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I need a little help....My group and I were hiking in Rogers Canyon yesterday and on the drive out we found two dogs wandering along FS172. One is a German Shepard and the other looks like a Terrier mix(White and Brown). They couldn't be more than two years old. They were very dehydrated and hungry. The German Shepard had a tag with a name of Buddy but the other one didn't have a tag. Both dogs had collars so they must belong to someone.

We stopped at every camp looking for their owners but no luck. One of the hikers in our group has a sister in Gold Canyon that we left the dogs with. She can probably keep them for a few days. If anyone knows of someone looking for their dogs or any forums I can post on please let me know.

Try Craig's List Lost and Found, both to post a notice that you found the dogs and to look for the owners, who may have placed a their own "lost dog" notice. I posted last week that I lost my backpack at Barnhardt trail head and although I got no response, sorting through the Lost and Found each day I found that 98% of those posts were for lost or found dogs.

Craig's list is the best place to advertise, since Pets 911 isn't doing it anymore. You might also find out who the nearest Vet offices are in that area and post a bulletin in those offices as well. Also if there are any places to post a bulletin near the major intersections up there, like Queen Valley/Forest Service Road Intersections, places like that. Just be very careful about what you put on the signs. I usually recommend to people that they not put a description at all, just "Found - 2 Dogs".
If someone is missing their two dogs, they will call you, and they should be able to provide an accurate description of the dogs without you "helping". You would not believe the people that are out "looking" for "free" dogs...I'll leave it at that. If the sister simply can't have them anymore, then go ahead and take them to the nearest public shelter. The Owner may be checking in with them as well. If not, and the dogs have a good temperament, they'll be able to adopt them out. Worse case scenario, (which is actually not the worst case scenario), they'll be euthanized. Worst case scenario is that they starved to death out in the desert or became coyote bait....You did them an awesome favor, picking them up, whatever the outcome might be....

Many dogs these days have a micro chip at the back of their neck. Vets have a wand that can look for and read it. The chip maker should have a current name and address for the owner. Good luck...feel good about what you are doing for these dogs in need.

Hope they weren't dumped.

petsmart can read the chip, too

azbackpackr wrote:Hope they weren't dumped.

Yeah, the description in the original post raised my suspicion.

Not dumped. Thank goodness. We were able to track down the owner finally. Apparently he goes out to that area all the time and the dogs "always run off". I don't know why you wouldn't leash them if they typically run off. According to the owner they had only been missing since that morning even though when we came across them they drank about two liters of water each and then wolfed down a whole bunch of food. I'm glad that this ended well but I don't understand how you can go out in the desert and not take care of the animals you take with you.

It just doesn't make sense to me.....

Boscoaz wrote:Not dumped. Thank goodness. We were able to track down the owner finally.

How did you find the Owner? Was he relieved to find them or was it just a "oh well" response....

Boscoaz wrote:I'm glad that this ended well but I don't understand how you can go out in the desert and not take care of the animals you take with you.

It just doesn't make sense to me.....

Try riding with me sometime, you would end up with a cramp in your neck from shaking your head all day. I gave up trying to understand people and how they are with their dogs....

We found him using the tag on the german shepard. The phone # wasn't working but we tracked him using a backwards whitepages number search. Amazingly it worked!!

He was happy to have them back but was surprised we didn't just leave them wandering around the desert (like that thought would have even entered my mind). He was very thankful and said he was getting very worried despite the fact that he wasn't out looking for them. I guess my three dogs are like kids to me. There is no way I could leave mine out wandering lost in the desert. I'm glad that this ended positively!!

Nice Job! That's a great piece of work finding the Owner like that!

Even if the Owner wasn't the brightest, I'm very sure that the dogs were ecstatic to see him. Dogs never judge and almost always forgive and their love is unconditional. Their happiness I'm sure, made it all worthwhile.... You're awesome!!

Nope, that doesn't add up for me. I'm not a much of a dog person, but most dog people I know wouldn't have left the area without finding their dogs or enlisting help of some sort. Did you check with the ranger station? Had they been reported missing to the rangers?

Glad these pups made it home!

big_load wrote:Nope, that doesn't add up for me. I'm not a much of a dog person, but most dog people I know wouldn't have left the area without finding their dogs or enlisting help of some sort. Did you check with the ranger station? Had they been reported missing to the rangers?

I thought the same thing.....I didn't check with the ranger station but I am sure if it went much longer that would have been one of the next steps. We were trying to use the tag on the one dog which ended up working out.

I couldn't see leaving a dog either but then again when we stopped at another camp to ask if they knew of anyone out looking, they said they lost their dog that day as well. Instead of being out looking for their dog they were shooting a semi-auto rifle off into the desert. No wonder their dog ran off!!

Once again.....I just don't get it.

Boscoaz wrote:

big_load wrote:Nope, that doesn't add up for me. I'm not a much of a dog person, but most dog people I know wouldn't have left the area without finding their dogs or enlisting help of some sort. Did you check with the ranger station? Had they been reported missing to the rangers?

I couldn't see leaving a dog either but then again when we stopped at another camp to ask if they knew of anyone out looking, they said they lost their dog that day as well. Instead of being out looking for their dog they were shooting a semi-auto rifle off into the desert.

Welcome to the world of complacent dog ownership. Roughly 90% of the dogs that I return or chase home, the owners are not out looking for them. The #1 excuse? "He always comes back."