Elsa disappeared yesterday....
 

Well, it happened. Yesterday we were out cleaning the vehicles and I was spray painting some outside stuff for this summer and my little momma, Elsa, was with me, right by my side. So, I got a little "too" into what I was doing and did not keep an eye on her. My DH's cousin called and asked him to pick him up and as he was getting prepared to leave I started to call for Elsa...nothing, couldn't find her anywhere. I am all in the woods and everywhere on the ranch looking for her. After my DH is pulling out he is looking for her from the truck. Next thing you know he calls to tell me that he pulls out on the highway (a 2 lane hwy and 55 mph speed limit) he looks in his review mirror and there she is in the middle of the hwy chasing his truck. He slams on breaks, jumps out, starts waving like a mad man trying to stop traffic behind him so he can grab her. OMG Needless to say she did not go out again yesterday...peepads.

I was so happy and mad at the same time. She has never left off the ranch before. I got the 12' lead out, put it around a pole, and attached her to it this morning to go potty. She just stood there looking at me like I was stupid. At least she was standing there and not dead or at the vet.

If this is not a testimony that even a responsible pet owner can lose their baby, then I don't know what is. I watch her like a hawk but I dropped the ball hence...a stupid thing like this happened. Thank you for listening, I can still feel myself shaking a little bit this morning.

So glad she is safe no doubt they all will roam if given a chance

Glad she's home and safe....... :animal-pa

Hate to hear you went through this, but so glad she is home safe and sound!!

OMGosh...I'm soooo glad everything turned out for you! My heart was racing while I read this.

Something similar happen to me as well. Getting work on done the house, people in and out all day. She manage to get out and I didn't see her. When I realized that she was missing I panicked, scariest thing ever. Fortunately Brandi has to stopped and smell every balde of grass so she didn't get very far. My neighbhor saw her and grabbed her for me.

I agree, it does happen even to the most responsible pet owners.

Uhg! This is absolutely my worst nightmare. I don't trust my little guy outside without a harness and leash but he has escaped out the front door and taken off a couple times. My girlfriend's yorkie, who is just about 3 pounds, never leaves her side and she trusts her not to run off when they are outside. This has always made me nervous, 'cause you just never know. Well, sure enough, summer before last, something across the street caught her attention and she bolted out into the street, right into an oncoming car. Broke her hip. How it didn't do more damage I'll never know, but several thousand dollars and months worth of re-hab later her little girl is better. I'm so glad your DH saw her before anything similar happened!

This is why I put Gatsby on a 30 foot lead when he goes outside because he could esily dart out from under me and run right into the street

Wow, so glad she is safe and sound.

Thank you everyone. Everytime I look at her today a deep breath comes out, then I get mad at myself. I still feel like crying.
Love, love my DH!!!:hug:He put himself out there to get our little momma.

Don't be too hard on yourself. I'm sure every one of us has had something like this happen! I certainly have!

My heart was thumping when I saw this thread...so much so that I had to find and read your last post first. I am so relieved that you found her safe and sound. Your dh is a real hero..out there stopping traffic for her.

Trixie got out once when I wasn't home and no one noticed her sneaking out the front door as they were leaving. I come home from work...call my baby and no answer :eek: I then proceeded to call my kids and my dh to see if they had her in the car or something....no one had her. I called my friend/neighbor to see if maybe she had come over to take her for a visit...nope. Now panic set it. My friend comes over...we are looking in every closet, behind every door.....I am outside calling Trixie on the verge of hysterics when my next door neighbor who is home with her newborn infant...comes out and says Trixie is with her. She saw Trixie sitting on my front steps all alone with no one home so she brought her into her house for safe keeping. OMG...what a relief....I bought a safety gate for the front door that night.

My heart is singing for you right now, I am soo happy for you all.

Glad to hear a happy ending.

Oh my gosh! That post made my pulse start to race. I would have just died if I was your hubby! I'm so glad he stayed present enough to save her--he deserves LOTS of praise and attention for a long time to come!;)
I'm so, so glad she's home and safe.

That is so scary!!! Thank goodness she is OK!

Please Read
 

So glad that Elsa is safe.
I read this article before I got Shadow. Yet, I am still trying to convince my husband not to let his/our 3 year old Viszla, Brandi run loose outside. Go figure.

Trust-a deadly disease
There is a deadly disease stalking your dog; a hideous, stealthy thing just waiting its chance to steal your beloved friend. It’s not a new disease or one for which there are inoculations. The disease is called “trust”.

You knew before you ever took your puppy home that it could not be trusted. The breeder who provided you with this precious animal warned you, drummed it into your head: Puppies steal off counters, destroy anything expensive, chase cats, take forever to housetrain and must NEVER be allowed off lead!

When the big day finally arrived, heeding the sage advice of the breeder, you escorted your puppy to his new home, properly outfitted with collar and tags, the lead held tightly in your hand. At home the house was puppy-proofed. Everything of value was stored in the spare bedroom, garbage stowed on top of the refrigerator, cats separated, and a gate placed across the door to the living room to keep at least part of the house puddle-free. All the windows and doors had been properly secured, and signs placed in all strategic points reminding everyone to CLOSE THE DOOR!

Soon it becomes second nature to make sure the door closed a tenth of a second after is opened and that it was really latched. “DON’T LET THE DOG OUT!” is your second most verbalized expression. (The first is “NO!”) You worry and fuss constantly, terrified that your darling will get out and a disaster will surely follow. Your friends comment about who you love most, your family or the dog. You know that to relax your vigil for a moment might lose him to you forever.

And so the weeks and months pass with your puppy becoming more civilized every day and the seeds are planted. It seems that each new day brings less destruction, less breakage. Almost before you know it, your gangly, slurpy puppy has turned into an elegant, dignified friend.

Now that he is a more reliable, sedate companion, you take him more places. No longer does he chew the steering wheel when left in the car. And darned if that cake wasn’t still on the counter this morning. And, oh yes, wasn’t that the cat he was sleeping with so cozily on your pillow last night?

At this point you are beginning to become infected. The disease is spreading its roots deep into your mind.

And then one of your friends suggests obedience. You shake your head and remind her that your dog might run away if allowed off lead, but you are reassured when she promises the events are held in a fenced area. And, wonder of wonders, he did not run away, but came every time you called him!

All winter long you go to weekly obedience classes. And, after a time, you even let him run loose from the car to the house when you get home. Why not? He always runs straight to the door, dancing a frenzy of joy and waits to be let in. And remember, he comes every times he’s called. You know he’s the exception that proves the rule. (And sometimes, late at night, you even let him slip out the front door to go potty and then right back in.)

At this point, the disease has taken hold, waiting only for the right time and place to rear its ugly head.

Years pass. It’s hard to remember why you ever worried so much when he was a puppy. He would never think of running out the door that you leave open while you bring in the packages from the car. It would be beneath his dignity to jump out the window of the car while you run into the convenience store. And when you take him for those wonderful longs walks at dawn, it takes only one whistle to bring him racing back to you in a burst of speed when the walk takes you too close to the highway. (He still gets into the garbage, but nobody’s perfect!)

This is the time the disease has waited for so patiently. Sometimes it only has to wait a year or two, but often it takes much longer.

He spies the neighbor’s dog across the street and suddenly forgets everything he ever knew about not slipping outdoors, jumping out windows or coming when called. Perhaps it was only a paper fluttering in the breeze, a squirrel o r the sheer joy of running---

Stopped in an instant
Stilled forever
Your heart is broken
So is his beautiful body

The disease is trust. The final outcome-killed by a car.

Every morning, my dog, Shah, bounced around off lead exploring. Every morning for seven years, he came back when he was called. He was perfectly obedient, perfectly trustworthy. He died fourteen hours after being hit by a car. Please do not risk your friend and your heart! Save your trust for things that don’t matter.
By Sharon Mathers
Courtesy of “Canine Concepts and Community Animal Control” Magazine

Thank you and I would have made some "thank you" cookies or a cake for your next door neighbor. Hmmm, I wonder what I could do for my DH :D.

I'm so glad your pup is safe and sound. I never let Calleigh out to roam free. She is always on a harness and leash. Speaking of hawks/owls, they can carry her off also. If you want her to be outdoors with you, why don't you get a pen with a cover on top. That way you can do your work and she will be safe. You are one lucky owner.

OMG!!! I'm so glad your dh found her....how SCARY!!!! Loved the "she looked at me like I was stupid" comment...:D I needed that bit of levity after your story had my heart pounding out of my chest!!

We lost our Daizy for a COUPLE hours one time...thought she got outside because our grandson kept opening up the door....we searched the WOODS around our house for HOURS.....turns out she was under our sofa....dh had closed the foot rest...and she was underneath sleeping...:eek:one of the ONLY times she's ever chosen NOT to bark...she just slept away. :rolleyes:

Glad she's home safe and sound!

LOL, been there and done that too!!! That's why now we make sure both of the little ones are where we can see them before we close our footrest.

Ny worst fear is my dogs running out the front door. We live on a very busy street and everytime somebody comes to the door I panic. After I piost this I am going to order a gate for the front door.

Glad to read the she is home safe and sound. It was a good thing that your DH saw her running after him in the truck.

I thank everyone for all the kind words. The whole highway thing just sends a shiver right through me. When I was a little girl I had a little dog named Mickey. One day coming home on the bus from Elementary school I saw him laying dead next to the highway. I will never,ever forget that.
I love this forum and I hope to one day meet a great many of you...God Bless.

I'm so glad your little girl is safe. I've always lived near busy highways, therefore, always had a fence. It's too big of a risk. Give little Elsa extra hugs!:)

I was scared to read this thread at first! So glad there's a happy ending and ye, good call on the leashing to a post when you can't fully focus on her...she's probably petty ticked and was having the time of her life yesterday but mom's need to protect their children...even the furry ones!
Have you tried a secure play pen area? Elvis has figured out he can roll over and tangle his harness all up when a leash is attached to it...he's really not one for a leash, the first few weeks we tried to walk with one he just sat down and stared at me with dirty looks, I carried him most the time.

Scary. I am so glad your DH was able to safely get her. One day my dtr called me and said she had just pulled up in the driveway and Maya, my pom was laying on the driveway. She had never ever run out after me. She must have slipped out when I left. I could have easily closed the garage door on her or she could have been lost or stolen. Luckily Maya was use to being outside with me while I gardened and never left the property. But I learned you can never be 100% sure they won't take off.

I told my DH last week that I want a pen area for her and her baby to go out in. I guess it could have been "a day late and a dollar short" but thank God it turned out to be good news. I need a confined area because of what she did and the ticks and fleas are rampant out here, I could just treat a small area. Guess the pen area is in our very near future. Thanks to all..................:animal36

He's probably going to get right to building it now! :thumbup:
Also try an Apple cider vinegar rub on them to keep fleas and ticks away!
So glad it was just a scare!

Wow, I am glad everything turned out for you too!! Elsa was the same as Maya, the operative word being was! and my 100% sure dwindled to nothing...0%.