In October of 2014, my sister’s dog, Bandit went missing. I shared briefly about it on BTC that month. You can read that post HERE.

Since this month is Lost Pet Prevention month, I thought I’d share what I can remember about what happened to Bandit.

Bandit is lost.

My sister lives on 11 acres in New Hampshire. They have a turn out pen for the dogs, but some days, especially if my sister or brother-in-law are outside, they let the dogs out onto the property.

This particular day the three dogs (Bandit, JD, and Gordon) wandered out into the woods. Only two came back.

What my sister thinks happened was Bandit got nailed by a porcupine, which sent him wildly running. He ended up about 1/2 mile down the road at a local farm, where the guys were out back shooting. The sound of the gun shots sent Bandit running even more.

That was the last anyone saw of him for 12 days.

As soon as my sister told me Bandit was missing, I started feeding her all the information I had about finding a lost dog. Most of which I’d learned from following Lady’s saga on No Dog About It Blog. (If you click HERE you will find a post that recaps ALL the posts pertaining to losing and finding Lady.)

About five days before Bandit was found, my sister and brother-in-law stopped by on their way to Florida. My sister and I were telling my brother-in-law that if he was found, Bandit might not recognize the immediately.

“Bullshit!” my BIL said, “I can’t believe a dog I’ve had for 12 years wouldn’t recognize me.”

My sister and I gave each that knowing look. 😉

My sister was sure that Bandit was gone for good. She lives in a very rural area, teeming with all kinds of predators.

I tried to reassure her that dogs can manage on their own for quite a while, and little dogs have the advantage of being able to hide in a hollow log, or under brush, etc.

Bandit is found.

On day 12, someone saw Bandit 10 miles from my sister’s house. The person who saw him, called his Dad who happened to know my BIL and called him. My BIL left work at a dead run and headed to the area where Bandit had been spotted.

As soon as he pulled up, he saw Bandit and got out of the car and called him. Bandit looked at him, turned and started trotting off. My BIL said he felt sick to his stomach, but he remembered what my sister had told him and he immediately dropped down onto the ground and calmly started talking to him. Bandit paused, listening, but it wasn’t until my BIL said the magic words of JD and Gordon that Bandit actually realized who he was. Then he came right up to him and my BIL took him strait to the vet’s office.

He’d been quilled, had lost about five pounds and was shaken up, but otherwise unharmed. He has some different anxiety issues, but otherwise, he seems to have recovered.

The best news, is he was found.

Tips if your dog goes missing.

• Contact animal control, the police and local veterinarians to get the word out.
• Make posters with key information about your dog. Include a current photo, names your pet answers to, coloring and distinguishing markings, indicate where they were lost, and what the circumstances are.
• Most states have a lost dog page on Facebook. Contact them, they may be able to help with posters, and searching. They will definitely be able to help spread the word.
• If possible, leave an article of clothing or something that smells like home in the area where your pet was lost.
• If you think your pet would go into a humane trap, check into getting one and leaving some food with the article of clothing in it in the area your dog was lost. Have someone check the trap three or four times per day.
• Never give up. Dogs can last a very long time on their own, and many of them are very resilient.

All month, the great folks at Pet Hub have been working with pet bloggers to get the word out about ways to prevent pets from getting lost, as well as wonderful tips for helping lost pets find their way home.

You can check out all the posts on their Facebook page.

This post is sponsored by PetHub, I have been compensated for participating in Lost Dog Prevention month, but I will never share information or products I don’t use myself.