Dog Mom – Henry’s Walkabout is Dog Mom’s Worst Nightmare

Submitted by Dog Mom in April of 2024, using the OTR form, and somehow it got lost in the shuffle of on the regular On the Road posts.

A harrowing story about her Henry who was lost – scary, hard, awful, hopeless and hopeful at the same time, and with a happy ending!

Today seems like a good day to revive this lost story about a lost dog.  ~WG

Henry’s Walkabout is Dog Mom’s Worst Nightmare

by Dog Mom

Hello, Jackals,

Dog Mom – here.  A few days ago, I was desperate enough to post on social media and even ready to bleg for Jackal help – what help I wasn’t even sure.  Luckily, that was not necessary.

Here’s a quick little tale about a quick little tail. But first intros:

I am a Crazy Dog Lady, private and usually a Lurker – mostly because the best snark has already been made and I got nothing to add. Like many of you, I live with the memory of a heartbreaking pet tragedy.  One of my Dad’s, a beagle never found.  I hate to be whiny about life, so many have it worse than me, but right now I am living a bad country song – broken relationships, need a job, and need the car fixed . . . 

Sherpa is my Weimaraner, rescued from Brooklyn, who can give a good, stern, disapproving stare to a misbehaving beagle.

And then there’s Henry my 5yo, fat boy Beagle . . .

Now the DISCLAIMER: The following is based on a true story.  Names and locations have been changed to protect the innocent – though I’m not sure if there are any.

We live in the woods outside of a town with one stop light. The town to the east has two.

Both are sleepy, rural towns surrounded by farms and vast properties – woods, streams, swamps, and brambles – located at the edge of the county south of a mid-sized city in upstate New York.

One not-so-Good, in fact very bad Friday, not so long ago, I did laundry and when the sun came out – dogs and I take a walk around the yard. 

Now, cue that country music, this is when the hound dawg ran off . . .

Original post to neighbors: 

Hello, Neighbors in One Stop Light Town / Two Stop Lights town / Southern end of the County,

Henry slipped out of his collar and chased deer up the woods between Babbling Brook and OSL-TSL Townline Road / South of the other street. 

Dog Control Officer has been notified. 

Henry is chipped, but no collar, very friendly, especially to children and other dogs.  

Please call / text – 999-123-4567.

I walk Sherpa up the hill and through the woods again at dusk yelling for the bad boy and then put some chow out on the porch. No dirty laundry to put out. Try to sleep.

Updated post Next Day, 8:00 am:

Silly boy stayed out all night – even with goodies left on the porch.  I am heading back out in the woods now and will be driving around later. 

Up and moving early.  I put the most pungent dog treats I had in my pocket. Friends come and we hike with Sherpa and their pup.  Another beagle owner hikes around hoping his boy will attract H. Even though I didn’t think H was that far south, I stopped at the gun club – got beagles man-splained to me – ‘Don’t worry, little lady’

Mid-day I got a message from a woman who said she saw him run by just after he took off the day before. He was carefree, running like the wind, further east than I expected. I didn’t think he could drag his Buddha belly that far.  

Later a neighbor connects me to an amazing Tracker. Her superpower is a keen beagle sense – she says make a big stink!  I rigged up a grill on the porch and burnt some hot dogs at dawn and dusk.  She gave me a recipe for a smelly witches brew to spray around the yard. I finally remember that I put microfiber blanket in the trash because it was too stinky to wash – cut it into strips and hung it in the trees. Drove around some more and mentally noted farms, water sources and the dead deer by the side of the road. Hope he doesn’t get hungry enough, but we’ve had worse. . .

Another Hike, Another Sunday

Update Sunday, 6:30 am:

Happy Easter & thank you all for watching out for Henry! Still not home, I have some blankets and clothes out for him, ‘smoked’ some hot dogs on the porch for him last night and this morning. We had a sighting of him from 2 days ago reported yesterday – He was running further east than I originally thought.

Up early, roll out of bed, grab yesterdays clothes and throw them on – No signs of H. Friends come again to help hike another old railroad trail nearby that the tracker had suggested.  Along the way, we see a neighbor who thought H may have been around his farm the night before, his young girls saw something running fast, but it was dark and whatever it was ran fast – maybe a fox, coyote . . .  Talk to Tracker says check the golf course north side of the path near the farm. My friends leave to go to the Easter dinner that I will miss.  I head to the golf course and show up in the lobby – unwashed, in my raggedy jeans and polka-dot muck boots, smelling of smoke and dog treats while families dressed in their Easter best are enjoying brunch.  Ask the staff to watch for H.  I’m on the worst Easter Egg Hunt ever!

Back to hiking the woods. At Dusk another neighbor reports barking and howling from a distance near the golf course. Talk with Tracker, she says go up to the end of the path and just sit in the car and listen.  I sit with the windows down, pitch black, cold and the sound of the tranquil babbling brook. Then, finally, finally noise – geese honking.  I drive around in the dark for a bit windows wide open to stay awake. I get home – stoke up the ‘grill’ to burn up some more hot dogs. Try to catch up on texts and comments posted.  Exhausted, but I can’t sleep – have a moment. . . or two.

Monday, Monday, can’t trust that day

Wake up too early – talk my self into ‘this is the day . . .  and if it isn’t be ready for the long haul’ – thought about how we will have to trap him, remember that I should put some of yesterdays clothes in a baggy to have stinky things for a trap – Update the posts, respond to growing list of comments and texts. Worry about well meaning folks suggesting drones and going out on all terrain vehicles . . . Please NO – Don’t be  a hero – you’ll scare him into the next county.

Update April Fool’s Day, 7:00 am:

My little Fool spent another day out in the wild. I’m not giving up on him, but believe he is going into ‘survival mode’ now – meaning Henry might be easily spooked, skittish and possibly considering YOU as just another wild animal out to get him.  

Please, Please, PLEASE heed the words of my trapper: 

“Henry’s trapper here.. there have been NO confirmed sightings of Henry since day of flight (If you spot Henry, please only do the following: 

1.) Completely ignore him and call mom immediately with exact location, direction of travel, and description of his behavior (i.e. browsing, walking, running scared). 

2.) If you unexpectedly come upon Henry, please do not go after him. This can push him further away and into harms way. Instead, evaluate if you can get him to approach you. This normally means dropping to the ground and allowing HIM to make the decision to approach. If he immediately takes flight or simply walks away, again please ignore him and call the sighting.”

Neighbor comes by with a tracking dog, we head up the hill, into the woods behind the house – hang more stinky blanket pieces and toss some treats around – wish i had gotten the brush cut on these paths. 

Drove around more. Stopped at vet’s office. They put a sign on their board.

Home now, exhausted, friends left Easter dinner at the door, best lasagna ever shoveled in my mouth too quickly. 

Made signs, checked posts – shared far and wide – H has an incredibly cute forever puppy face – attracts a lot of attention. We need real sightings – But how? H was rescued from a hoarding case with 17 other dogs.  He rarely barks and never howls – It must have been ‘discouraged’.  We have plenty of dogs in the neighborhood and well meaning folks are now reporting every bark as his. Burnt more hotdogs – lots of smoke — went to sleep?)

“Don’t question why he needs to be so free” – Day 5

Wide awake at 4am – coffee –  signs need to be up today – taking too much time to get staple gun, sign protectors together.

Update what day is this?, 8:50 am

– We need sightings – Time, location, direction he’s going, Please Call/Text ASAP! Don’t Spook! I am thankful for the info sent so far, but it has presented a confusing picture as to where he might be – he’s Houdini, but he can’t  be two places at once!

Before I could start to hang signs, got text – neighbor’s son called her from his job at the edge of the eastern two light town and may have seen H – dropped everything, headed east – called the Tracker on the way. Drive, stop, scour the edges of town with binoculars – wish my eyes were better and that I hadn’t spent so much time staring at a white garbage bag before I figured out what it was . . . Met up with the Tracker outside of the new storage complex and looked at the empty fields behind it.  Tracker thinks H most certainly should have found his way home already – but what’s prevented him? How deep in the woods and how deep in survival mode is he? Sightings we’ve had are too questionable.  We need eyes on the tree lines and fields – Time to get signs up for farmers and hunters and people not spending time on facebook – wish that was me.

Update that day, 3:30 pm

NOT the Eagle Ridge Beagle!!!

(Note to self: All beagles look the same on the internet!  Actually that guy was pretty close – wishful thinking almost made me go get him – luckily his real people got him.)

Home at dusk, clouds coming in, need to run back out to copy flyers, taking poor, neglected Sherpa with me for the ride.  Nope, neighbor from around the corner texts that she hears a little bark that might be him – go back home from around the block – continuing texting and listening as I head up the hill with Sherpa on leash – we walk a ways down to where there is too much brush and no more path – cursing that I left the flashlight in the car and its getting dark.

Neighbor still texting and I hear the barking, could be him, but can’t tell the direction – it fades further away – trying to find the path on my neighbors land, but Sherpa keeps pulling the lead, nosing the ground,. Does she smell him? I remember the flashlight on the phone and hope I have enough charge. Terrain is rough, trees down and brambles poking through my clothes, hanging onto pulling dog and balancing phone while trekking downhill just might be the end of me – Neighbor so kindly comes up her path to walk us down.  I realize that Sherpa, normally so good on the leash, has been struggling to get the bits of treats put down the day before to lure H.

We walk back round the corner to home – rain starts – is he trapped in a swamp? Please don’t let him be hurt . . . try to get the makeshift grill going to burn some more hotdogs . . .  lots of smoke, but can’t keep it going for long. Plan to hand out flyers in the morning, but where to start? 

Sleep? maybe, maybe not. Oh, No! Stop thinking, get up – get moving.

Damn, raining.

Update old boyfriend’s birthday (what’s he got to do with anything), 7:00 am

Not home yet – Two things would be helpful:  

1) Please check trail cams and out buildings – Any place a hungry, cold and wet beagle might want to hang out . . . Think with your nose!

2) Spread the word – We need SIGHTINGS! Where, When and which direction he is headed in!

Wait a minute – I have got to take care of some real life stuff now – this morning.

Afternoon comes and finally handing out flyers to the neighbors. . . 

Still raining, now harder, and getting colder.

Updated 4/3, 7:00 pm

FOUND!!!!! Walking a little stiff, but vet said give him some time to rest and he had IV to get some fluids in, a bit of dinner and now a nice warm bed to snooze in. I will tell more of the story tomorrow!

Home, exhausted, reunion with Sherpa so sweet! Henry is walking like he has had one ride too many on the mechanical bull, but is really in good shape all thing considered. Fed the dogs – H is disappointed to just get a small portion.  I finish the best lasagna ever left from Easter.  We all fall asleep on the couch.

2am – wake up to check dogs and ravenous Henry gets a small piece of chicken and some more bone broth. I look out and see the normally Babbling Brook is now a raging river and the yard is flooding. Lucky us, we are sheltered and warm. 

We sleep till half the day is over. Need to post the story, take down signs, and get back to the quiet life – maybe tomorrow, feels like forever has changed.

Hopefully this is the end of the tail:

Good Morning, All!  

Henry, Sherpa and I are thankful to all of you who shared, prayed, wished, connected, devoted eyes and ears to search and supported us through the past week.  So very grateful to my tracker/trapper, who had keen beagle-sense, and to friends who walked the trails and brought the best Easter dinner to me during the ‘worst Easter egg hunt ever’. 

On Wednesday – I woke up late, felt lousy, and realized that I had to deal with some other life stuff before getting out to hunt for the boy.  I was NOT happy and then there was the weather.  

Finally got started in the afternoon, decided on the south side of OSL-TSL Townline road where the first sight was and the houses and farms are set back and generally have big woods behind them. I drove door to door with flyers to hand out. I drove slowly with my blinkers on, went to each door and chatted with many kind neighbors. 

Headed east from my road, 20 houses later, I was afraid it was getting late and I wasn’t far enough. I went down the next very, very long driveway.  There were some vehicles around the garage, but no one answered the door.  I stood for a few minutes folding up the flyer and trying to figure where I could stash it for the homeowners to find. I was soaked, cold and my fingers just weren’t working.  I started back to my car and heard a tiny whimper –  out of nowhere, there he was, my little wanderer! I didn’t find him, we found each other! I dropped down and he came to me. I grabbed a bit of a smelly treat from my pocket and scooped him up as quick as I could.  

We were just 1 minute from the vets office – so we headed there – I was a soggy, disheveled mess, smelling like burnt hot dogs and stinky bacon treats. Crying and screaming as I burst into the waiting room “I found him, I found him! I found Henry”,  The receptionist looked at us, then at the poster hung days before, and then again at us!  It made everyone’s day!  They checked him over and gave him some IV fluids.  He was limping a bit, but they recommended rest, recuperation and no more adventures in the wilds of !his One Stop Light Town

The End

P.S. – I realize finding him may have little to do with anything that I did – Could be a blessing from God, a gift from the universe, just some random event or a beagle nose finally set right. I am in awe and so happy with renewed faith in kind people! I hope this makes your days brighter!  Have peace and hug all the precious beings in your life for me!

P.S.S. I have many faults, however I have two talents that have helped me survive – my ability to focus during an emergency and the double edged sword of persistence / stubbornness. Now after this shock to the system, a couple days of rest and reflection, I can end this sorry song and start the new one with a better melody.  Next up fixing the car, finding a not just a job, but a great one and well, for the rest of life, we’ll see . . .