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Not a whisper

It's been 3 days now and despite scouring through and posting on all the lost and found pet websites that pop up in the first page of search results, there's no sign that anybody is looking for this dog I found. I've driven around the neighborhood twice now to look for lost dog signs and none of them come close to resembling the one currently in my possession. I'm truly stumped.

I guess the important thing is that he's safe and being well taken care of, but it's a little concerning that there are no apparent signs that he's being looked for. You can't help but wonder what the story is here. There were no signs of distress or physical trauma when I found him, so he couldn't have wandered too far from home.

Still, I love having him around and he's as happy and healthy as he can be. Him and my dog are like two peas in a pod now and it's a joy seeing the both of them growing on each other. I hope that even if he is reunited with his family, that they'll get to be friends and hang out for years to come. I kinda feel bad that I don't even have a name for him.

I've been testing out a lot of common dog names on him to see if he'd respond to any of them, but nothing seems to be ringing his bell. I've mostly been calling him Big Guy or Butthead, but obviously those aren't proper names befitting the position of man's best friend. Not that he's in a position to argue, or even understand, but I'd like to have something to call him until he finds his way back home.

I've never seen a dog like him. It's almost remarkable how he looks like if you took every intimidating breed of dog and rolled them into one. He looks like part Pit Bull, part German Shephard, part Rottweiler, and part Staffordshire Terrier. This dog was evidently bred for combat, and judging by appearances, most likely against evil witches or mythical monsters. He also has these eyes that look like they belong to a comic book villain or some notable demi-god or minor deity. He has heterochromia, where his left eye is blue and the other brown, but his right eye is also somewhat bloodshot so it looks like he has one blue eye and one red eye. It's trippy to stare at because you half-expect him to attack despite his behavior being that of a sweet, bubbly boy.

Because of these traits, I've been leaning towards calling him Ares, after the Greek god of war. It might be a little too militant and will probably inject some nerves into the owners of other dogs he might play with, but I can't really think of one more befitting. I have no intention of giving him any generic pet names, so I guess it's a placeholder for now.

I've also considered calling him Tantrum given his propensity to whine whenever me or my dog aren't in the mood to play with him, but that would be a little too insulting. He's a good dog and deserves better. I really don't know what to call or even if I should call him anything given that I might never see him again once his owner is found. It's feeling like more and more of a pipe dream the more time passes without seeing any traces of his family trying to look for him.

I guess I'll just have to keep the hope alive that someone out there is trying to bring him home. This apartment is a little too small for his energy level, and the risk of him ruining my security deposit seems more inevitable than I'd like. For now, I guess we'll just focus on keeping the search going and enjoying our time together while we got it.
QueenOfTheNerds · 41-45, F
Do you have a local animal control?
Where I live it’s protocol to make a “lost animal report” with them. There is a two week stray hold, and then the pet is legally yours if you choose. They can also usually scan for a microchip.

It sounds like this handsome pup has fallen right into place with you.
TinyViolins · 31-35, M
@QueenOfTheNerds I've done that twice now, but our local animal control has only 2 officers working for a city of over 100,000, so they're tied up as far as I can tell. I'll keep trying, but with them things are moving slow
redredred · M
I’ve been adopting senior dogs for years. There are three shelters I work with and they all know I’ll likely take one more old dog if one shows up. It’s sad, surprising and more than a little disgusting to see how often people simply discard an old dog. When they start to get slow, maybe no longer actively playful and their medical bills begin to mount, people simply throw them away.

I take them, give them perhaps a year or two to spoil them and then the final mercy becomes necessary. It’s very rewarding and then heartbreaking but the dogs are so grateful and loving.
TinyViolins · 31-35, M
@redredred The thing is that this dog is still basically a puppy. He's about a year old judging by his teeth and his endless amount of energy. Still has a lot of life left.

Maybe he was abandoned, but I found him around 1 AM on Sunday morning, so it's possible he escaped from a party or his owner was intoxicated and lost him. I had a dog run away from us once when my parents had a party at the house, probably to get away from the noise.

I don't know much of anything except that he has no name tag and no microchip. No way of contacting his owners except by digging around the web and keeping an eye out for posters
redredred · M
@TinyViolins if you’re in a relatively small town you could try driving around to the bigger vet clinics to see if anybody recognizes him. Vet staff generally like dogs and often remember their patients. They would also be sympathetic to your efforts.
TinyViolins · 31-35, M
@redredred That would make things a lot simpler, but my city has over 100,000 people and only 2 animal control officers. Did take him to the nearby vet to scan for a chip, but at the time they knew nothing about him.

He has heterochromia and a distinct white patch on his chest, so I'm sure he'd be easy to spot in a lineup. I've posted his photo on all the sites I can. Just wish the process was quicker. I'm starting to worry about his future.
Try taking him to your nearest vet. If he's microchipped, that's the easiest way to find the owner (anywhere nationally.)
If he's not microchipped try taking a photo and advertising. Posters on public notice boards, in shop windows and on Facebook. Keep back a few details so you can ask responders questions that prove they are the real owners - things like quirks of behaviour, scars, whorls in fur or tiny markings not visible in the photo.
Let the local dog pound know and give them all the details.
If no one claims him within (you decide the time), you can register him with the pound as available for adoption, or turn him over to them if you think your landlord is likely to turf you out.
Coralmist · 41-45, F
Hopefully soon you will come across someone that knows something. Maybe ask at dog parks nearby if they recognize him. I used to see a little dog, he was the size of a chihuahua, walking up and down the street..he wasnt lost, he lived nearby. And i looked at his collar and his name was...Spike. Loved that lol...So you could do the opposite traits for naming him too, like Happy or Bubbles lol. Hope theres an answer soon.
Coralmist · 41-45, F
@TinyViolins Kash..hmm. yeah not my first choice. Oh did you mean the mom had some issues, or the daughter? So they probably dont want him back? Poor little guy , I wonder if you hadnt found him, where he would be ...
TinyViolins · 31-35, M
@Coralmist The mom lost the dog and waited to tell her daughter about it. That's why it took so long to get in contact. The only person who knew to look didn't feel like it, and it was up to her daughter to reach out to me from out of state. Like I mentioned, this is supposed his third time running away under her care. Not exactly a good person to return the dog to.

Apparently from our contact, the mom is going through some unspecified issues and stopped returning her daughters calls. So the daughter wanted to return the dog home, but the mom has gone rogue and presumably doesn't want the dog back. And the daughter's current living situation seemingly doesn't allow for dogs. So now I'm stuck with him.

I found him around 1 AM when it was pretty chilly out, so I don't know that he would have found anybody else. I tried following him around to see if he'd walk back to his home, but after a few laps of the complex, he never did, so maybe he might have just kept wandering about. There are coyotes in the woods nearby, and I'd hate to imagine what might have happened had he kept on exploring that way
Coralmist · 41-45, F
@TinyViolins wow what a tough situation.. I hope things work out overall, and possibly you will be able to care for the dog.
assemblingaknob · 26-30, F
Don't you have a neighborhood facebook group? Or a neighborhood lost and found group? Where you could post
TinyViolins · 31-35, M
@assemblingaknob I don't have Facebook or any social media, but there are corresponding websites that cross-post on popular Facebook pages. I've scrolled through as much as I can publicly scroll and there aren't any lookalikes or people commenting on his post.

I suspect his owners, if they're looking for him, might be technologically illiterate or have some language barriers, but it's tough. I've contacted the animal shelters in the area with his photo and description, but haven't heard anything back.

I'm going to do a few more trips around the neighborhood to keep an eye out for posters. Maybe they think they can solve things the old school way
assemblingaknob · 26-30, F
@TinyViolins Poor baby. I wish wish wish I could take him in especially because it's not economical for you to keep him :( he's lucky you love him so much
Mrsbetweenfatandfit · 26-30, F
I don’t want to think this way but it’s possible it was abandoned not lost. It’s frighteningly common. My sister and I had a young dog run up to us in our neighborhood a couple years ago. She was dirty and hungry/ thirsty. But she ran up to doors our whole walk home. She knew she lived in a house. We gave her food and water then took her to check for a chip.. none. Then knocked on doors asking if anyone recognized her. Posted online etc My parents adopted her and she’s very happy. She’s terrified of the dark still to this day and any loud unexpected noises. With the other dog my parents have they walk slowly across any road to reach the other sidewalk. This dog as quickly as she can reaches the other side. It’s likely she was too high energy for the family and they drove her to a different neighborhood and dumped her. I’m so happy to read that dog found you. If you need to rehome him look up local no kill shelters or better dog fostering. These animals deserve good homes 💜
TinyViolins · 31-35, M
@Mrsbetweenfatandfit I highly doubt he was abandoned though. He came up to us when I was taking my dog out to go potty and just wanted to play. Didn't seem the least bit tired or stressed.

Besides, a dog of his size and energy level would normally need a harness to walk without choking himself, which he wasn't wearing. I don't think his owners would abandon the dog and his collar, but keep his harness.

Also, I found him at 1 AM on a Sunday morning, which would be a very odd time to abandon a dog. Unless they wanted him to freeze to death overnight. It gets pretty chilly here at that hour.

Luckily all the shelters here are no-kill and the average adoption time for a dog is about 5 days. People love their dogs out here. They fly them in from all over the country because their chances of adoption are that good. My dog came from Kentucky, and just about all the dog owners I talk to adopted theirs from out-of-state too.

For a pup his age and with his cool looking eyes, I think his chances of adoption would be good. I love him, but I don't think I can keep him

 
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