For Toby Caldwell, a purebred Yorkshire terrier who went on the lam Tuesday night from his owners' house in Port Washington, on Long Island, $5,000 could be the magic number.
That's how much his owners, Angela Duen-Caldwell, who designs maternity clothes for Gap, and Benjamin Caldwell, who illustrates children's books, are offering as a reward for the five-pound dog's safe return. Ms. Duen-Caldwell said she picked that amount, significant even for Long Island's Gold Coast, because it is high enough to play against human nature.
"Someone with a good heart, who wants to help me, would return Toby and wouldn't think of taking that much money," she said. "Someone with bad intent would return a dog for the money, rather than keep him."
Either way, she said, "I don't care about the money. I just want him back." Then she started to cry.
After school yesterday, a dozen children, all playmates of Toby's, were combing the neighborhood, as well as a field and a wooded area nearby. Some parents were driving around too, calling the dog's name.
By late afternoon, the reward was already prompting some strange calls. "Some people said they hadn't seen him but wanted the money to help look for him," she said. "I guess it's bringing out the kooks."
Carl Washington, a professional pet detective who travels the country helping owners find their lost dogs, said the Caldwells may be making a mistake by offering such a large reward. "I think $1,000 is fair," he said, "but $5,000 will bring all kinds of trash up out of the gutter."
Ms. Duen-Caldwell said she and her husband had just returned home about 9:30 p.m. Tuesday when she put Toby, who was wearing his orange fluorescent collar and a tag with his name and telephone number, down inside their house. Her husband followed them in from the garage, shutting the door behind him. It was 10 minutes before they realized that Toby had gotten out. They searched the house, the garage, and the yard, then frantically tore through the neighborhood, calling his name until 3 a.m.
Within hours, five square blocks around their home were plastered with posters. The reward was advertised in tall letters above photos of the 15-month-old dog. Ms. Caldwell said she could not imagine that he went too far.
"He's so tiny, he can't even climb stairs," she said. "He doesn't have many options."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/02/nyregion/02dog.html?