This weekend after working very diligently to retrieve a lost dog , I received a private message. I sent it ,as well as my response ,to the admin of this page . Here it is! How very troubling this was for me to read. ---------------------------------- I received this private message this weekend. Following this , is my response. (message I received) Why do you jump onto the lost page page to run on out there to find dogs. Is it to rob d people of their money and pray on there vulerbileity at a time of being so upset. Theres lot of people on that lost found page that really care and go out looking to find these fur babies and you out there try to make money off these people like a ambulance chaser . --------------------------------------- (My response ) Ive never charged. Ive done tracking for years and then retired my dog. Over a year ago a friend of mine was in South Dakota on vacation at her parents. New Years Eve. Her dogs were boarded and they escaped due to an honest mishap. She called me very upset. I took Ian ( my German Shepherd)out that night but it was almost dark. The dog boarding facility had been looking all day. It was a ten year old lab x . So the next morning I went out at 630 am. It was 9 degrees. Fortunately the boarding place ( which is a great place that I think highly of) had radios and knew how to conduct a search. But in these situations when dogs are disoriented, dogs dont come out of hiding- not even for their owners. So...... I went through tons of wooded area out in the country. Then someone came forward and told me the exact spot of a sighting the night before. I drove there and got out --my dog was amped up and took me along a fence line for a half mile ( lost dogs often follow fence lines and railroad tracks etc. My dog abruptly stopped and tried to crawl through the fence. We were both too fat to get through..Lol So went under it at a low point. He took me miles into a pasture to a cedar grove. He located some of the lost dogs droppings. He then took me within one foot of the dog hiding under cedar trees. .. Earlier that day the owners dad had driven his truck out there and walked the area calling for the dog. They just wont typically come when they are scared. Finding this old girl was a moment I wont forget and neither will the staff or the owners of the dog. Im convinced a higher power was looking upon us and helping! So Ian started working again part time and weve been doing this ever since. He loves it and if its cold out hes fine. Last summer the heat was too much for him so we limit work in the heat. He becomes very excited to work again. So thats part of how I got into this dog tracking /detective thing. My other motivation was prompted by a loss of my own. 17 years ago , one of my German Shepherds was stolen from my back yard. My fence was cut and I could tell they used a catch pole of some type as the prints in the soil where that of being pulled and resisting. At that time I went into action and was able to recover my dog several weeks later. I learned a lot about dog theft and motivators for doing so. I began helping others as the anguish and trauma I experienced were incomprehensible. Earlier in my life, while I was in college and graduate school I worked for a veterinarian for 10 years ,so I had some background in that field too and canine behavior. Now as a psychologist , I use several of my certified professional therapy dogs to help adolescents. Together we received the Red Cross Home Town Hero Award for Animal Impact, just last year. All of what I do is at my own expense. I have never charged. (I do , however, train dogs and charge for that service. ) With respect to lost dog tracking,capture, and all that entails, Ive never charged. I can say I am aware of what others charge and that is $25 per hour driving to location time,$50 per 15 min search time. If the dog has not been stolen or picked up the search can take any amount of time. Flyers an sightings are crucial. If the pet was taken, there is typically a dead end. However, that is were the use of flyers and expertise can also be extremely important. In addition, this type of thing requires a lot of training. I dont profess to be the most qualified in terms of hours logged or training for myself and my dog, but what I have does the job in most cases for missing pets. I always want to learn more. In fact that is a goal. I am, however, good at what I do! I had a lady tell me that I put as much into the search as if it were my own dog. That is correct. This also requires one maintain some level of physical shape to trek through woods in extreme cold or heat. And in the event my dog is injured , to be able to carry him to safety over my shoulders. ( thats a tough one for me- hes huge) It requires diagraming of areas, understanding canine instincts, outdoor survival , climbing trees, getting myself and my huge dog through barbed wire fence, running down alleys Etc..... And much more! Im sure there is a lot more for me to learn in this regard too. I feel very out of shape most of the time:) My dogs abilities to use his eyes , ears, and nose for air scent, trailing, and tracking are what makes us a team. My dog has also saved me several times in life . If Im in the woods, he gets me out every time. He has also stopped a purse nabber from running off with my purse, among numerous other crisis averted, and as a result we have an incredible bond. I enjoy doing this. I intend to learn more as I go on and acquire another younger dog to work. I enjoy seeing people relieved to have their dogs back home. I relate to the torment of knowing they are out there , cold, scared, and confused. I take time away from my life to do this. Im teaching my grandson as he has accompanied me on some searches. In fact, for the past two weeks over Xmas break I was searching for several dogs and outside until late night with the flu and unable to talk due to upper respiratory symptoms associated with the flu. I really wanted to be in bed,or watching lifetime movies with hot cocoa , or getting a pedicure.. Lol I feel the sense of desperation in peoples voices and posts, hence, I do what I love. And Mr Ian is always ready when he sees his harness:) Ive met some great people doing this that I will remain friends with and I genuinely feel for them when they have to live through that nightmare. So , in closing , I hope this provides a proper explanation of what I do and why, and will assuage the worry or suspicion that I do this to get rich or take advantage of people. What I get from this is nothing tangible or material ( although people have given me some pretty cool gifts - and Im very appreciative of their thoughtfulness) but ,what I do obtain is some measure of purity of purpose!
Posted on: Mon, 05 Jan 2015 19:18:48 +0000
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