There’s no panic quite like seeing your dog slip out of their harness and running off. Especially in a city surrounded by woods, the river, highways, and other dangers. What started as a regular evening walk turned into a two-week nightmare when my 9-month-old Pitbull puppy, Winry, slipped out of her harness and bolted into the freezing night. I had no idea where she was headed or how far she’d go. What followed was nearly two weeks of searching through snow-covered streets, tracking paw prints, leaning on community support, and I would like to share the tips I was given to find her and bring her home.

Day 1

On night one, I took her on a walk, and she got loose after being startled by the sound of a train. In her panic, she ran around a pole, which allowed her to slip out of her harness. Once she was free, she bolted. I chased after her but lost her because she was too fast. It was nighttime, and it was beginning to snow. At that point, I had no clue where she could have gone. It was around 10 p.m., I searched around the Churchill area all night until about 6 a.m. the next morning with no luck.

Day 3

After the first night, I had no leads at all, so I made some flyers (Canva) and post them around the area where she was lost, and I also shared these flyers on social media. It wasn’t until Day 3 that we got another sighting of Winry. She was seen over in the African Burial Grounds/Lumpkins Jail area. I searched the area and after about 15 minutes, I noticed some fresh pawprints on the ground. I followed these paw prints for hours, but they ended up disappearing in an area that didn’t have any snow. After hours of searching, I decided to go home to warm up and make her some food to leave out just in case she returned to that area while I was gone. Of course, the moment I got home, a friend called me to let me know that spotted her on the bridge near the interstate and burial grounds, the area I was just at. She was gone by the time I arrived.

Day 7

I searched this area for the rest of the week. During this time, I placed more flyers in the area and posted on the Nextdoor app (a community bulletin board app) to see if anyone in the area had seen her. I’d even stay in the spot where she was seen last for a whole day, and didn’t see any sign of her. My family and friends would search the area so I could rest, my aunt even brought out Winry’s mom to help sniff her out. But after all this, there was no sign of Winry in that area. We ended up searching the wooded area for signs of her. This area still had a good amount of snow, and we saw pawprints this far out. We followed the footprints and noticed an industrial area that she could have visited. We went ahead and placed more fliers over in this area and updated the App with the new location.

Where I found a lot of her paw-prints, this is the parking lot by the trainstation and burial ground / jail. I intend on writing about the burial ground in a future post because some locals don’t even know about the area and I feel that needs to be changed.

Day 8

A little over a week after Winry ran off, we received a call about her being in a new area. We updated the Nextdoor app, and we were contacted by animal trackers and were told not to post her location. Big groups of people and yelling would only push her somewhere else because of all the people yelling her name, and big groups looking for her would probably make her nervous. So we started taking the posts that included her location off of social media and just asked people to call us or to call animal control. Make sure you are aware of how your animal control center will be able to help as well. Some can even go as far as to offer you a cage to help trap your lost dog.

Day 9

We received calls about her being over on 3rd street near the interstate. I hadn’t seen her myself in over a week until this day. I was riding with my dad, and he saw her come out of some bushes. I tried to be calm and get down on the ground so she would come to me, but she got scared and ran off again. I stayed in this area and left some food out here. Some of the people who lived in that area started leaving food out for her, and that kept her in that spot. People would see her, but she would not let them approach her to pick her up.

Day 10

We received more calls in this area, and we even received some pictures of her being in this area, so it was time to trap her in this area. After looking on Facebook through animal tracker groups, we were told to reach out to Kelly Jones to help us capture Winry. First things first was to set up a food trap for Winry to make sure that she stays in that area. Kelly also set up a trail camera to make sure that she was coming to that area. That very night, the trail camera captured pictures of her going into the cage. The trap wasn’t set because we didn’t want her to wander into it overnight and for her to not be able to get to where ever she was getting warmth from. So we had to go out the next day to set the trap and wait until she got back into the cage.

Day 13

I had asked my dad to come up to Richmond so he could watch the cage while I was at work, to make sure that Winry would get into the cage. I saw on the camera that she walked into the cage. We had to hurry to get to her and get her back home! Once we got home, I let her out of the cage, and she jumped right into my arms. I got her some towels and blankets and gave her a warm bath. I made sure to prepare all of her favorite foods and ensure that everything was warmed up for her. The next day, I took her to the vet and was relieved to find out that she was 100% okay! All after being in 2 snowstorms, freezing temperatures, and even an earthquake! She survived all this at 9 months old!

What to do - A list of tips

If your dog gets on the loose, you should not chase after it or yell its name. They could either think that they are in trouble or enter survival mode if they are scared, and will run away. First thing you should do is to get on the ground and calmly call your pet's name in a kind tone. Over time, you should teach your dog recall commands to limit them from getting too far, and if they get loose, that is just another tactic to get them to come back.

When I first got Winry, I made sure that she was microchipped, but I did not realize that it only worked when you brought your pet in. To my knowledge, there are no microchips that actively track your pet. Microchips are scanned by vets, and your contact information will be provided to the vet. I would suggest getting an airtag or a GPS collar of some sort, just in case your pet does get out. Airtags work through Bluetooth, but GPS collars work off of satellites. You do have to pay a monthly subscription fee for a GPS collar, but it is more than worth it if you live in a rural area. I bought an airtag because I am in the city and those work off other iPhones.

When your pet goes missing, you should create and post fliers immediately. I went ahead with a standard template from Canva.

Consider the following when creating your fliers:

Name
Phone number / Contact info.
Type of dog
Coat color and pattern
Color of collar, bandana, leash, or harness worn when lost
Most recent photo of the pet
If there is a reward
- Do not include the reward amount
Let people know to call you, and then call Animal Control
Let people know not to chase or call their pets' names

The fliers should be posted within a 3 - 5 mile radius of your home and the last area where your pet was seen. Make sure that these fliers are posted in front of businesses, coffee shops, restaurants, park entrances/exits, dog parks, and anywhere that has a lot of foot traffic.

Some other things that we were told to do included:

Leaving dirty laundry in a box outside your house so your pup may catch wind of it
Check the surrounding bodies of water
Check by restaurants
Set up camp where they were seen last and have a cookout; the smell should attract them back to that area

Reuniting with Winry was nothing short of a miracle. Surviving two snowstorms, freezing temperatures, an earthquake, and nearly two weeks alone at just 9 months old, she’s proven to be stronger and smarter than I ever imagined. But I also learned how critical it is to act strategically when a pet goes missing.

This journey taught me the importance of staying calm, collaborating with my community, and seeking expert advice. It also made me realize how easily panic can set in, for both you and your pet, and how crucial it is to be prepared before anything ever happens. From flyers and social media to scent trails and traps, every small effort helped bring Winry home.

What to Do When Your Dog Goes Missing: Lessons From My Two-Week Search for Winry