 ft)
Elevation Gain: 216 m (709 ft)
Max Grade: 1 %
Min Grade: 0 %
Recorded: Thu Jul 14 15:21:03 PDT 2011

Track Two:

View Kishmish Track 2 in a larger map

Created by My Tracks on Android.

Total Distance: 149.43 km (92.9 mi)
Total Time: 30:20
Moving Time: 13:16
Average Speed: 295.53 km/h (183.6 mi/h)
Average Moving Speed: 675.81 km/h (419.9 mi/h)
Max Speed: 1399.83 km/h (869.8 mi/h)
Min Elevation: -77 m (-252 ft)
Max Elevation: 897 m (2944 ft)
Elevation Gain: 1752 m (5749 ft)
Max Grade: 35 %
Min Grade: -29 %
Recorded: Thu Jul 14 15:36:32 PDT 2011

Track Three:

View Kishmish Track 3 in a larger map

Created by My Tracks on Android.

Total Distance: 165.41 km (102.8 mi)
Total Time: 4:18:18
Moving Time: 2:24:22
Average Speed: 38.42 km/h (23.9 mi/h)
Average Moving Speed: 68.75 km/h (42.7 mi/h)
Max Speed: 2360.28 km/h (1466.6 mi/h)
Min Elevation: -6 m (-20 ft)
Max Elevation: 213 m (699 ft)
Elevation Gain: 549 m (1800 ft)
Max Grade: 23 %
Min Grade: -6 %
Recorded: Thu Jul 14 16:16:36 PDT 2011

"Paco", Chihuahua/Pug mix, Black, Oakland - Found!

Paco is an all black, one year old, Chihuahua/Pug mix. He has a curly tail and bug eyes. He is not wearing a collar and is not microchipped.

I received a call that Paco was missing from his home. He was last seen by his person as she left for work that morning. Paco and the other dogs do not have access to the yard, but instead use pads until somebody comes home at lunch to take them out. The house has a burglar alarm, and the alarm had not been set off. She could not figure out how he got out of the house. There were no sightings of Paco outside the house.

In the house there is an attic with access from the main house with a set of stairs from the back of the house. Paco has been up in the attic in the past. She said she checked the entire house and the attic but did not find Paco.

I recommended that they go through the house again, and this time act like they had never gone through the house before. Act like this would be the first time. This would get them away from thinking, "Oh, we have already checked there."

I got a call early the next morning that she and her boyfriend went through the house and attic again, and found Paco stuck in a hole in the floor of the attic. He had been missing for over 48 hours. He never made any sounds as they went through looking for him.

"Cowboy", Tuxedo, DSH cat, Novato

Cowboy is a one year old, tuxedo DSH cat. He is wearing a collar with an ID tag and he is microchipped. He was staying at the home of his person's mother while his person was out of town. He was last seen at about 6 AM when he was seen out on the back patio. There is a cat door, and he has free access to come and go.

The track we found led away from the condo and across the street, straight up a canyon and then back down. After about an hour the search was stopped by Cowboy's person. She did not believe that Cowboy would travel that far, and she said that Dino was not tracking since she believed that a dog should only track with their nose to the ground.



View Cowboy in a larger map

Created by My Tracks on Android.

Total Distance: 4.51 km (2.8 mi)
Total Time: 1:45:19
Moving Time: 38:34
Average Speed: 2.57 km/h (1.6 mi/h)
Average Moving Speed: 7.02 km/h (4.4 mi/h)
Max Speed: 11.05 km/h (6.9 mi/h)
Min Elevation: 30 m (99 ft)
Max Elevation: 91 m (299 ft)
Elevation Gain: 229 m (750 ft)
Max Grade: -11 %
Min Grade: -19 %
Recorded: Wed Jul 13 14:05:54 PDT 2011

"Sweetie", Black and Tan, German Shepherd mix, Vallejo - Found!

I received a voicemail two days after our search that Sweetie appeared back home after being missing for a week.

Sweetie is a female, spayed, 10 year old, black and tan, German Shepherd/Rottweiler mix. She is wearing a collar with current ID tags and is microchipped. 

On the 4th of July, Sweetie was in her backyard, when she got scared by fireworks and jumped the fence. There were a couple of possible sightings of Sweetie, but they could not be confirmed. 

We followed Sweetie's track for over 13 miles, and into the Napa County line. We had to stop as we ran out of daylight.

There were two Vallejo Times articles about Sweetie, before and after she went missing and was found, and dogs missing from fireworks.  However, the links are no longer active, and I can not display them here without being charged $5.00 per article.

View Sweetie Track in a larger map

Total Distance: 21.52 km (13.4 mi)
Total Time: 7:20:11
Moving Time: 3:51:06
Average Speed: 2.93 km/h (1.8 mi/h)
Average Moving Speed: 5.59 km/h (3.5 mi/h)
Max Speed: 12.04 km/h (7.5 mi/h)
Min Elevation: -12 m (-40 ft)
Max Elevation: 81 m (264 ft)
Elevation Gain: 707 m (2320 ft)
Max Grade: 0 %
Min Grade: 0 %
Recorded: Fri Jul 08 13:12:26 PDT 2011

"Buckwheat", Black and Tan, German Shepherd/Kelpie mix, El Sobrante - Found!

See the Craigslist ad at the end of this blog posted by Buckwheat's people after he was found. 

Our search was on July 7, 2011.

Buckwheat went missing the night of the 4th of July from his yard. He was put out into his yard at night, but apparently, got scared by the fireworks going off. 

Buckwheat is a 50 pound, black and tan, neutered, Border Collie/German Shepherd mix. He is not wearing a collar, but he is microchipped. There were no sightings of Buckwheat after he went missing. 

We found his track leading away from the house and around the corner and then all the way into Pinole. He went down to the water and around some houses. We stopped the search in Pinole just as we were running out of daylight.

I received a phone call about two days later that Buckwheat was turned into the night box of the Pinole shelter and was identified by his microchip.

My dog Buckwheat is found! Thanks to all of you who expressed concern (hercules, pinole, san pablo, el sob)

---

Date: 2011-07-13, 8:36PM PDT
Reply to: comm-xfbsr-2493271417@craigslist.org ^{[Errors when replying to ads?]}

---

On Monday night my dog Buckwheat was spooked by the firecrackers and ran away. He just walked out the doggie door, which he does freely, but that night he did not come back- he was so frantic that he broke out of a gate that we thought was impenetrable. He started a journey that lasted until Thursday night when some good Samaritan took him to the Pinole Shelter. There is a night box there - must have been a freaky experience for him but he was really happy when he was traced back to us from the chip in his neck.

I learned some valuable lessons from this experience. First of all watch your dogs and cats like hawks on July 4 and New Years - the fireworks really scare them and make them do irrational things. Second, the shelters are the best place to take found animals - I frantically visited the shelters every day, and every time I was there someone was being reunited with their dogs. If you keep the dog in your home in hopes of finding the owner there is a good chance you are just prolonging the anxiety. Third - getting the word out is key - flyers, flyers, flyers, as well as just telling everyone you know.

Last I want to give a plug to Jackie Phillips of the Social Pet. She and her dog Dino were able to help track Buckwheat 's journey from just catching the scent of his bed. That really helped me know where to put the flyers, and I think her work is really a way to find an animal. You can contact her at www.thesocialpet.com or 510-415-6185

Several people wrote me and expressed concern . Thanks so much and I am truly grateful that this worked out well.

View Buckwheat Track in a larger map

Created by My Tracks on Android.

Total Distance: 16.13 km (10.0 mi)

Total Time: 4:35:33

Moving Time: 2:54:02

Average Speed: 3.51 km/h (2.2 mi/h)

Average Moving Speed: 5.56 km/h (3.5 mi/h)

Max Speed: 10.37 km/h (6.4 mi/h)

Min Elevation: -15 m (-49 ft)

Max Elevation: 109 m (358 ft)

Elevation Gain: 486 m (1595 ft)

Max Grade: 0 %

Min Grade: 0 %

Recorded: Thu Jul 07 15:24:31 PDT 2011

Activity type: -

"Bebe", Orange and White, Persian cat, San Ramon

Still missing as of August 24, 2013

Bebe is a seven year old, neutered, orange Persian cat. He is predominately indoors only, but will spend small amounts of time on his front door porch. He has no collar and is not microchipped. 

He was last seen at about 6 AM on his front porch as his person left to go to work and put him outside. Usually another family member will let Bebe into the house, but he was missing when somebody went out front to let him in. 

It appeared that Bebe was chased from the house and down the street and into a large, private ranch. His person stopped the search after five hours. 

View Bebe Track in a larger map

Created by My Tracks on Android.

Total Distance: 8.26 km (5.1 mi)
Total Time: 3:05:36
Moving Time: 1:19:07
Average Speed: 2.67 km/h (1.7 mi/h)
Average Moving Speed: 6.26 km/h (3.9 mi/h)
Max Speed: 9.45 km/h (5.9 mi/h)
Min Elevation: 149 m (490 ft)
Max Elevation: 213 m (698 ft)
Elevation Gain: 373 m (1224 ft)
Max Grade: 0 %
Min Grade: 0 %
Recorded: Mon Jul 11 15:15:20 PDT 2011

"Jamaya", Black and Tan, German Shepherd/Saluki mix, Lafayette

Still missing as of January 3, 2012

Jamaya is a seven year old black and tan, Saluki/German Shepherd mix. She is wearing a collar with ID tags and she is microchipped.

Jamaya got loose from her yard in the middle of the night, and did not return home. There were no sightings of her, and I was called out approximately one week after her being missing.

The track led around her yard, into the next door neighbor's yard and then through another neighbor's yard and out onto a main road, where the track led away from the house.

The search was stopped by Jamaya's person at the four hour minimum mark. She continues to look for Jamaya.

View Jamaya Track in a larger map


Total Distance: 9.01 km (5.6 mi)
Total Time: 3:38:03
Moving Time: 1:13:09
Average Speed: 2.48 km/h (1.5 mi/h)
Average Moving Speed: 7.39 km/h (4.6 mi/h)
Max Speed: 57.78 km/h (35.9 mi/h)
Min Elevation: 55 m (179 ft)
Max Elevation: 155 m (508 ft)
Elevation Gain: 333 m (1092 ft)
Max Grade: 5 %
Min Grade: -2 %
Recorded: Sun Jul 03 14:14:23 PDT 2011

"Tyson", Boxer, Brindle, Oakley - Found!

After missing for almost one week, Tyson, a 13 year old Boxer, was found several blocks from his home!

Tyson is a 13 year old, dark brindle, neutered male Boxer. He is wearing a collar with a tag, but is not microchipped.

He went missing from his home after his person left him in the backyard overnight on a Thursday to attend to work out of the area. A neighbor found Tyson loose on the street around 10 PM, and put him back into the yard, not knowing that the gate latch was not secure. Sometime during the night, Tyson got out again. There were no sightings of Tyson until I arrived the following Wednesday.

We immediately found the track leading away from the side gate where he got out from. The track went around the neighborhood and then straight out toward a regional biking and hiking trail along a local waterway. Just as we made a right turn back onto a main street, an animal control truck passed us. The officer made a turn around, and we flagged him down, telling him who we were looking for. He asked if we were looking for an elderly Boxer, and we said, "Yes!" He said that he was trying to catch an elderly Boxer at this moment, and the dog was just down the street.

We turned to the left and ran down the street in the direction the truck was headed. We could see far in the distance (Oakley is a very flat location, so seeing far is easy) a brown dog running around the road. I ran as fast as I could, and Tyson's person got into a car with a passerby and drove down the road. After several minutes, Tyson ran down the road toward us, Tyson's person got out of the car and bent down to show himself to Tyson, and Tyson ran right past him. He did not recognize his own person. This continued up and down the street a couple of times. He finally ran past me with Dino and I tried to block him, but he ran past me. I did reach out to get a hold of his collar, and almost had him, but lost my grip as he ran full speed past me.

Tyson was running full speed down the road in the direction that we just tracked him from. He got back onto the canal walkway, and the animal control officer went around and blocked the other side. We followed him down the path, calling his name over and over. I could see bloody paw prints where he was running, so it was obvious his paws were all torn up.

After several minutes, Tyson got down to where the officer was, and turned around to find his person behind him. Tyson then turned around and went toward the officer again, and turned around toward his person, and kept going. His person was able to tackle Tyson as he tried to run past him. I got up next to Tyson, and gave them my leash.

I could see that Tyson's feel were all bloody and torn up. It was obvious that Tyson was having a hard time standing. The animal control officer gave Tyson a ride back to his home and we met him there. Tyson's person got into his truck and followed the officer, who drove Tyson to their own vet to have Tyson immediately checked.

Tyson's response to his person while lost is actually very common since the dog became so disoriented and lost. The animal control officer said he first saw Tyson running down the middle of a major highway near where we first met up with him. Tyson was very disoriented and confused, running in and out of traffic, completely oblivious to his surroundings.

It took the coordination and dedication of three people and a tracking dog to get Tyson back home. I would like to thank the Animal Control Officer with Contra Costa County who was persistent in getting Tyson back home. I think his last name was Morales, when I glanced at his nametag. He told me he was following Tyson for 20 minutes when he saw us. He saw the bloody feet and that Tyson was elderly and running in traffic, obviously disoriented. He said he was trying to get Tyson cornered into a yard, and then he went out of his way to drive Tyson all the way to his private vet where Tyson was already comfortable. Good job, everyone!

View Tyson Track in a larger map

Created by My Tracks on Android.

Total Distance: 5.42 km (3.4 mi)

Total Time: 1:15:15

Moving Time: 55:20

Average Speed: 4.32 km/h (2.7 mi/h)

Average Moving Speed: 5.88 km/h (3.7 mi/h)

Max Speed: 10.19 km/h (6.3 mi/h)

Min Elevation: -3 m (-9 ft)

Max Elevation: 17 m (55 ft)

Elevation Gain: 118 m (388 ft)

Max Grade: 0 %

Min Grade: 0 %

Recorded: Wed Jun 29 08:31:02 PDT 2011