Pets on the Loose: Saving Charlie and Navigating Escapes

January 24, 2025
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Charlie sees an opening in the gate, a sliver of sunlight from an open door, a dropped leash—and away he goes. If you have a runner or an escape artist for a pet, you know what I’m talking about. Some pets love the freedom of running out on their own as fast as their paws will take them, tongue lolling to the side and ears flapping in the wind without a care in the world.

For pet owners, these daring escapades don’t feel quite as joyful. It can be terrifying realizing your dog has run off, seeing your dog take off and knowing you’ll never be able to catch them on foot. In those moments, you have to make split-second decisions. Do I try to chase him down? Do I turn and run to the car? If so, what do I need to take with me—treats, a leash, my phone? How do I let people know to be looking for him? Which way did he go, and what dangers will he face?

Every pet is different in what they respond to. Some are very food-driven and will return at the sound of their treats being offered. Some get tired and simply find their way back home. Some seek out the same favorite spots and can reliably be found in those locations. But some, like our dog Charlie, love the running itself. An American Foxhound, he is fast and scent-driven. The problem for us is that he seems to have no sense of direction, no self-realization of his own exhaustion until he has exerted all his energy going in one direction, and no common sense when it comes to things like roadways and safety!It’s

scary when your pet is out, and you lose track of where to find them. Luckily, there are tools that can help and a wonderful community filled with pet lovers and organizations to assist in reuniting lost pets with their owners.When Charlie got out most recently, he was away from our house

in an unfamiliar (to him) section of Lake Anna. Because it was late, we were searching in the dark. It was cold and damp. Route 522 was to one side of where he had been lost, and a large wooded area was to the other side. We felt like he could be anywhere. We searched for hours but finally had to concede that we weren’t going to find him that first night.

We took to social media, contacted the local animal shelter, and considered whether to make signs to tell people to keep an eye out for him. Having phone numbers on a collar tag, being connected with a local veterinarian, and having a microchip inserted are all important ways to help people and shelters reunite pets with their owners. There are other options, as well. There are high-tech collars with GPS installed, or something as simple as an AirTag or Tile can be added to a collar to help locate a lost pet. On social media, we got a few additional ideas about how to locate Charlie. There are services such as thermal drones that can search large wooded areas to see if there is anything of note to investigate. On the less tech-oriented side, animal control will often come to catch a dog on the loose.

Be sure to keep a recent photo of your pet in an easy-to-access location. Sharing details like a photo, the color of the pet’s collar, any unique markings or features, and what they best respond to can help community members remember and identify your pet, even from a distance. If you see a pet on the loose, you can help identify and reunite an owner with their lost loved one even if you are unable to or uncomfortable with getting close enough to the pet to contain them or read their tags. You can snap a photo and share it with notes on the location on local lost-pet Facebook pages and your community’s Nextdoor or email threads. Make sure to keep the post shareable to the public so that people who see the post can help get the word out.

Thankfully, after his most recent escape, we were able to locate and reunite with Charlie when the Tile attached to his collar pinged near a specific location. In the past, we have found him in the woods, and once even got a call from a family after he showed up on their porch. Though he has gotten away from us a few times, thanks to our community, we have always been able to reunite. Though it’s not always possible to keep our pets safe even when we try hard to maintain safe practices, there are tools and strategies to help when things go wrong.


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Charlie sees an opening in the gate, a sliver of sunlight from an open door, a dropped leash—and away he goes. If you have a runner or an escape artist for a pet, you know what I’m talking about. Some pets love the freedom of running out on their own as fast as their paws will take them, tongue lolling to the side and ears flapping in the wind without a care in the world.

For pet owners, these daring escapades don’t feel quite as joyful. It can be terrifying realizing your dog has run off, seeing your dog take off and knowing you’ll never be able to catch them on foot. In those moments, you have to make split-second decisions. Do I try to chase him down? Do I turn and run to the car? If so, what do I need to take with me—treats, a leash, my phone? How do I let people know to be looking for him? Which way did he go, and what dangers will he face?

Every pet is different in what they respond to. Some are very food-driven and will return at the sound of their treats being offered. Some get tired and simply find their way back home. Some seek out the same favorite spots and can reliably be found in those locations. But some, like our dog Charlie, love the running itself. An American Foxhound, he is fast and scent-driven. The problem for us is that he seems to have no sense of direction, no self-realization of his own exhaustion until he has exerted all his energy going in one direction, and no common sense when it comes to things like roadways and safety!It’s

scary when your pet is out, and you lose track of where to find them. Luckily, there are tools that can help and a wonderful community filled with pet lovers and organizations to assist in reuniting lost pets with their owners.When Charlie got out most recently, he was away from our house

in an unfamiliar (to him) section of Lake Anna. Because it was late, we were searching in the dark. It was cold and damp. Route 522 was to one side of where he had been lost, and a large wooded area was to the other side. We felt like he could be anywhere. We searched for hours but finally had to concede that we weren’t going to find him that first night.

We took to social media, contacted the local animal shelter, and considered whether to make signs to tell people to keep an eye out for him. Having phone numbers on a collar tag, being connected with a local veterinarian, and having a microchip inserted are all important ways to help people and shelters reunite pets with their owners. There are other options, as well. There are high-tech collars with GPS installed, or something as simple as an AirTag or Tile can be added to a collar to help locate a lost pet. On social media, we got a few additional ideas about how to locate Charlie. There are services such as thermal drones that can search large wooded areas to see if there is anything of note to investigate. On the less tech-oriented side, animal control will often come to catch a dog on the loose.

Be sure to keep a recent photo of your pet in an easy-to-access location. Sharing details like a photo, the color of the pet’s collar, any unique markings or features, and what they best respond to can help community members remember and identify your pet, even from a distance. If you see a pet on the loose, you can help identify and reunite an owner with their lost loved one even if you are unable to or uncomfortable with getting close enough to the pet to contain them or read their tags. You can snap a photo and share it with notes on the location on local lost-pet Facebook pages and your community’s Nextdoor or email threads. Make sure to keep the post shareable to the public so that people who see the post can help get the word out.

Thankfully, after his most recent escape, we were able to locate and reunite with Charlie when the Tile attached to his collar pinged near a specific location. In the past, we have found him in the woods, and once even got a call from a family after he showed up on their porch. Though he has gotten away from us a few times, thanks to our community, we have always been able to reunite. Though it’s not always possible to keep our pets safe even when we try hard to maintain safe practices, there are tools and strategies to help when things go wrong.


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