2-3 – Rosie is missing!
6-7 – Checklist of supplies
11 – Holiday telly
This zine is based on the real-life adventures of former street-dog Rosie, and on what I learned from finding a missing dog. But first, let me introduce the characters of the story:
Rosie – the Escape Artiste Spanish Podenco adopted by Jennifer Jennifer – the Brains Social media expert, Dr, activist Mini – the Sass 8 years-old ex-racing greyhound, Rosie’s sister Jonah – the Brawn PhD student, organisation sprite, Jennifer’s friend in Dundee Chaos – the Charmer 5 years-old ex-racing greyhound, Jonah’s dog
Rosie is missing!
Jennifer, Mini and Rosie had just more than a week to settle before they went to Ayr, at Jen’s parents, for the winter holiday. On Boxing day (26 Dec) Jennifer went out for lunch with an old friend. But when she came back home, Rosie had escaped the back garden and headed to the nearby golf course. The first few nights were terrible. People had spread rumours about dogs ran over, and the temperatures dropped down to -7º C at sundown (around 4PM). As the days were passing and the New Year loomed, they amassed a team of volunteers and experts. Jonah and Chaos came down from Dundee to help.
So what do you do when a dog goes missing? • Young • Street smarts • Newly adopted • Scared
It is very much based on the dog, the environment and the situation. • Didn’t know rural area • Didn’t know other people • Only dog friends M & C
The advice may at times seem very counterintuitive: Until you fill specialists in with the behaviour and particular circumstances of the dog, you won't get solid and valid advice. This is why dogcatching volunteer groups, especially Harvey’s Army, expertise is invaluable.
Our plan? 1. Keep our scents strong and the area clear of danger - since she only knew our scents 2. Not feed her, especially not by other people who would try to grab her - she is a scavenger street dog, she will survive by eating literally anything 3. Wait for sightings in warmth and conserve energy - since she was not familiar with the area, she only toured the path she went walkies the day before
5. When finding a regular spot, put food out and silently watch, and build trust. This is where conserving your energy comes in use, it can be long hours, even days building trust for the dog to come back. DON’T grab the dog – use a slip-lead!
Jonah’s handy checklist • Flashlights, especially handsfree headlights • Batteries and charged powerbanks; USB cables and other chargers • Thermos and instant hot drinks like tea, coffee, lemsip and soup sachets
• Food for stakeouts – protein bars, fruit bars, sweets • Smartphone with WiFi and a lot of credit • Fingerless mittens • Wellington boots • Warming packs
of essentials • Waterproof and thermal clothes • Paramilitary tech: camera drones, night-vision and heatvision binoculars, night-vision cameras; batteries and chargers • Hot water bottles (these are great to keep warm and to warm up a dog’s bed, when left at sighting place) • Sanitising, antibacterial and sterilised wipes; emergency medication • Smelly dog food: sardines (too stinky for foxes or cats); tripe; sausage treats • Slip leads, normal leads, collars
Operation #findRosie It took us nine days, four cases of Monster juice, and an entire community to catch Rosie. After the initial panic, we started sharing a poster on social media and putting it up while walking our dogs. Other dog walkers volunteered for this. Rosie came up to the bottom of the road where Jen’s parents lived a couple of times, so on day 2 we organised a silent car barricade and created a food trail. When this failed, we tapped into the local community for sightings and drove around where people have seen her, trying to determine her patterns. This also meant spending hours after midnight in the cold waiting where she was spotted in the woods by a kind couple. On day 3 we decided to set up a tent near where she was consistently spotted, and just wait for her to find us.
While this was not too uncomfortable, it disturbed her pattern so we moved the smelly tent (with human and dog scents) in the back garden. On day 4 we got a tip that the foxes in an old lady’s back garden have changed their pattern, so we installed a night camera there. It wasn’t Rosie, but now we knew where we need to set the trap. On day 5 we set the trap with smelly food in the woods, and camped outside in the car every night, with new-found friends doing early shifts. On day 9, after days of no news, we heard from an elderly couple that Rosie was loitering in their garden. We immediately moved the trap there, and within hours she entered the trap. That evening, with a scared Rosie in the cage, Jennifer started to build her trust and lure her into a slip-lead. With two leads on, we gently coaxed her into a crate. This way, we brought Rosie home.
1, 2, Rosie crew Each member of the main team used their expertise to bring Rosie home. Jennifer used the power of social media not only to share the news, but also to acquire specialist equipment and expert support. Jonah created consistent visuals for online and offline postering, and made sure supplies, human efforts and documentation was systematically organised. We could not have caught Rosie without a massive community of online and meat-space support. We enlisted local dog walkers for sightings and postering; got hold of military tech from community members; received specialist support from charities.
Because we chose to use the power of social media, Rosie’s adventures (and a personal drama) became a public spectacle. There is a dog hunt going on in Alloa right now and without being dramatic it’s thrilling Fantastic news – have been following this thread these last few days – almost dreading to see the next instalment but this is the best news ever.
Aw… yes! Been quietly following this gripping insta adventure and so glad it’s found the ending it deserves. Rollercoaster I’m not a big twitter user but this had me hooked, checking regularly for updates & SO glad she is home
Thank goodness! I have been following your saga all week from the US. Each time I refresh Twitter, I first look for your update. Rosie has been at the top of my list… and that says something given that WE HAVE A LOT GOING ON OVER HERE!!!
Jonah mapped Rosie’s reported movements giving us great insight into Rosie’s adventures. Cold colours (blue, green) = days 1-5; Warm colours (yellow, orange, red) = days 69.
These markers clearly map Rosie’s circling pattern – she was looking for us!