Locals asked to aid in lost pet rescue

Many have seen the boldly printed signs alerting Gunbarrel/Niwot residents about a lost dog named Cinder. The dog escaped his newly minted owners on the same day he was adopted from Longmont Humane Society on Jan. 16. He was most recently seen just off of Oxford Road near an open field on Feb. 24. He's also been seen near 95th Street and Niwot Road.

At this point, his adopters have moved on from looking for Cinder and one has even left the area. Experienced canine search and rescuer Wess Staats has taken on the challenge of tracking him with the aid of some volunteers. She has particularly asked people who are in rural areas near Oxford road to be alert to sightings.

Staats believes, based on her experience, that Cinder can still be found, and the community can help. She warns that Cinder is skittish and shouldn't be chased.

"Before he was at the Humane Society, he came up from a shelter in Florida. Now he's been living on his own out there. When dogs are in this place of fight or flight, they're basically in survival mode. He just runs, he's very skittish."

With the dog's background she said, "There's a whole protocol for how you approach it. You don't go towards the dog. Don't make eye contact," she said. Staats asked that if anyone sees him, they take a picture if they can and report the sighting to her as soon as possible. They can call her at 720-317-7550 or call Animal Control at 303-441-3626.

Staats got involved when she realized the adopters weren't going to be able to help. "I stepped in with volunteers," she said. "We've been putting up intersection signs. I bought poster boards, laminated them, and bought stakes. Had to buy a brand new printer, and had cameras set up. All of this costs."

She is dedicated and is also considerate and conscientious in the community. She's even going so far as making plans for after the search is completed. "I have an interactive Google Map where I can also map out all of the areas where there were sightings and where we put the flyers out. So we can go and retrieve them after the search. We don't want them here forever."

This isn't Staats' first search for a dog. She was heavily involved with a rescue named Brownie, who was adopted by a person in Lyons. Brownie was hard to catch and was missing for quite some time. That search was ultimately successful.

Staats was also involved in locating dogs in the Marshall Fire Zone.

The search for Cinder has ultimately drawn her closer to founding a formal search and rescue organization so that she can be better prepared to help lost dogs.

Her past rescue efforts have taught her that being a loose dog can be stressful. One dog had been rehomed and quickly left its new home to find its previous owner, who he had bonded with. The dog had been loose on Highway 36, and nearly hit by a car before it ran into the arms of its previous owner, giving what Statts called a "full on body wiggle.'' She said the dog's stress was apparent in the condition of its worn paws.

Although she is passionate and will do whatever she can for the dogs, costs for the search efforts can mount, and she appreciates any help offered. Yellowstone AI donated cameras for the Marshall Fire rescue effort and she's using those for Cinder's search, though ongoing expenses remain. "What ends up being costly is the money for the phone provider's connection for each camera," she said.

Staats just wants people to keep their eye out for the dog and to help spread the word. She also said Cinder could be ranging as far away as Longmont, Erie and even the Brighton area. Information about Cinder has been posted to the Nifty Niwot facebook page, which can be shared through social media channels.

"We're just praying for another sighting right now, so we can take the next step." she said.