My dog's missing, I'm going nuts

[FurryDogMother]

Short version - am in the UK, dogs (we have 2) at home with husband in very rural west of Ireland. 1 dog went out at 11.30 last night for usual wee etc - hasn't come back - husband has been up all night looking, and again all morning, checked with neighbours, phoned dog warden and guards... no sign.

Just need to post somewhere 'cos I'm going slowly mad here - we don't have kids, just dogs, and they mean the world to me. Hope is the worst thing - imagining all sorts of scenarios.

Please please don't post anything negative here - I don't think I could deal with it. Just wanted some empathy/sympathy, and to be doing something I have never felt more useless in my life. Husband is in bits too - she's his special dog (the other one is mine).

We're surrounded by fields (no sheep) so the search is less than easy - all roads checked, all ditches, sheds etc. It was apparently a foul night last night when she went out, husband only saw 2 cars on our tiny lane all night, so unlikely to have been a vehicle incident - I just don't know what to do with myself.

Oh furry I'm here with a hand hold. I live in south west of Ireland so I know how hard searching can be. Hope you get good news soon.

Thanks - I just feel so frustrated, being away from home - am trying to distract myself (am at my Dad's) by baking stuff (which I won't be able to eat), cleaning things and not thinking. Feel frantic on the inside but immobile on the outside. I can't tell you how much my dogs mean to me.

Is she chipped? Have a collar with contact details? Our dog went missing a few years ago and I remember the helpless feeling.

Hopefully someone will be in touch soon with good news. It may be if someone has picked her up they will take her to a vet on Monday to check for microchip?

Oh Furry how awful for you, and made worse by not being there to get stuck in with the searching.

Can't do anything except empathise and hope she comes home soon. Perhaps she just got frightened by the weather and bolted too far in the wrong direction. She'll find a helpful human soon.

I lost a dog once on a weekend (not even mine, a friend's that I was boarding). I was beside myself for a day and a half until Monday morning when I phoned the local police station. 10 mins later they called back to say he'd been found. A kind lady had picked him up on the Saturday afternoon and taken him home. The local police station was closed for the weekend and in those days there was no 101 number so she just kept him till the Monday morning. She literally called them just after I did so they solved that mystery pretty quickly.

Hopefully someone similarly dog friendly has got your girl safe too.

Thi king of you :( my pets mean the world to me too. Hope you find her safe and well xxx

Are you on Facebook. Create an account on dog lost ASAP and and create a link to circulate on social media. Ring the warden and inform the pound

www.doglost.co.uk/add-dog.php?status=Lost

The quicker the better. Once created on here you can paste the link to Facebook and twitter for people to Share.

There are numerous dog lost pages on Facebook with 1000s of animal advocates who will share. What area are you in. Contact the dog warden and the closest pound. Also post the link to any vets pages on Facebook in the area

Just seen you are in Ireland. Still post on dog lost as they have contacts all over the place. I'm sure there will he helpers from Ireland on there

Thanks everyone - still no sign - have already shared on FB and word is spreading. Husband has contacted guards, dog warden and local vets, but I have a gut feeling that's she's met with an accident out in the fields - our tiny lane is very quiet (husband saw 2 cars total when out looking overnight), and it was pouring with rain when she went out. Just keeping a little flame of hope alive, and wishing I was home.

If u put it on doglost there are volunteers in each area who help. It's quite big and very successful in locating dogs. Even if the worst has happened if someone finds the dog from googling or checking doglost if they know about it they will see your missing poster. Dogs have been reunited months later in some cases.

Good luck, I hope you find your dog

Scrsp that, just looking at dog lost now and you would need a UK postcode. Maybe there's an alternative site for Ireland

Here you go

www.lostdogs.ie/all-dogs/

So sorry OP. I feel for you. I am in the west of Ireland too & I understand the terrain & hard it can be to search.

A little story of hope for you. One of our dogs went missing during a storm a few years ago. She was found four days later & returned to us. She'd fallen into a deep, open drain and couldn't get out. When the wind & rain calmed down one of our neighbours heard her barking & rescued her. Those four days were some of the longest of my life.

I hope she turns up soon

Thanks so much - have added her to the lost dogs site. I'm thinking something like she's fallen into a drain myself, Drama - if I were only at home I wouldn't rest until I'd found her. I'm finding it very difficult to cope with not being there.

What breed is she? Would she have run off after a rabbit and found herself lost?

A long shot but would your other dog 'track' her?

I hope you find her soon

She's a sheepdog/border collie type. I'm told our other dog is totally relaxed about the situation (collie/great dane/lab mix, not gifted with brains but adorable). Husband has tried getting her to do something constructive in the way of searching, but she's more interested in playing ball. I have opened the wine, and finally stopped shaking. Nothing I can do from here but post everywhere I can think of, and carry on hoping.

Thank you all for your support - I know to many she's 'only' a dog, but to me, well, she's my baby. If I could, I'd have helicopters and the army out searching for her. Trying not to have a meltdown, and feeling soooo far away from my husband, who needs support too.

I saw the picture on the website. She's gorgeous, and also quite distinctive looking. I know your DH has contacted the vets, guards, neighbours etc - could he also put up posters in local shops if he hasn't done so already?

I wish I could help search, but unfortunately I'm a good three hours drive south of you.

Is there anywhere she might be stuck? Large rabbit hole, steep ditch?

Old outbuildings, neighbours sheds?

I lost one of my dogs for a few hours once and was frantic. Hope she turns up soon.

Slightly difficult in that we don't have a printer (the posters), but we do have a great local community who know us and word will spread. There's always the slight fear that she's been taken by the people who..erm..take dogs...but I really think that's not the case, far more likely she's either stuck in a shed or has fallen into a drain/hole/silage pit within half a mile of us.

Ok great she's on there. Now what u need to do is go on Facebook, copy and post that link from the lost site onto any vets pages, groomers, animal rescue pages, pounds, shelters.

In your area

The drain our dog fell in was literally five minutes from our house. We just couldn't hear her because of the stormy weather which lasted a whole weekend.

If your local community is anything like ours word will get around & people will keep a look out for her. Agree dog snatching sounds unlikely in such a rural area. Make sure local farmers know she's missing. They will know the location of any drains, holes, bogs etc. Dogs don't normally roam too far, so I suspect you are right that she won't be far away.

I hope you find her, Furry. Don't give up hope.

Our boxer bitch went out on her own one day when she was a puppy and was found safe and well 36 hours later about 5km away. A hunter found her and took her to the vets to get her chip scanned. DH was going out of his mind (I don't think he slept at all that night) - I was away and he didn't tell me till after because he knew I would freak out.

Anyway, don't give up hope. I'll keep my fingers and toes crossed for you.

Oh god Furry I'd be frantic too. I always say my dog is like my first child. Sorry you can't be there to help, when do you go home? Would your dad understand if you went now?

Keeping everything crossed that you find her soon safe and well.

Sending you love because this is one of the worst feelings in the world.
The hours my dog was missing were the longest ever- but she was found safe and well.
99.99% of people will do all they can to help if they find a stray dog or hear of a lost one.
I had people for days after asking if my dog was home and being so happy to hear she was