DIMPLES IS SAFE

Yay! Dimples was caught in the enclosure trap today!

Dimples is on Facebook

Check out the new Facebook group for the Dimples search--tell your friends and family!

New approach--we're gonna get this girl!

Hi all!

Thanks for following Dimples' blog! Radar was just caught, and a bunch of us are straight off that success and ready to get to work to bring Dimples home. We're re-evaluating the area and the plan and we're confident that we can bring Dimples back to safety. It won't be tomorrow, and won't be this week--but we'll get her eventually!

Dimples has been seen several times EVERY SINGLE DAY since she escaped. She's not interested in traveling large distance (unlike our buddy Radar, who traveled 10 miles, or our buddy Midnight, who traveled about 25 miles). Instead, she's a lot like our friend Lee, who stayed almost entirely in the same general area. This seems to be what hounds like to do--in fact, our hound friends Tasha and Queenie behaved similarly and stayed in fairly small areas.

So--we're excited to get to work and bring this girl back to safety. But--we'll need your help. We'd love to get some assistance in monitoring traps. If you can help, please leave a comment here and let us know.

Thanks--stay tuned for pictures and updates, coming soon!

nocturnal volunteers needed

Are you up at 3 am and not able to sleep? We need volunteers to monitor an enclosure trap in order to prevent raccoons and cats from entering it and watching for Dimples. It is a pretty easy task but located on a dark street. I'm looking for volunteers who can monitor the trap from 8:30 -10:30, 10:30-12:30, and so on throughout the night. Because the trap is made of plastic, we are unable to leave it unmonitored. If you are a nightowl, then this is the volunteer activity for you. Please email for more info.

new trap, same results

Ok, so we brought out a huge trap that wouldn't even look like one and she still wouldn't go into it. she only put her head in and then backed out. She started howling and barking due to immense hunger but even then, she couldn't give into the trap. She has immense staying power. We'll try again later today.

new traps and approaches

Thanks to everyone who has helped out but please do start staying away until further notice. We are going to try a different trap tonight that is designed differently than the normal box trap that Dimples isn't liking. I do not want to start scaring her with too many people and hopefully with the quiet of the night air, she will decide tonight is the night that she wants to start sleeping under a roof again.

Keep up the search for Radar and other lost dogs. They need your help.

Dimples remains a yard dog

Dimples is still living in the outback. We are going to continue trying the trap (a much larger one) and also investigating the use of a snare trap as recommended by animal control. Feedings are now going to be limited to twice a day and she'll be given a normal size portion of dog food. Her days of fast food and rotisserie chickens are coming to an end and we hope to trap her within the next few days. I have placed signs up asking that no one feed Dimples. She currently has no incentive to give in with the amount of delicious food that she's been eating.

In addition, volunteers are visiting the site each night to ensure that she receives the food provided and not the many rats, cats, foxes and who knows what else. While we wait for the traps to work, please do consider looking for Radar in Burke. His search is going very slowly as he has not been sighted in over a week. http://findradar.blogspot.com

familiar people and dogs

Well, this weekend, we tried to bring some of the people and dogs that Dimples knew to hopefully bring her out of survival mode and back to the comfort zone that she knew when she was with her caretakers/brother. She did appear to come fairly closeby when the little boy who spent a lot of time playing with her at the shelter sat on her favorite mattress with her littermate. He really felt as if she wanted to approach but is just too afraid of humans and can't get past that fear.

We are going to try a variety of approaches in the coming day to see if we can capture her in a manner other than a normal box trap. Although many dogs may eventually enter a 'haveaheart' type trap, she doesn't appear to see it as a source of food but instead fears it more than she is hungry. Her fear of being in an enclosed cage keeps her from entering it and she would rather ignore the food and starve than enter the box and give up her freedom. Dimples may be 5 months old but she is still has great willpower.

We are going to continue to spend the week trying to get her back into the arms of safety and into a nice foster home but if it doesn't work out, we will need MANY volunteers on Saturday to help monitor the perimeter of her yard to ensure that she is safe while we go to plan D. Please plan on coming out to help if it is at all possible.

No luck last night.

This is getting really difficult. She is becoming more skittish and wary of her surroundings. I'm starting to think that the best way is to hire a pet trapper. To do that, it is REALLY expensive and we don't have the funds. If anyone has maybe a few thousand dollars lying around that they don't want, it would be fantastic because we need a non-traditional box trap of some sort. Or maybe you lived in the wild and know how to set a trap that captures but doesn't hurt anyone? If so, I think Dimples needs you now.

volunteers really needed Saturday night from 11 pm -1 am

We are going to try two different capture plans tonight and need your help. if you have 2 hours tonight to help us, PLEASE, we need you more than ever. If you are available, please plan on coming out tonight from 11-1 for some action and hopefully a capture! Give me a call and I'll give you the details on what I need help with.

Thanks in advance!

'smarter than the average bear'

Dimples was seen several times during the day on her 'mattress'. Neighbors were outside at night making fish soup and she arrived in their backyard to observe and hopefully get invited to dinner. Still unable to get her to approach any closer than 5 feet away from anyone. We tried a new approach with the trap by NOT covering it with the tarp. Well, that didn't work either. Dimples is apparently afraid of entering any enclosure that is too confining. She will not go any further in than just before the trip plate regardless of the food inside. We tried plan b and attempted to trap her in a nearby porch. That didn't work either, as she wouldn't come close to the building. One good thing to come out of last night's surveillance is that we found out where she goes at 12:15 am every night! She actually returns to the catering place that backs up to Austin Vet. Every morning at the exact same time, a man is tasked to clean the catering truck and throw out the trash. He observed him watching her from the dumpster. This is the farthest away from her mattress and den area that anyone has actually seen her. So, we will be moving to plan c. Just not quite sure exactly how that one will play out or any details yet.

dimples is eluding capture

We tried to trap her last night until 1 am again. She is completely wearing me out with her late night antics but we refuse to give up. She is staying in the same area and she left the area again at the same time in the morning to go for her walk/hunt. She refuses to go into the trap even with chicken and beef inside. She looks around warily and only goes in far enough to get her head and leans her body in. Since she was captured in a dog house, we are starting to think that she's scared of the long cavelike tunnel. New approach tonight. Fliers are still needed in the neighborhoods around the school and parks up there.

so close and yet so far away

We arrived at her 'home' last night at 5:30. She wasn't observed until after 9 pm which is very late for her. Usually the spanish speaking residents a few doors down see her around 7 pm at the latest. We trudged through thickets of briars and poison ivy and located what we think may be her den but she wasn't there. Moved the trap to nearly directly in her patch and made sure to fill it with great food. She didn't fall for it. She came back 3 times and each time she'd eat the food leading into the trap but wouldn't seal the deal. Finally, near 1 am, we left and will try again tonight. We need help flyering around the high school, nearby parks and churches. She appears to be expanding her travels. I also need help with literally sitting into the late hours and monitoring the trap. Catching raccoons and cats isn't helping the situation at this point.

Dimples is still in the area!

Tonight, we made visual contact twice. Both times, they were in the same area as every other night. One big problem is that I learned tonight that the area where Dimples is living is going to soon be demolished. We need to get her back before that happens or she's going to definitely go on the run due to the commotion of her hiding spots being razed. I'm going to keep in contact with the property owner so that I can be notified of when exactly that is going to happen.

Sightings and more sightings

Dimples was seen multiple times today, by many people. She's staying in the same general area where she was seen yesterday and appears to be doing fairly well. She isn't running away, but she does walk in the opposite direction whenever she encounters a person.

No sign of Dimples this morning

I visited the feed stations this morning. Someone ate at the one station but missed the second one in the same vicinity that she's been seen numerous times. I'm not sure if she's still there or if she's sick and getting weaker. The problem is that she's super liable to post-op infection and after living several days outside, she's probably getting a fever and growing weaker. I visited the trap and all that I was lucky enough to get was a very angry cat who hissed like a lion at me. He won't be back any time soon though, so maybe today she'll get back to the trap and be caught. We can only hope.

More sightings

Dimples was seen three times today, all in the same general area. We were able to bring her brother out to the area where she has been seen, so his scent is now in the area. We're hoping that she'll stay in the area!

In case she doesn't, though, we need help getting the word out. Please let us know if you can help us by flyering or contacting area listserves or home-owner associations. Leave a comment to join the search!

Thanks!

Need help flyering

We've had a few sightings of our girl, but we need to expand the area that's been flyered. Please join us!

Dimples was seen on Sunday, 2 pm

We had several sightings of Dimples today. She is apparently living in an abandoned area near Annandale Animal Hospital. The street is McWhorter Place and there are abandoned houses, lots of brush to hide in but few cars! The good news is that she hasn't gone too far from Austin.

Dimples is lost and needs help

Dimples is a 4-5 month old black and tan coonhound/lab mix puppy who recently arrived in the Annandale area and was staying at Austin Vet. They are located at 7323 Little River Turnpike. It's right behind the Jerry's Sub shop. Dimples is a very timid and scared puppy who knows no one in the area. She may be hiding in someone's yard or under a vehicle. She is not wearing a collar as she slipped out of it. She was last seen at 11:30 am on Saturday, May 16. Please help find her.

Breed Estimate: lab/hound mix
Gender: female
Approximate weight: 20 pounds
Approximate age: 4-5 months
Location: LOST in Annandale!