Fred and I just got  back from trying to rescue a stray dog. This was a last resort effort since we had exhausted all the possibilities we could think of to get the dog in out of the cold. Let me start at the beginning.  At about 9:30 we had a call from a neighbor who said she had a dog scratching at her door. She said it seemed to be an older Golden Retriever type dog that was gray around its face and wearing a collar. She lives alone and was skeptical of taking in a stray dog, and besides, like us, she had no equipment to care for it even for one night. She had called numerous neighbors, but had no luck finding anyone who knew the dog. We gave her the name and number of the town animal warden, but when she called, there was no answer at the number listed.  We also made numerous calls, and all but one went unanswered. That one was the one that gave us the Animal Control Officer's cell number. It turned out he was out of town and apparently had no backup plan for covering his duties if needed while he was away. However, he promised to post the description of the dog on Front Porch Forum. Hmmm.

Desperate, we suggested to our neighbor that she call 9-1-1. She did, and was referred to the State Police who in turn told her they couldn't help, she should contact the town animal control officer.

I was in my "jammies" intending to enjoy a Hallmark movie before going to bed, but we decided we wouldn't get a good night's sleep knowing the dog was still outside. I got dressed and we went to pick up the dog. A few minutes later when we got there, the dog had disappeared and our neighbor said she was going to bed. We spent the next half hour or so cruising the roads nearby, looking for the animal, but it was nowhere in sight. Finally, we gave up and are now back home, hoping the dog found its way back home.

I feel really bad that so many animals somehow get "lost," especially when it's cold weather. Tonight isn't extremely cold, but if I had a pet, I'd want to be sure it was safely inside. I  also think the Animal Control Officer should make arrangements to have a backup if he isn't going to be available, and put that person's number on his answering machine,  for Pete's sake. How hard can that be.