It's been a bad day.
I woke up around 8 this morning which was fine. I stayed in bed reading for a while, then got up and hung out with Shaun on the couch. I had my tea, we half-ass watched TV, and napped for a bit. We got up around noon to get on with our day and found that Rose, our beige female dog with blue eyes, was not in the fence. Then we discovered the gate open. After looking at our security cameras the last time we know that she was home was at 9:42 this morning and we didn't find out she was missing until a few hours after that.
Cubba has been leaving the fence and we're not shocked that we've had trouble containing him - this isn't the first time. However, he doesn't go far, comes when called, and doesn't seem to make himself a nuisance (I've let everyone nearby that I can get in touch with know to let me know if he's a bother). Since we're not in the city anymore he has acres of land to sniff and while I'm not a fan of him roaming I have accepted that it's not something we can easily fight at the moment without tying him out and we don't want to do that. We are pretty far away from the road and he gets along well from what we've seen with the neighboring dogs. This is ok for him - at least temporarily.
Rose, on the other hand, has never left home before. She's not well-socialized which I take responsibility for. I got her as a puppy at a time that I knew I wouldn't be able to spend much time with her; as terrible as this sounds, she needed a home at the same time I needed a companion for Cubba (because I also wasn't able to spend time with him). I'd tried several times to find him a new home or a rescue commitment before getting him a friend but was unsuccessful; rescues avoid bully-looking breeds and most people won't adopt black animals, (despite the fact that he was trained and frankly, pretty bomb-proof). He's not the worst dog to be "stuck" with, but he's not the star of this story. The point I was trying to make is that Rose was attached to Cubba at the hip. She's been with him since she was 6 weeks old and he's the only dog she's ever known. She wouldn't have willingly separated from him.
I also don't think it would be easy for anyone to have taken her. As I said before we weren't able to spend much time with them during her formative years and she looks to Cubba for everything, including if it's ok to come to us. She is skittish even with us. I can't imagine that she'd let a stranger get their hands on her unless she followed Cubba somewhere and met a stranger he liked. She is unusual-looking with her light coat and blue eyes. She is thin and VERY athletic. I could see someone thinking she was underfed (she wasn't - there is always food for them) or just thinking she was pretty and taking her. Worse case (which I hope did not happen), is that she's younger and dumber than Cub and harassed someone's livestock and paid the ultimate price.
To make this a perfect shitstorm she wasn't wearing identification. We just bought new collars for them (some with reflective streaks for added safety) and new tags with updated address info. The collars are on; the tags should arrive this week. Her old one was chewed off and since she never leaves we didn't bother putting it back on only to have to change it out. So our Rosie Posie is out there somewhere with no one knowing where she belongs. I have failed this dog in every way and I am upset at myself and worried about her.
I have posted her in my group, Happy Tails Lost & Found Pets of Calhoun County. I have sent photos and messages to neighbors. We spent hours walking and driving around looking for her. I'm about to print some flyers for us to put in mailboxes and around the area in the morning. I will find out if there is a shelter in Talladega because I honestly don't know. She has blankets and Cubba outside so if she's near hopefully those smells will attract her. I don't know what else to do. But if you're in the Talladega area and inclined to help, please share the post found at this link: [redacted].
