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The Big Man Speaks

Emily: FOUND!

It was an easy six weeks after the hit-by-a-car call that, THE CALL came.
Emily was not only found, but captured! I got that news as I headed to a night class, AARF had someone else on the way there. After class I called,
and; Yep, right dog, captured, looking healthy, just a bit skinny, and on the way home to Richmond.

Seems someone had read the flyer, and had been feeding Emily at her work place. One colder Fall day, Emily followed her inside and someone else shut the door behind her!

And so, hopefully, ends the escape part of Emily's story. She is up for adoption.

One final footnote for me: I was asked to take her and another dog to the Vet for checkup... I put her inside a crate inside her safe house house, and didn't let her out of that until we were inside the Vets exam room, with three doors between us and outside... And I stood next to that last door, just in case someone would try to open it.

NO WAY, not gonna happen again!

Emily was healthy.

Lesson learned: Never give up! I thought she was gone for good as soon as she vanished into the woods that first night.

The Saga of Emily: Help and the long search.

While that dank night was MY last sighting of Emily, others had better luck. Calls from local residents continued to pour in daily. An unemployed man, "Billy" joined in the hunt in between job searches. He saw Emily several times, had her in his capture net once, and came nose-to-nose with her under a building, but Emily scampered away every time.

Months went by, every couple of weeks a new flyer was created in a neon color different from the last.

One call said she was hiding under an out building, come quick! We did... And nothing.

Another call; She lives inside an abandoned building, and guy that feeds some of the feral cats had been feeding her. - This was during Emily's I am living with the Cats stage of her escape... A trip down, nope.

One day a call came in that someone observed her being hit by a car and running away. AARF made yet another trip hoping / not hoping to find her maybe hurt in a nearby ditch. No luck.

In time, the question becomes; Just how long can one small town be stirred up over one small feral dog. (Especially when there were plenty others around.) Summer faded into Fall, and calls became less, and faded entirely.

The Saga of Emily: Search

Armed with a hundred flyers all printed front and back on neon pink paper I returned to South Hill. The flyers I planned to leave outdoors were placed inside sheet protectors, the open top sheet protectors were taped shut and used upside down so rain would not soak the message.

I stopped by the police department and left a few there. I returned to the neighborhood the calls had been coming from and each house got a flyer. Several more were left inside and outside businesses in the area.

I searched all afternoon, through another major thunderstorm and downpoor. I brought in more have-a-heart traps and baited them. As night fell, I parked to rest and get dinner. Moving back to the traps, I released one of several feral cats that got caught. South Hill is swarming with feral cats. A cat rescue group could spend a life time of effort there. Sorry, I do dogs.

About 10-pm I got a call; Emily had just been spotted a block away! Obeying most of the rules of the road, I quickly zoomed over. Didn't see a thing... I drove around, and as it was wet, and late I decided to go home. An hour an a half drive back awaited. As I headed away just ahead in the gloom I saw movement in the road ahead. It was Emily!

She glanced over her shoulder at my SUV and dashed into the woods. I got out and softly called, but nothing. Remember... she was feral. It was my last sight of her for quite some time.