Never give up. Never...

 By Bob Zettler

April 17, 2006

Nearly 10 years ago, I lost my Yellow Lab and a Brittany I inherited when my Father died in 1990. 

I had just finished duck hunting and my guest and I were watching the ducks drop into Carlyle Lake subimpoundments as I let the two run in the parking lot #1 to pee and the like before we headed north to pheasant hunt. A few vehicles came and went and then when I turned around - no dogs. I proceeded to ask all incoming hunters if they had seen them and drove all over for the next six hours and into the dark looking for them and enlisting the assistance of others, including the local CPO.

I left some clothes near where I parked so if they came back over night they would hopefully stay. Took the guest home and returned the next day and drove all over to no avail. This was 12/21 and when it turned dark again I had to return home. The next morning I was on the phone to the local radio stations and newspaper. I was put on the one radio show (an auction show) and then contacted all the Vets in the area and psotmaster. Came back a few days later and started to put out signs and notes in mailboxes. Kept my children from discovering it at Christmas before they went home to their mother's and then was back at it.

It was a very snowy period and the ole Brittany didn't like water so I was worried they had been stolen so I started putting out the story they were on medications and were chipped (micro). I need to mention I lived nearly 90 miles from where they disappeared BUT ALL OF THE PEOPLE in that area were very helpful, considerate and supportive. Had a few false leads but 10 days later on 12/29 I got the ole Brittany back! He was nearly 11 miles away from where he had started, so I started placing new notices in mailboxes that night in a blizzard for several miles in each direction from where he was found. The next night I got another call and JJ had been found! He had been just a few houses away and I had actually driven past him in the blizzard when I placed a notice in the mailbox of the house he was hiding out under.

Both had lost some weight but other than that we were all happy to have found each other. I did not give up for those 10 days and did all that I could and enlisted all the resources available - including the Internet. There are forums out there and I had people from all over offering counsel, advice, support and even time to look - all for a stranger in Illinois.

JJ is still with us but Barney died a few years ago at the age of 17 - pretty old for a Brittany. I just know that JJ still remembers I didn't give up and we were VERY lucky to get our family back together.

What I did a lot of besides placing 100's of notices in mailboxes, in businesses, at stores, and the like was driving around and TALKING TO EVERYONE I SAW. Many of these people would look and report to me if they saw anything. I even had one women of 78 follow a pair of dogs in a blizzard one day thinking they were the ones only to discover the neighbors had new pets. Good people down there and I will never know if they ran off or were taken. I just could not imagine them traveling all the distance they would have had to. They would have had to cross several bridges, interstate and waterways in that 11+ miles...

Good luck to those whose canine family members go missing and do not give up!