Where is Jacob our Bracco ?

3 Years, still tears.....

2012-01-20T13:48:00.000-08:00

On the eve of another catrastoversary (hate the word anniversary, its highly inappropriate to use here) we find ourselves sitting reminiscing about the times we had with Jacob, our very first Bracco Italiano.

Boy we had some good times, and never a cuter puppy was seen than him. He could melt your heart he was totally beautiful both inside and out. A real jack the lad, Daddy's boy, Mummy's boy (depending on best offers!) he was chief fire hogger, and sofa warmer extraordinaire!

We know that now this much time has

passed, chances of us all being reunited, well we're honest enough to realise it's pretty slim, that said, these things do, and have happened, and with that in mind we will never give up hope, not ever.

We talk of you often, wonder if you are still alive, who knows your story, who you are with each and every day, just how your life has panned out.

Most of all, we wonder if you are out there, somewhere, anywhere, but most of all we hope you're safe, and loved. It really is all we can wish for and we wish for that every day for you Jakey, stay safe. We're here whenever it's time to come home again.

*******************************************************************************

Thought's of course go out to dear Ffion and Tim, 3 years already reached for Sky.
Our thoughts are with you both, and we still hope Jacob and Sky are still out partying, not quite ready for domesticity quite yet, playing away, somewhere midway distance between us, boys on tour. Just when will they hang up their party paws eh !?
Xx

2011-01-22T02:19:00.000-08:00

I love this photo, I know it's not a photographic masterpiece, but the joy in Jacob's eyes says everything -
He was loving being with us in the studio, he was there for a shoot for Johnson & Johnson, it was for the packaging for a new pet drug for arthritic animals.

We had a wonderful time just throwing a dummy about the green paper much to Jacob's excitement !

On this his 2 year anniversary, we sit and think about how we miss him, every single day.

Yesterday was a hard day - you kind of torment yourselves with what if's and why's, knowing full well that it will remedy absolutely nothing.

There's just that one word left in Jacob's name now - HOPE, hope that one day, no matter how long into the future (but please make it soon) we'll be reunited with him.

We keep that thought in our mind, how can you not.

Keep safe everyone.

New Year - New Hope ?

2011-01-06T02:42:00.000-08:00

Well the time of year for Christmas and New Year has been and gone, and we see ourselves into yet another year.
The whole Jacob being missing has shown us just how time can fly by and seasons come and go without hardly a breath being taken.

We have had a number of sightings later into the winter months, Bracco being walked in the Surrey area, of which turned out to be dogs that are known to respected Bracco Breeders we know of, and another 'Bracco' looking dog that was seen roaming in the depths of all the bad snow and rain, that turned out to be a Pointer who is known local to that area for being a wanderer, and had on occasion been chauffeured home by locals to where it begins it's plans of the next great escape ! - sadly for us, it meant that those heart jiggers, the hope was gone and accounted for, but it also meant that a dog we initially thought was out surviving the snow and cold was actually accounted for and safe.

It was at the time of the dogs being reported to us a possible 'Jacob's' that we sat and discussed how to go forward, and what else we could physically do to lift the search and re-ignite it, but it was upon this discussion that Jon and I sat and queried the whole media hype that we and friends built back in 2009.

Was that hype and press coverage the downfall for Jacob ?

Did the overload of him being exposed as being missing mean that anyone who had him, would have a lot of questions to be answered and explaining to do no matter what the circumstances arising out of them finding or knowing about him were ?

It's reasonable to say that a lot of folks would not want that intrusion for just finding a missing dog. We after all live in a society now that means many would much rather walk past scenario's where they could get involved, but they don't for fear of what that 'involvement' could perhaps cost.

I wonder actually if we had just gone through the motions of alerting people 'quietly', and through the normal channels about him being missing, it might have ended differently.

Maybe if someone did find him, it would have been much easier for him to be given back without question ? Many disagree that the hype did wonders of getting his profile out there and therefore if anyone did have him, it would mean he couldn't be kept without questions and I agree I guess, but I am not sure about that we would go that route now. Purely because I still meet people with dogs of their own, who read papers and own computers who have never heard of Jacob's plight. In my eyes that just goes to show that no matter how hard you try, all that hype, well it doesn't necessarily reach everyone. Proof in that being my neighbour in a barn a stones throw from us, hadn't known about Jacob, even though there were posters everywhere here. She was shocked a few months ago to hear of his story.

Most of all moving into the new year, there certainly are lessons we can look back on and learn from. Milo the 6 month old Italian Spinone puppy was thankfully found safely after almost a week of being lost in the woods in Nottinghamshire. The way that we all rallied immediately hearing his news has shown that the people who have been through this can and do react at a moments notice, and action plans put into place. That's comforting for us in case (we hope) it happens for us in a big way with Jacob.

Thankfully little Milo was found safe and well, and notoriously very casually hopped into the owners car when the boot was opened one morning as she sat putting her boots on in the car park - we laugh about it now, but the pain for the owners of him being lost through those long days and nights was unbearable to see. It's true to say that you can only know that feeling of dread and worry having actually lived it yourselves.

The very same week Milo was lost another Spinone Oscar was also lost in a park in the heart of Cambridge city. We spent countless hours walking and postering for his return, only for him to be returned by a call from gypsies a week later, them having said they 'bought' him from a bloke in a pub. It amazed me how quickly dogs can change hands and how they can become a target of a total money making exercise. Shocking, but true. How gypsies were in the right place at the right time again amazes me.

Makes it very conceivable that Jacob perhaps found his way into their hands, and who knows what and where he ended up from there. If Oscar could change into their hands in a day, where does that leave Jacob in years ?

Hopefully he will, if alive, soon become past his sell by date if used for breeding, and having served his purpose we might well get a call saying he's been found. It's a long shot by any means, but we have to keep that hope burning, we've read the stories of people being reunited under all sorts of circumstances, some a good many years later, so there's always hope........ they'll always be hope.

Always Wondering

2010-05-31T02:20:00.000-07:00

Another month goes by since the last blog, where does all the time go to?
Before long i'll be pulling out the Christmas tree from it's dusty box, the fire will be alight day and night, and it'll be dark at 4pm every day (groan!)

I thought I would just add some words of Thanks to many of you who regularly drop by and say "Hi" and that you are thinking of us, and still keeping vigilant about Jacob.
To hear he is still set in people's minds and that there is a definite vigilance out there really means a lot.
As much as we would love to have time to scour the globe for Jacob - well truth is we can;t, which is why we always rely upon our friends near and far to be our eyes.

There have been a few stories about dogs who have been missing for a few years and that they have been reunited with their owners.
Seeing those stories and the fact that sometimes there is a happy ending makes us hanker after that for our own piece of good luck, but maybe just have to be patient......
VERY patient.

I guess we'll wait out as long as it takes. We wonder every day what and if, but have to be happy knowing hopefully somewhere maybe (MAYBE) he is happy and well fed.
He probably doesn't remember us now, which in itself is sad, but hey, one day that may just change.
We just need to remain positive, always positive.
We can do no more than we already have, even if it feels like it, what more can we possibly do.

I always wonder too about these dogs that go missing, and are never seen or spotted again, just where are they ? Spare a thought for them, the Jacob's and the Sky's of the missing dog world, the absolute wonder at what and if, and WHY is excruciatingly painful, the not knowing being the worse evil of them all. It's painful to wonder.

THANK YOU to everyone, for your support, care and concern, but most of all for sharing and making everyone around you aware of Jacob (and Sky) still being missing.
We can't THANK YOU enough

Happy summer to you all, keep your dogs safe at all times

Waiting....just waiting.....

2010-04-14T11:00:00.000-07:00

Sometimes it seems life is just bloody unfair.

In this past month, we have seen 3 Bracco go missing, and 3 Bracco returned safely to their owners.
To say I am utterly jealous of that would be an understatement.

The first Bracco to go off was probably stolen to order, and was found strangely nearby across the county it lived in a week or so later. Thankfully she was none the worse for her ordeal, and her owner happy to have her home safely.

The second 2 Bracchi were lost by the person who was supposedly dog sitting them whilst their owners were away. Thankfully they were both found and reunited, again safe and fine from their ordeal.
All good, but it just makes me want to be the 3rd in line for that reunion.

Jon and I were drivng around at weekend and were thinking about Jacob and the whole situation he's left us in.
We just don't know where he is, if he's alive or if someone has him, loves him, and he's safe.
I just wish we knew.

Hard as it is, we do have to get on with life, and look back on the time we all shared, and think we were lucky to have him for those 3 years. Positive thinking that he is alive and well, enjoying life, but not enjoying it with his family. I can live with that. I just want to know he is okay, or not okay. either one of those choices I can deal with.

I guess those of you reading that might figure it to be a bit harsh us moving on, bit I cannot honestly say that we can't shed any more tears, because we do, and often Jacob will come into the conversation for a reason, and a lump will form in our throats at the mere mention of his name.
Sigh.....

That said, we now are enjoying our 3 Spinoni, and of course the hilarious antics that only a Bracco like Pascha can provide !

Pascha is lots of fun, goofy, a major clown, uber intelligent, and does go a really long way to filling the huge paw prints left behind by our boy. His bounding energy is so catching and no matter how fed up you might be, a swift right hook from a Bracco paw soon sorts you out !

We still get lots of lovely emails, just saying that people are out there looking still, thinking of us, and hoping, just hoping that one day our hard work will pay off and we'll be re-united with Jacob. To read them is so uplifting, people taking time out of their busy lives to check in our blog, just to see if the news has changed, have we got lucky.....

I do imagine that day, a day where we get that call....and also on the flip side of that joy there is a nagging ache of worry as to what dog we could be getting back. Would he still be 'our' Jacob ?
No matter, he would always (and will always) remain to be our boy, regardless of his name, or new address, he belongs to us.

Hmmmm....I was hoping as I wrote this new post that it would be uplifiting !
Sorry about that, sometimes the moment passes and you just feel cheated.

I know as you sit at your pc and have your dogs safely near to you, you will know how hard it would be if one of them were taken away from you without word nor warning.
No chance to say goodbye or the direct ability to change the circumstances.
I am sure you will agree that it would be very difficult for you to comprehend them being gone, so I hope with that thought in your mind you'll forgive me for the perhaps sombre mood swings on this blog. Sometimes you just want things to be right, and it is out of your control to do so.
Oh hell that is annoying !

Most of all I hope that all of your dogs remain safe, there are some very nasty, and truly calculating people out there only happy to relieve you of your lovely fur bundles, so please take care, ensure they are within your sight at all times, but most of all enjoy them, really enjoy them.
These dogs, well, they love us all unconditionally, give us such joy at owning them (mostly !!!) and as such we should always be able to give the same back.
We are their lives and what makes their lives special, we have their whole destiny in our hands, the ability to give them a happy contented life....we should always, always remember that.

One year on....

2010-01-20T03:54:00.001-08:00

I love the above photo of Jacob.

It's very special.

Not in a photographically perfect way you understand, it's far from 'pin sharp' or clear, but it's perfect because it's the very last photo I ever took of him.

It captures everything about him in one single shot. Friendly, happy, ever the accomplished hunter, constantly always looking to please.

That was Jacob. This photo is him.

A year has passed, and we have arrived to his one year missing anniversary.

I hate that word, an anniversary makes one think of a joyous occasion, a day of marked celebratory cheer, so can someone please tell me, how can a language so brilliantly complex as the the English language not have another word to mark the date of something that isn't necessarily a day of celebration I will never know.

All said and done, we are finding it harder to actually believe that we haven't seen our boy for that length of time.

I don't wish the months that we've just endured back don;t get me wrong, not ever will I wish for that, but I do wish I could rewind time enough to the 21st Jan 09 and allow us to make the things that happened that fateful day disappear in a puff of smoke.

(If that is the case, then I would also like to take a look at what did occur to him after he went off that fateful day..... but just so long as we can still rewind you understand)

I wish too that I knew he was safe, that he didn't perish to death or die at the hands of a reckless sharp shooter out on a days hunting thinking he was a deer.

I just wish I knew his fete, whatever it was or is.

Sadly there is no way of knowing, and no matter how much it torments us (and believe me it does) we still to this day will not let it rest, and still continue to alert people to him being missing .

I guess actually we always will live out some hope of us being reunited. It can and does happen to some fortunate souls.

As for marking the occasion, what can we do other than light the day with hope.

There's no box of ashes, no little marble stone to say 'he is here'.

Sometimes we feel that would be easier, but then we think that by putting him a wooden box (so to speak) we thoroughly extinguish the hopes of a phone call saying he has been found one day.

These renowned 'rose tinted glasses' that I wear sometimes give rise to thoughts (and hopes) that someone, somewhere finally has a conscious, finds his home address, and sits him on the doorstep overnight saying they have had him for a year, "Thank You very much, but here he is back, we're done".

That would be the best way to mark a year long "anniversary" and then at least we could happily use the word as it surely should have been intended for....for a celebration of life.

Wherever you are Jacob, stay safe, behave yourself, and know we think of you each and every day without fail.

We miss you more than you'll ever know.

Brotherly love

2009-12-08T01:59:00.000-08:00

Jacob

Gerrard

The last few months have reared some strange happenings.

Not necessarily Jacob orientated sadly, but related to him in other ways, quite literally.

We were advised about a Bracco needing rescue through a posting on a rescue co-ordinaters forum, someone asking for help in how to rehome a dog, and through a few weeks of contacting necessary parties we found ourselves collecting Gerrard another Bracco from a park in Croydon.

The first week of correspondance, we found ourselves wondering if this dog could actually be Jacob, our excitement was heightened, so you can only imagine the intensity of feelings....

but no, this was not him, but as fete has a hand in making things emotionally driven, it was found that the Bracco in question was actually Jacob's litter Brother, who we knew as Dennis back 4 years earlier. How coincidental, it was like he was sent to us, for help and for love, of which he was offered both with open arms.

A wonderful boy whose presence was charming and for what he had been through, he was as solid as a rock, with a heart that just wanted to give and receive loving.

A testament to his breed (and breeding) he is a lovely boy, and definitely has the 'woof factor' in bucket loads.

Sadly as hard as we tried, a testosterone fueled house of 4 entire males was not to work, and we had to resign ourselves that Gerrard was not to stay with us here in Essex.

As broken hearted as we were to have to let him go on to pastures new, we knew were relieved to know he has gone to a wonderful loving and caring home with friends of ours who already have a Bracco girl. Already we know he is settled and is absolutely loved to pieces.

He has well and truly landed on his feet and found his forever home.

A happy ending for Gerrard, yes, a sad for one for us, but we revel happy knowing he is safe and warm, and much doted on. He will truly flourish now.

As for us, we are finding the winter months a hefty reminder of the past year, back in January when Jacob went missing.

I don't know why, but the spring and summer months meant that you were thinking in a different environment, maybe it's one that you feel a dog out there alone could survive in, whereas harsh winter evenings, and frost, and rain means a whole different ending altogether.

I still won't believe he could be roaming the woods and fields, that wouldn't be happening now and probably didn't occur a year ago almost, but your mind does know how to play tricks, and thought processes are mixed on what you actually believe happened.

I have a different view every day.

We have had some wonderful coverage in the Telegraph, along with the great work that Doglost have done and still do on behalf of us owners with dogs that are missing.

We had a photo of Jacob and some of his plight mentioned by their reporter.

A great accomplishment, and we are ever Thankful to Chris, but this article is one which sadly has not bared any fruit as far as phone calls are concerned.

Kind of leaves the avenues to explore a little thinner, what we can do now I really don't know.

We of course never stop wondering where our boy can be, but I guess that will always, always haunt us.

We feel for Ffion and Tim, they have come back from a wonderful trip to South Africa, only to stumble upon Skys missing anniversary a day or two later. I am so sad for them, I wish (WISH) I could right this wrong for us both, but I don't know how or what else I can do. I can only always be there for them as they have for us, and offer Ffion a comfy couch for her (our) 'therapy'.

Ffion is right in saying that there are do-gooders who 'rescue' missing dogs, and feel they have done a wonderful thing taking them into their homes, and not reporting the fact.

I'm torn as to how I feel about the part they play in this situation, as much as i'm happy that they feel they can offer some warmth, food and a cuddle, i'm upset that we as their owners suffer as a result of their kidnap, albeit they are hopefully not coming to any harm.

We are the ones coming to harm by mentally suffering the anguish and the worry.

When I look at Pascha our Bracco puppy, see him playing with his toys and being, well puppyish, devilish, cute beyond words, it's a gentle reminder of what is lost and what was had in Jacob.

Once he was here and just the same as Pascha, growing up loved and cherished, enjoying being part of our lives. Then wham, he is gone.

People have told us to let go of him now, set him free, and I guess this far on you have to quietly move on and have him on your mind but not at the forefront, it's true it's essential to somewhat move on, otherwise you would suffer.

But there is that little fire burning still, a flame that flickers that is there in hope that one day we can be reunited, there will be a phone call, or a knock at the door, someone knowing what has happened, or better still our boy, on the end of a lead with a waggy tail and shoulder hug ready to give.

I know what I will be wishing for......

Happy Christmas to everyone who has followed Jacob's blog, and a huge Thank You also to everyone who has offered help, both physically and mentally. You know who you all are.

Without you we wouldn't have had half the media coverage, support and searches.

To everyone who called us in hope they had seen Jacob, Thank You also.

To the person who knows something or has Jacob, but is holding back, well, if only you know the hurt and the pain you have caused, HOWEVER, for the chance of being reunited, we would forgive anything, not a question asked .... it's never to late to right a wrong.

Where sleeping dogs lie.....

2009-10-22T07:53:00.001-07:00

It's been a terribly quiet month, well apart from a lead about a dog that was supposedly a Bracco on a narrowboat called Max, that sadly transpired after 2 weeks of heart in mouth anticipation to be a Rough Coated Lurcher called Max.
I can't tell you, if you haven't been in these rather hard and uncomfortable "lost dog" shoes we are unfortunate enough to be wearing, you just wouldn't begin to believe what this leap of hope can do to you.
You lay awake at night and turn the events of a sighting or information over and over in your head, dissecting it piece by pieces for clues or what ifs.
The whole narrowboat Bracco of course had us thinking it was definitely going to be him as of course he had (in our minds) travelled up to Cambridge, along the canal to Ely, and further onwards having a great adventure until he was moored for the winter in Leeds.
Of course, none of that is even vaguely true, but in the dead of the night, things go through your head and you do believe it could, just could be true.

I don't get how this dog could possibly be seen or named as a Bracco though and as such I still worry about it. But a kind Spinone friend checked this out for us, and I know he can be trusted 100% and was even 'Sherlock' enough to show pics of the dog. Definitely a Rough Coated Lurcher. Damn it :-((

I was saying to Jon yesterday how I'm finding walking the dogs hard this time of year, especially now the weather is going back full circle to the winter months, the same cold, damp weather when Jacob went off.
The spring and the summer have gone, and now before we know it we are heading for Christmas and then onwards will come the dreaded anniversary 21st Jan 2010
I know it will come soon, and it's going to be hard to have that day come round once again.

I wish more than anything that someone will put Jacob on our doorstep on Christmas Eve with a big red bow round his head, saying they couldn't deprive him our love any more, and here he is, Merry Christmas.
Wouldn't that just be fantastic.

I know too that Ffion and Tim will be approaching their boy Sky's anniversary sooner than us.
I feel for them as I know just how hard this will be for them and the absolute efforts they have put in like us to find their boy.
I say it all the time, but these boys of our, how the hell can they just disappear off the planet I will never, EVER know.

Ffion and I do joke that they have met up around Huntingdon, and are now enjoying some party lifestyle with a couple of lost bitches somewhere.
Silly how you try to make the most out of a bad, bad situation when forced to.
I'm glad I met Ffion and Tim, out of this nightmare they are a good thing to have happened and we gratefully share the psychiatrists couch between us when needed.
There's something soothing about someone else being able to really know what your emotions are feeling, and how your heart breaks at every single sighting.

Will we both or either of us ever see our boys again ?
I wish I could say yes, I desperately want to believe they are out there, somewhere, but I just don't know any more, my heart says believe, my head says bury the worry, bury the angst, bury the desperation and hurt once and for all.....
But I can't, I just want to forever believe that maybe one day, just maybe, a call will come and we will be reunited.
I play that vision over in my head in the dead of the night, when I can't sleep for worrying or wondering. I even have 'written' the blog entry to you all here, telling you how overjoyed we are, and how mad we are for not believing he could make it home.
Hmmm..... I'll leave that cyber blog in my head, leave it on a back burner, somewhere safe, in case I might need it one day.

Most of all right now, as the months roll on, and winter sets us all by the computers a little more especially as the darker nights draw in, I would like to say Thank You to everyone here for their support, their kindness, their little comments and encouragement that really do help us get through each day.
It goes without saying that strength can come in many shapes and forms, and virtual strength for us has been overwhelming. For that I have to Thank You from the bottom of my heart.

Keep believing......
...and we'll continue to do the very same.

Acceptance ??

2009-09-12T02:14:00.000-07:00

We've gotten to the stage lately where we just don't know what to do to bring Jacob home.

We seem to have not left any stones unturned ??

We've tried tv, radio, newspapers, emailing, postering half of the Essex/Cambridgeshire countryside, but noone, NOONE seems to have seen Jacob. I dispair.

What does this mean -? I dare not to think about it.

Does someone know more than they are telling - ?

Is there something someone locally hasn't had the courage to tell us ?

As time moves forward, and we head near to the 9 month mark, it seems like we have to accept somewhere in our our hearts that our boy might not emerge from the mist, and make it back to his sofa and blanket.

This hurts....just how can this be, where do you draw the line of accepting this, or dismissing it in order to carry on.

That's the question.....acceptance of the situation.

Trouble is, the whole situation with Jacob is not of the norm is it ?

Rare breed, highly distinguishable dog goes off in a familair territory to him, on a bright crisp morning, then dissappears into thin air, never to be seen again.

Think about it, how can that be ? What's the chances ?

Farmers, farm workers, gamekeepers assure us there is no evidence of death about, and that they would probably have seen it on their travels on foot and in vehicles if he was trapped somewhere or lying dead.

So on that day, that fated day, where did he go, and why, WHY did he not make it home like the one other time he got lost.

That time he was 5 miles from home, in non familiar surroundings, and yet, having ran off after pheasants at midday, he was scraping the door at 3am for his bed.

I don't understand the logic of a dog finding his way home miles from his home, and yet not being able to find his way home on his doorstep.

What occurred out there that day haunts me, will always haunt me.

I want answers, closure of sorts. I don't mind the pain of the truth, the heartache it would bring on us, hell we've been there and done that a hundred times over.

It's some form of closure -

.....to be able to say goodbye knowing the truth.

I wish we knew. This wound desperately needs to heal.

I wish we knew if he was living with someone else, was happy, content with his new life if he is alive.

Could he be alive ?

Why would he not have been returned to us if he was found locally.

Did someone pick him up and he is living locally ? Is he miles away ?

I can't see it, he would have been seen by now, noone can keep a dog quietly unseen for almost 9 months can they -

.....but then.....

Maybe he was picked up, and the microchip is defunct?

Maybe even he was found on the road, and again the chip wasn't scanning ?

Surely any vet would Google the breed and contact the breed society repsonsible for the dog ?

I would be certain they would do, knowing a distressed owner out there would be charging around in order to find their dog.

There are just so many uncertainities, conspiracy theories, and yes, they still play out over and over in my mind if I let them. I try hard not to - but they are there - lurking in the background, waiting to pounce given half the chance.

I just wish we knew what happened. But sadly as more time seperates us, we realise, or is that try to accept, that perhaps this scenario won't have a happy ending after all.

You lose the will to look on the bright side as time fades, as in your minds eye there is no bright side.

We couldn't have done more to find our boy, we rest assured of that, but on the flip side, we can't let it beat us, this whole situation taught us that perserverance is our biggest strength, and with that we carry on, we email, we tell people, we still pass on posters and flyers to everyone we can do, just to reach out to another few people is perhaps another 20 or more who know to look out for him.

Wherever you are Jacob, be that looking down on us, or snoozing on a sofa somewhere, be happy, be loved, you deserve that..... I hope you think of us sometime.

Because we think of you always.

Into the limelight

2009-08-19T13:30:00.000-07:00

After a relaxing holiday, where too much time means too much thinking, today we made it home to some fantastic news about Doglost and their publicity encompassing Jacob (and all the other lost dogs out there)
We and our friends, as many of you already know, hold a fundraising party in the Essex countryside, to raise much needed funding for the geneticists at the AHT Newmarket to research canine epilepsy.
It started off small, just a group of friends meeting (as we are located far and wide) and now in it's 2nd summer, the party guests have quadrupled and the breeds attending are many.
Word has spread, and through our involvement and support from Doglost, we decided that due to the fabulous work they do, we would fund raise for them as well as Ollie's Fund this year equally.
Today, the owner of Doglost called to say that she had managed to get some publicity for Doglost, and that the Daily Telegraph newspaper would like to interview her at our fundraising party venue in Saffron Walden, Essex on the 29th August, and come along and see how the dog loving public rally and offer support for their canine counterparts. FANTASTIC !
Doglost hope to be able to achieve a 2 page spread in the 'review' section of the Telegraph, coupled with photographs (and hopefully) using Jacob as their example of a dog still lost, and how we, Joe Public won't let him dissappear without a massive campaign and fight.

I admire so much all that the lengths that the founder of Doglost has gone to to to ensure that 86% of our missing dogs get reunited. I refuse to let others become complacent in thinking it'll never be their nightmare, as quite clearly, looking at the pages of dogs every day on their website, it could be anyone's dog being listed as 'lost'. We have to offer support, it is most definitely the right thing to do to give back a little of what I can only say has been a huge support from all the Doglost volunteers. To see Jacob's profile raised alongside valuable monies being raised, would a great day.

We so want Jacob to become another happy ending, and so by fundraising to keep Doglost alive we can only hope our dream can be realised.

Looking forward to seeing lots of you on Saturday 29th, be good to put some faces to names and to see your lovely dogs having a great time too :-)))

These 4 walls.....

2009-08-03T02:32:00.000-07:00

It's been a strange month, trying to get our heads around the whole Jacob things hasn't been easy as you know, but sometimes you feel that you just have to pull yourself together and try as best you can to move in a positive direction, looking forward, not back.
We tried to do this, we went on a fabulous holiday to Cornwall with our 3 Spinoni and our friends and their 3 Spinoni too, it was a great time to get away, and came at a much needed time to escape these four walls, especially at a time where they felt like they were slowly closing in on us.

We came back refreshed, and knowing we just had to get on and deal with the fact that Jacob may well be never seen by us ever again.
Harsh, but true. We have to think in real terms now no matter how draining that is.
Deep down we have this hankering thought that one day, maybe in a year, maybe 3 even, that phone call will come out of the blue, as life has moved on, and this whole scenario is a little more distant, maybe only then will the powers that be allow us to be rewarded for our efforts.
Who knows ?

We've had a few different calls with regards to sightings, all of which has sent our hearts racing like mad, only to be pretty quickly hope dashed.
2 EasyJet security staff spotted a Bracco the same as Jacob, and even went to say hello....they soon got wind of a Bracco being missing through a dog forum, and got in touch. For 2 days we made enquiries through the airport and security as well as our own police, only to finally be told it was a well known Bracco owner there meeting her parents from a flight.
Damn it !

Another call telling us of him possibly being on a campsite in Dorset also came to nothing despite our frantic enquiries.
Yet another call only came in at the weekend, and was via a lady that thought she saw Jacob (and this dog she had heard being called Jacob) at a country show.
Again more enquiries threw up nothing.

As much as we try to move on, little snippets keep Jacob firmly in our thoughts - all good in our eyes, we love nothing more than to know that he is still other peoples minds too., and that they are being vigilant......gives us hope if nothing else that if he is out there, someone will slip up one day.

We had a great time last weekend, seeing friends and their dogs for our 1st Spinoni Swim day, and finally met up with Ffion and Tim who have suffered the same in loss with their missing black Labrador Sky (http://skyisstillmissing.blogspot.com/) both of whom delved in at the deep end (though thankfully not literally!) to help out, Tim assuming chief bbq supervisor (well done Tim :-)) and Ffion on bread roll duty !
It was so good for us to meet up, we've all been there for each other for so long it was as if we've known each other all of our adult lives, and I just know we'll stay friends now.
One good thing to come of our lost dogs I guess is that we got to meet.

I will of course keep this blog updated as and when I have some news, or will just drop in for a quick chat, or to offload thoughts with you all. Please continue as best you can to tell people about our boy being missing, it's word of mouth that really does help.

If anyone has any other ideas we haven't addressed as far as advertising or notifying people about Jacob (and Sky) please do get in touch anytime haggerwoods@aol.com

We always are happy to hear new ideas, anything you feel is valid, please do get in touch.

Meanwhile we will work silently in the background keeping our boys profile high, and continue to campaign for his return to his rightful owners..... US.

P.S Please don't forget our fundraising party on 29th August 2009, whereby we will be raising funds for both Doglost and the Animal Health Trust, Newmarket charity we have in our (sadly now gone) epileptic Spinoni's name. Ollie's Fund for Canine Epilepsy Research raises much needed funds for the sole research into canine epilepsy.
We desperately need to raise funding to help the geneticists continue their work into this rapidly increasing and truly horrific canine disease.
A disease which is savagely taking far too many dogs lives before they even have a chance to begin.

Details of both our charity and the party can be found here
http://www.adoredpaws.com/page24.htm

http://www.aht.org.uk/supporting_appeals.html#ollie

Treading Water

2009-07-05T02:33:00.000-07:00

Another few weeks have passed us by, just where does the time go ?

For some reason these days I dread having to update this blog, not in the way of dreading to do the actual task of writing it, but just because there isn't anything new to report, and I just feel sometimes it's all such a let down as I would love nothing more than to write here telling of the joys of reclaiming the love of our lovely boy, him being safely tucked up under his favourite duvet, safe, that's the thing, him being safe.

We don't know if he's safe or not right now, and yesterday we were walking round a local market in the sunshine only to see a huge drove of (what I can only call) unsavouries, causing hassle to a stall holder, him no doubt feeling very much outnumbered by this extended family who were causing trouble.

I looked at these people and thought to myself oh I hope that Jakey doesn't have these kind of people in his life. For one he would be terrified, secondly it would break him as Jacob just didn't do worry very well, and certainly hated being in the bad books of anyone (of which was almost never).

When I think of him being alive, I envisage him cuddled up with a families kids, being walked through a meadow or lovely field, good food in his bowl (any food in his bowl would be good). You just try not to stop and dwell on the flipside of that harmonious vision, the twee all is rosy thoughts do sometimes get positively overpowered by the darker side to this whole scenario. I hate it when I get thinking too much, what's that saying 'curiosity killed the cat'.

We're trying to stay positive, just generally, about the fact that in fact he could be out there somewhere, just sometimes thoughts can pull you in the opposite direction and you have this sudden urge to be over realistic, be too damn thoughtful of the other things that could have happened.

That said I have weighed things up, and actually having gone through the whole motions and the weather, and the fact that Jacob is a 'Jacob' (if you know Bracco you will understand this comment!) - and I think that perhaps yes maybe, he has been picked up by someone early on. The snow and bad weather didn't get to us for some 10 days after he was missing, so although the weather was poor, and very cold prior, it wasn't exactly life threatening (only maybe to a 'Jacob' perhaps). I find it hard to imagine him not going to someone and saying hey, i'm lost, help ! But if someone has him, they are doing a sterling job of his containment, and that in itself is the deciding factor of whether we actually can beleive he is being kept unknowingly.

We can send a thousand emails, poster hundreds of roads, but it doesn't mean every person necessary is reached. That's the worry and why blogs like this and email rallies are essentially the way forward, they each can widen the spread of his being missing that little bit further.

Right now it's all we have, so we are ever thankful to each and every person who offers us help, without you all we'd be more despairing than we already are.

We have to just keep treading this water in the hope that we don't eventually sink.

We try every day to remain positive about the situation, we really do, but deep down inside, it hurts like a gaping wound, it heals slowly, and then opens up and bleeds all over again.

I just hope that wherever Jakey is, he is happy, being treated as he should, and is healthy and safe. Most of all I hope he is as much loved as he should be, he deserves nothing less than that for what he's endured.

Fraudsters and Jealousy

2009-06-17T08:54:00.000-07:00

Another weeks races by, another week of silence.

Just where is our dog, it's not a hard question is it.

How is that other dogs go missing and you see them desperately being added to Doglost, and then hours or a day later there they are on the reunited page of the same website.

I had this same scenario only today. Yesterday a dog, an Airedale was lost in Saffron Walden, it was added to http://www.doglost.co.uk/ and we added posts offering our help if needed, being the veteran dog searchers that we are. (What a claim to fame that is)

Only today when I checked on this dog did I panic not having seen it listed in the lost section, fears growing I searched through the reunited to be met happily with a post that the Saffron Walden dog was back home where she belonged. Phew !

Now that, a happy ending I know you will agree is fantastic news, but deep down through my happiness I felt utter pangs of sheer jealousy that that was not what happened with us. Why did our dog go missing and since that day never been spotted. Beggars belief really that in this somewhat small rural community a dog as blatantly obvious as Jacob can disappear.

To where though ? where did he go ? what happened to him, who had him, did someone knock him over and sling him into a ditch ? There are some that would do that if they could get away with it. Not everyone wants to confront owners with their dead dog do they ?

Could he have been hassling farmers game, even seen harassing those deer he was on the tail of ? I just don't know if he got shot for doing just that, that we would ever get to know, and this whole nightmare of not knowing will surround us forever, always making us jump when the phone rings showing a number we don't know or recognise.

We are at that stage where we want to know, and if someone did know something, then I just wish they would put us out of our misery, as misery is just what it is.

As you sit reading this safe in the knowledge that your furkids are with you, I am utterly jealous of that fact. I don't mind admitting it - it's not fair !

The whole "Welwyn-Kath" scenario is coming to a head finally.

Having liaised with Hatfield Police, who are keen for us to divulge anything we can remember or offer in way of texts/messages etc, this woman, actually named Joann Wood, amongst other aliases, is being sentenced soon on the 6 counts of fraud as well as 2 other cases of possession of type A drugs. She is nothing short of an evil-minded woman out to target those terminally ill, or the elderly who are befriended in the hope that they can be sentimental enough to buy her own story that she is dying of bowel cancer.

How anyone can lie about having cancer is beyond me. A disease that everyone has been touched by, be that having seen someone they love die or battle the disease it's shocking someone like her can betray these vulnerable people. I hope that she will be sentenced to a long stretch taking into account her prey.

You can read all about here http://www.stalbansreview.co.uk/news/4433778.Woman_conned_cancer_victims_for_cash/

All very upsetting to be honest. Although we never trusted this lady, her intentions with regard to Jacob seemed genuine. Jon having directly asked her if she was making all the contact with the so called men at the lakes "Phil" and "Alan" up were met with "absolutely not, I would never do that to you" in reply.

Just goes to show, who do you trust, looks can be very deceiving.

One thing I will say though, is that first night when she called, something, call it intuition told me something was not right, but over time, in the hope of being reunited with Jacob that doubt, although still beckoning me to listen, was still there, hence we saved all voice messages and texts from her.

We are never going to be certain if she had her hands on Jacob at any time, after all she was motivated by one thing, and one thing alone, money. That would insinuate that the £1000 reward may have been the lure for her. She could have had him, knew of him, and hid him for the reward money, accomplices to do the hiding wouldn't be far from her mobile phone contacts of that i'm sure.

I guess now we will never know what the truth was. I'm assured by those in the know that little truth comes from her lips, so we have to reason what has become apparent is that she knows very little difference between reality and fiction. She evidently managed to forget her 'own self' sometimes as she decided to be a vet, policewoman and was also in the armed forces and a nurse amongst other well thought of professions. I think she truly lost the difference between who she really was each day she woke up.

I'm sorry for those elderly and ill victims of hers, for them the loss is great and is materialistic in that they lost pounds and pence, whereas our loss is purely just hope, even though it feels much greater than that.

Right now the plan is to ride on the back of the polices press releases, and hope that the nationals as well as local papers will pick up on our link to her story.

Will keep you posted of course of any developments.

Please keep spreading the word for our boy wherever you feel you can.

It's you guys that may just stumble across someone who knows something.

Back to basics

2009-06-06T07:19:00.001-07:00

After a strange week of highs and then lows we've made the decision that we need to start our postering campaign right from the very beginning.
That is, start postering the local areas again, and then work out to the other bigger town in our main circumference.

Sometimes I feel we can do no more than we are already doing, but there's always something that we can do, and it feels really good to be pro active in the search.

We've heard some wonderful stories of dogs like Jacob literally disappearing off the face of the planet, and then suddenly appearing though misleading microchips or similar situations.

I know i've said about it previously in my posts, but the whole microchip situation worries me greatly, so so many people have come froward and told of their dogs going on to rehomes and being missing for years having being lost, only to be rehomed by some rescues, the original chip still in place.

It's shocking really, but if every vet and rescue thoroughly checked each and every dog properly this surely wouldn't be happening. I know it's difficult and the rescues time is hard to come by, and yes before anyone yells at me (!) I know they do a wonderful job. I just worry Jacob could be somewhere unknowingly sitting on someones sofa, happy in his new home, thinking his proper family have abandoned him for good. I can't tell you the feelings that raises in me, sort of a vicious twist of raging jealousy alongside anger and frustration.

Other theories brought to the forefront are that of him being shot by farmers for pestering their deer or their game. It has, and obviously can/could have happened. I just wish to god someone if they knew something would come forward, albeit they could do it anonymously, at least we could move forward and have that closure. This is nothing short of an open wound that won't heal. An itch you can't scratch.

Hmmmm......I just wish we knew where or what had happened to our boy.

Thankfully there are some brighter things on the horizon for us hopefully, and the summer months ahead always make you smile don't they, a little bit of sunshine, well it just makes everything seem that little bit better no matter how crappy things are.

We did have a high at the beginning of the week. A call came through from a lady known to friends of ours who own Bracco in the north, this ladies neighbour had recently rehomed a dog from a rescue there.

The long and short of that was that having spent time at the shelter viewing their dogs for rehoming she noticed what she believed to be a Bracco.

This call unfortunately came in late at night, so we had a restless night wondering and getting quite excited, and at 8am we called the rescue. The dog they said the lady had viewed was a Harrier Hound, another rare breed dog, and was not a Bracco.

The lady was sure the dog she came across at the rescue was orange and white, and the Harrier Hound (Logan) on their website, www.strayaid.co.uk was definitely lemon if anything, so we raised a few queries, alongside the fact that the lady on rescuing her little dog from the rescue kennels was given the story that her dog and the 'Braccoish' dog both were brought up from the south having been found by gypsies. To us this all seemed very credible it could have been Jacob, so as I said a restless night ensued.

The Bracco friend in the north very kindly actually went to the shelter and face to face he asked questions to be reassured that there was definitely never any Bracco in their care, and that every dog is listed on their website as part of their protocol.

I guess we have to accept that as being fact, nothing else we can do, we couldn't accuse them as we have no back up and we know from vast experience that sometimes it's easy to make a mistake as to to what you see. It's no ones fault, and we are always happy for anyone to query with us any dogs they feel might be our boy. Better safe than sorry.

One day, no matter how far into the future that one call, the one that says, yes we really do have your boy could well come in, and be the one that reunites us all. The Ginger Army are ever battle ready in the meantime, we are still here, emailing and phoning anyone that we feel should be made aware our boy is out there missing.

Just need that call now......

....as where's there's a mission, there's forever hope.

After the long silence.....

2009-06-02T03:41:00.000-07:00

I can now tell you some news as to why.......

Today, after helping police with their enquiries, the lady (if you can call her that) Kath who apparently sighted Jacob on the 18th March with a man in Stanborough Lakes, Welwyn, was arrested and charged on 6 counts of Fraud, and 2 unrelated cases.
She was a parasite delving into retired persons lives, and defrauding them of money for investment and for fake cancer treatment.
She is a career criminal, one of the lowest forms of person that can walk the earth.
She never had cancer, something she claimed she was taking treatment for currently,
alongside that and the deception, most probably had she ever seen Jacob.

She had become an arms length 'friend' to us these past few months, offering us hope and getting us running about Welwyn in order that we spot someone walking our dog.
Hell, she even had Jon rushing back from Coventry one day on the knowledge that a fishing match was taking place, and that the man with Jacob would no doubt be there.
The time, hope, and money invested in her web of lies and deceit were purely there for her to worm her way into our lives and hopefully groom us in order to defraud.

Good thing is that we never trusted her, deep down we knew there was a hug niggle about that woman. I tried desperately to trust her, but things just didn't make sense, and things she said to us made us question her motives.
Knowing my maiden name without me having ever told her it, raised eyebrows.
She was obviously seeking information about my family, possibly with a view to defraud them.

Her home is not her home, it's a place where she rents a room, her car, is not her car, it's a friends car.
All a web of lies.
She even was arrested under another name, and by Midlands Police unit.

The whole thing has been deeply upsetting for us.
I know that in the great scheme of things we have come away without any losses other than that in time and hope but it hurts just as deeply as if someone had robbed us of every penny we had.
We now have no starting place to find our boy, no doubt he was never in the Welwyn area, and even if she (once questioned this week) tell the Police she definitely didn't make up the sighting, then how do we ever believe her.
I guess we will know as she will have to give the name of the man she said had had him and Police will investigate them too if they actually exist (which I very much doubt they did)

Such a terrible twist of fete we could have well done without.

No sightings in all these months is just leaving us at a loss as to what to do next, where to look next. What else can we do other that live in the hope that if someone, somewhere has Jacob, they will slip up and he will be seen and reported.

Meanwhile, the ever loyal Ginger Army will continue to email vets, and Dog Wardens nationwide to alert them to his being missing.
Once we are able legally, we will try to alert the papers of the evil twist in the the tale that's occurred, and reason that the 'angle' they needed is now there to allow him some much needed press attention.

Thoughts are in our heads as to maybe he did succumb to the weather back in January, or was shot by the farmers for pestering their livestock or game.
We just have so many conspiracy theories too.....the mind just ticks over at a rate of knots given half the chance, and comes up with all sorts, but no definite answers sadly.

One things for sure though, we will never give up and that deep lodged area of hope in our hearts will be there forever.
We now just wait, and hope for answers, some closure in one way or another.

Microchip Madness ??

2009-05-18T01:03:00.000-07:00

Have 2 weeks really passed us by ?

Surely not .........

The past 2 weeks have been what I can only express as quiet, sad, and deeply frustrating.

There hasn't been one call from anyone sighting our boy, nor has there been any news whatsoever from Welwyn.....to say we are at loss........ well it's really the truth.

What happens next ? Where do we go to from here ?

Well what happens next is that we carry on, and continue to be pro-active.

Set those publicity cogs whirring into action, and alert vets, rescues and dog wardens again, as well as re-alert those people we initially made contact with that Jacob is still out there, missing.

One thing I have to tell you is that we have be lucky enough to get 4 A4 pages of coverage in two of the UK's leading dog magazines, Dogs Monthly and Dogs Today both covered our appeal and story for Jacob and we truly cannot Thank Beverley and Caroline enough for this.

Both magazine copies are available now if you want to read the article. It's the June editions.

We didn't know both would run the article, but we are pleased all the same that Jacob has been able to gain this much needed publicity.

http://www.dogstodaymagazine.co.uk/ http://www.dogsmonthly.co.uk/

The huge audience that they cover between them will hopefully reach out further for Jacob to be seen somewhere, and we can be alerted of him perhaps being unknowingly with a new owner who is looking at the magazines for new dog ownership help.

These past weeks have taught us a huge lesson too.

To not get complacent that almost everyone who needs to know our dog is missing knows....

.....Spread the word he is still missing comes across very clear.

We have had 3 calls in from members of the public who have read the article and whom have had differing stories of their dogs being taken, be that lost or stolen, and whom have eventually been rescued by dog rescues, and vets, and whom have all been microchipped.

These dogs were either sent on to rescue kennels, having been passed first to a local vet, or they have gone the whole hog so to speak, and have fully experienced the rehome procedure.

All good, but with one common problem......they have been rehomed with the original owners chip still intact.

One poor lady who called us telling of her a 4 month old rare breed dog who had been stolen, and that she was pretty sure she knew where her puppy was, and was 99% sure who had taken him.

Armed with this information sh went to the police, but unfortunately they were helpless at that time, and were not able to be of help for many months sadly.

This lady, well she had to pretty much sit back and wait it out.

Meanwhile she was trawling the streets daily in case these thieves slipped up, and in the hope of seeing her boy, this situation only culminating in him getting found by police, when finally the premises where he and others were kept were raided by police.

You would hope that was the end of her ordeal, knowing that this puppy was only 4 months old when stolen, but no, this pup was taken to the vets to be checked, microchipped, then passed to this large scale rescue. Remember here that he is already microchipped by the original owner.

It was only the final vet check prior to rehome procedures some weeks later, and a savvy person properly scanning this dog, that thankfully the scanning showed up 2 chips (one inserted by the vet) and the original chip....It was through the 1st chips older date the owner finally had that long awaited call.

Sadly this was many months later, so she was reunited with a dog that she had lost all puppyhood with, and who was now an adult.

The happy ending was that he still recognised her, and her other dog too.

I feel she was very, very lucky, but the dog was even more so.

We have had echoes of this ladies story actually, something I was scared of to be honest.

One man called and said he had been advised his dog was in a rescue centre many miles from his home, he of course rang them, was told no that dog is most definitely not here, but thankfully he couldn't let this knowledge rest, and his curiosity got the better of him.

Having driven over 200 miles to the rescue in question, there was his dog, staring back at him in a kennel, microchip firmly in place.

He said they had quoted lack of time as being the reason the microchip had got missed, and their time was 'about the animals welfare'. Surely that 'welfare' extends it's right to being reunited with it's legal owner.

Pretty shocking really as I thought that was the whole idea of having your dog microchipped in the 1st place.

Now don't get me wrong, i'm truly not knocking the procedures and good work these charities and rescues do, that wouldn't be right, as they do an awful lot of good and save many dogs lives through their efforts. Most do not run on huge budgets, and time is at a premium.

However, i'm told that sometimes a dog that is chipped, and perhaps whose chip has migrated to a strange place in their body, needs to be scanned very thoroughly for it to be found.

Some half and hour perhaps to locate it.

Now, how many charitable organisations have half an hour per dog to check a dog is microchipped ? I would think that they have other pressing priorities, and that is getting the dog vet checked and settled to relieve stress, and I would say that takes priority over half an hour of scanning.

In their eyes, there wouldn't be enough hours in the day otherwise would there ?

It's all so difficult to know how this could be remedied. Their good intentions are commendable, but we need these dogs scanned properly by everyone involved in the rescue process, that is from dog wardens, vets, and rescues. Surely with 3 people in the process, at least one of them could extend to that thorough scanning process.

My argument would be that spend the half an hour, and they would be spared the expense of spending time and money caring for a dog that perhaps a few hours later could be reunited in the care of it's original owners, and they are then of course, spared any expense for vet care and food.

It's a difficult situation I know, and one which I don't know the answer to.

All said and done time is money, and time is sometimes not a luxury a rescue outfit has.

It's all about the dogs welfare, safety and health.

I would say that perhaps sometimes dogs do fall through the loop and microchips do get missed along the way.

The contact i've had from people these past 16 weeks tell me this is in fact true, as much as I don't want to believe it does happen, they assure me it does.

I'm now terrified in case Jacob has become a victim to the whole scanning procedure, and that he has endured the process of perhaps being picked up as a stray, kenneled, and duly rehomed.

I reason with myself that I would be more than happy to know this happened (hmmmm!?)

Thinking it through, I guess as it would mean that through that mistake, he was loved and cared for, and most of all safe.

If I had a phone call from someone saying they couldn't give him up and he was safe it would make things okay in the end wouldn't it ?......(okay, I would hunt them down, but that's besides the point lol!) but at the end of the day, you have to remember one thing. He is ours.

The microchip inside him, well it states that doesn't it.

It should be the one single factor that means he makes his way home.

So why isn't it ?

The other thing that has prayed on my mind again is that he isn't out there to be found.

As harrowing as those thoughts are for us both, they are ones that we have to be reason with.

That bad weather the few weeks after his disappearance, and the fact that in reality he has hardly been spotted in 17 weeks. It makes you be reason to yourself, more for the fact that you need answers, closure, purely for your own sanity.

How can we go on and on like this is beyond me. It hurts like hell.

The publicity machine isn't interested to be honest, and believe me we have tried endlessly to reactivate the tv and radio interest. I can see their point, there is no story other than a missing dog, but it still doesn't help.

A read out on national tv, a 20 second appeal, it could do wonders.

I have to say a huge Thank You to the ladies who gave us their 'Jacob' boards complete with posters and information, and whom between them printed off thousands of leaflets and handed them out at shows for us.

Your generosity of time and effort taken to do these is just fantastic, Thank You.

We will do our best to visit Paws in the Park http://www.pawsinthepark.net/ this year to flyer the public there, and also we'll be contacting this week lots of the UK's country game fairs and shows that are going on.

Someone there may know about Jacob if he's being kept local to them.

Hell, he could even be being walked around these shows and going by unnoticed ?

Please, if anyone sees a white and orange Bracco anywhere, can you please stop that person and ask questions.

Jacob has a small lump on his left shoulder, like a small nodule under the skin that is the size of a small pea, so run your hand there if you are unsure.

Sadly I never heard back from the Eastbourne dog warden, but have left messages at the council there, and sent emails.

So the Bracco seen there by this lady has gone by, and even through a mass of emails between Bracco owners and puppy purchasers amongst them, we really don't know whose dog that was.

It could have been Jacob for all I know.

I would hope that any dog warden, or any person whatsoever seeing an orange and white Bracco, and being aware Jacob is out there, would approach any owner nicely and ask where they bought him from. I would never take offence at anyone asking me about any of my dogs, it would make me feel happy being advised of the circumstances to any questions, that there were people willing to come forward and authenticate me !

There are only so many Bracco breeders, and so they would know where a particular dog originated from, their traceability would be pretty easily done.

Today and this week will be spent contacting rescues once again, dog wardens, and vets.

I will also take time again this week to research gypsy liaison officers further in the hope they will not take offence at me contacting them, and they will keep a look out on their site visits.

Finally, sorry this blog ended up such a ramble of thoughts, but rest assured that we are still here, working behind the scenes in order to bring our handsome chap home where he belongs.

Thanks for keeping Jacob's search alive, and for all of your positivity, it helps more than you will ever know.

Eastbourne Bracco

2009-05-05T07:12:00.000-07:00

We had a call this morning from Sue Criddle who is the dog warden in Eastbourne.

She was off duty on Sunday, and saw a Bracco the same colouring as Jacob being walked along the seafront in Eastbourne at around 12-12.30

We are obviously now in touch with everyone we know that is connected with the Bracco society, so that we can find out if this dog is owned by someone there, or perhaps someone is/was on holiday or a day trip with their Bracco at that time.

I am sure it's someone out having a nice time, and all is above board, but then.....

.....well you never know.

We're thankful to Sue for being so vigilant and spotting this Bracco, and getting in touch with us.

Thanks Sue.

If anyone knows of friends/relatives/friends or friends etc that have a Bracco and possibly could have been seen in Eastbourne, please get in touch or email me at haggerwoods@aol.com

Will let you know any developments.

On the hunt for Lady Godiver !

2009-05-05T03:36:00.000-07:00

It's been a busy week over at Ginger Army HQ, the nationwide Ginger platoon has been busy emailing and we have had some fantastic help at agility shows, dog shows, and a fab effort at The Kent Country Show to name a few things that were being covered in 'gingerness' this weekend.

Thanks to all the girls for all you've done, a fab effort all round.

Welwyn has gone very quiet, in fact too quiet for our liking, but what we need to do right now is sit back and wait for more sightings, we just can't do any more there for the time being, we have driven there too many times to count, and have spent countless hours walking and skulking around those estates and dog walking areas.....sadly we seem to be getting nothing in return.

It's time to wait, and be pro-active in other ways around the area as well as nationwide.

We have had companies ranging from hauliers to drain clearance operatives emailing and phoning saying they have Jacob's posters and are on the lookout around the area, the whole response has been fantastic.

If he is around that area, one day soon, we'll surely get that call.

I'm assured 'a watched pot never boils' so we'll revert to a gentle simmer now, and just 'watch' from afar.

We've been investigating into large roadside banners, but alas the expense of doing that seems unreachable and hugely costly. Shame really as if I had my dream every major motorway would have a banner with MISSING and Jacob's photo on it !

Our next thoughts though are to a toned down version perhaps, in that we'll find someone with a huge printer that can make some A3 or AO sized posters for us, which somehow we'll make watertight, and place near major motorway and A road exit points.

I'm told that I have to get police involvement in doing this, or alert the Highways people to get permission ? I guess i'll need to look into that before I get carted off to the cells for littering or endangering public lives !

(Note to self, carry spare knickers and toothbrush at all times !)

A fab achievement to tell you off though is that Jacob has a little photo on the front cover of Dogs Today magazine (June edition) and an article inside sharing part way of our search story.

This is a great surprise, and I am ever Thankful to Beverley (Editor of dogs Today) for raising his profile to even greater heights, and to an even huger audience. Thanks Beverley.

http://dogstodaymagazine.co.uk/

Sadly, tomorrow marks the 15 week mark for Jacob being missing, definitely a point where it's made us realise that time is most certainly moving on, and moving on fast.

I can't quite get my head around the fact that we haven't seen him for all those weeks, and of course we wonder every day what he's doing, who he's with, is he actually alive.

So many questions we'd love to have answers to, but no way of knowing really.

Some days are harder than others it has to be said, and we both find that keeping busy is the way to keep him at the forefront of our mind. It's good to be actively out there doing Jacob related tasks, but at the same time we long for a worry free day, and one where we just make plans looking forward.

We finally have decided to go ahead with Ollie's Fundraising party (Ollie's Fund for Canine epilepsy Research for the AHT) which we organise twice a year usually, but which had been sadly relegated to a back burner whilst the Jacob search went ahead.

It'll be nice to have something else to occupy the hours, and a little focus attached elsewhere can't be a bad thing. Not taking away focus for Jaocb of course, just a different few hours spent elsewhere on a nother matter close to our hearts.

Anyone wishing to join us for the party just email me for details. Haggerwoods@aol.com

The party will take place in CB11 area on Saturday 29th August (Bank Holiday weekend)

Dogs, Children and adults all welcome, all profits to charity.

It's always a great fun day out, and safe and secure for the dogs and children alike.

Last summer I think we had almost a hundred adults, 20 children and about 86 dogs, and were duly blessed with sunshine !

Moving forward is a good thing I guess, but we still need to keep emailing anyone and everyone we can to keep the search in people's attention.

Unfortunately generally the TV people are not really interested, still stating there isn't a valid angle only that he's 'lost'.

That's really annoying and sad for us to hear, purely as they are most likely the ones that indirectly hold the key to him getting found.

So what's the angle they need ? I just don't know really........

Perhaps we need a volunteer to ride naked on horseback (a la Lady Godiva) through the streets of Coventry (in fact any city or town would suffice, we really aren't fussy!) banner proudly being waved enthusiastically overhead stating Jacob's appeal !!!

Sigh.... If only I were a svelte 8 stone Jordan breasted woman ....oh and I could competantly ride more than 10ft on horseback !!

Now that'd be an angle wouldn't it lol !

Volunteers gratefully received of course ;-))

Wrinkles and BBQ weekends

2009-04-28T06:18:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty sure that having turned forty now, there are a few more wrinkles appearing now and I would swear they arrived Sunday morning, my first official day of being 'over 40'.....
Coincidence, hmmm, maybe, Estee Lauder has promises that need fulfilling me thinks ;-)
I can honestly say that perhaps these wrinkles are born from stresses related to this search, but to be truthful I would have the face of the 'Bride of Wildenstein', (no 'what do I mean would' comments please !) if it were to bring our boy home safely (okay, well perhaps not that bad, could I bargain for a 'Jackie Stallone' maybe ??!!!)

So the weekend came, the weekend went, without a call or whisper about our boy or his whereabouts.
We ventured off to Welwyn (i'm so fed up with that place already) for another days driving and walking round like 2 lost souls.
Everyone it seemed thought that the sudden whiff of summer arriving meant they needed to be stay at homes, and not venture further than their garden, obviously enjoying bbq's and lazy sleeps, even the usual ice cream man we relied upon for our '99's was not about.
It was eerily quiet about that place, and of course hardly a dog in sight meant no Jacob lookalikey's were being walked anywhere.

We managed to find yet more places to walk, odd places down the back of tracks and fishing places we would never know were there for stumbling into dead end tracks when trying to find our way.
Early evening we eventually gave up, and went to our friends for much needed wine and a roast dinner.
Sitting outside their garden backing onto acres of farmland, all quiet and the sun on our backs, we now knew why everyone else had also been doing the same all afternoon !

It's a case now I think that we sit back and wait with the whole Welwyn situation.
We need more people to ring and verify they have seen this dog, be it be or not be our boy, we just wish others would call to tempt us back there with renewed vigour.

I think we have spent enough time over that way to feel confident in the people who are there every day, walking, working, driving about, there are lots of good people making that area pretty covered for us.

Back home at Ginger HQ the girls are back at their computers emailing every person and organisation we can think of, in all different places.
The hunt goes on, the word needs spreading round again, we need to keep Jacob fresh in people's minds, and try our best to rack up some publicity.
We have people at shows and country fairs across the country this weekend, all of whom will be flying the Jacob flag on our behalf. Thank You guys and girls for helping us keep the Ginger Whinger flag flying well and truly higher..

We have a few irons in the fire still, they've been burning a while as you know, but they are getting hotter and hopefully might come to fruition next week.
I won't specify now, but will fill you in on the finer details once we know anything from the plan that's ahead.

I am off now to email every conceivable dog food manufacturer and online pet supplier that I can rustle up. I want them to send our email to their customer list if possible.....
You know me, give me a bone and i'll dig a trench for it !

Longing for the Ginger Whinger

2009-04-24T03:29:00.000-07:00

Well, the sun is out, the sky is most definitely blue, but Jacob oh Jacob - where the hell are you.....

This week has been eerily quiet.
Not a single call has come in to say that anyone has seen a Jacob-lookalikey, it's all been very frustrating to say the least.
Eyes have been around Welwyn, but nobody has seen this dog.
We did have a call late on Sunday evening, about 11pm, it was a private number, but we could just hear background noise, like someone was listening.....noone spoke. Is it Jacob related, a weird call, a wrong number perhaps (are we're getting extremely paranoid!?)
Who knows.

I am thinking that maybe this man has decided that he doesn't like the hunt that he feels is going on and has decide to go underground with him.

Someone pointed out to us this week, that knowing Jacob as they do, if they had looked after him for a few weeks, they would find his bright personality and endearing ways hard to resist falling for, so maybe this is the probelm. The person who has him be it he's at Welwyn or Inverness, well maybe this is why no calls - they have decided they don't want to give him up.

This most definitely has struck a chord.
Maybe Welwyn man has fallen for Jacob (if it is him) and is reluctant to give him up.
Sort of 'finders-keepers' playing itself out in his head.
The thing is here, that if the dog is Jacob then he isn't his/theirs to own.
We are the legal owners of him, and therefore he belongs quite rightly to us.
We have all the evidence needed to back up this 'claim', and the relevant documents and photographic evidence to show he is ours.
In his heart, if the man is avoiding us, how fair on the dog is that (let alone us) ?
Any dog (least of all Jacob who would drive someone insane by his constant walkies requests!) needs a good run each day, so to shut it up inside a garden or house (no matter how big) and keep a low profile, well it just can't go on forever.
More than anything, we simply won't go away, not ever !
Time to come forward and let us have our boy back if it's him.

Noone can knowingly be so callous to deprive a family of it's pet surely, I urge if anyone reading this has Jacob, or has been 'sighted' wrongly by owning a dog that may be being mistaken for him, come forward, contact someone if you can't do it yourself, even text us and let's 'talk'.
We all need to move forward.

We have some 'irons in the fire' right now, and have some ideas which we're working on as far as publicity is concerned, so I will keep you all up to date when those are put into action.

Most of all we will keep hope alive that someone will be in touch really soon.
We're at the 13 weeks point now. Hard to believe I know, but we are.
I remember the early days like a distant memory now, just feels like years to us.
Watching back some video footage the other evening was hard, it's like you can reach out and touch them, but they aren't there. How can this have happened, I really don't know.
How the heck did we get to this ?
It's pretty unbelievable really isn't it.

Still, positive thinking, a pro-active approach coupled with only looking forward, must bring him home one day.
I look forward for experiencing that day I really do. I know exactly how my FOUND email will read, i've 'sleep' written it a hundred times over already.
It's all 'there' waiting to be typed and sent.
I never longed to send such an email in my life before.
Wish it was soon.....
......Tomorrow being the 'big day' -
I so need that boy here to make it the best day ever, red ribbon tied neatly, him crowing cheekily as if nothing has happened - wouldn't that be the BEST present ever :-)

Mistaken Identities and '99's

2009-04-20T05:19:00.000-07:00

REWARD MONEY NOW OFFERED AT £1000 FOR SAFE RETURN

Finally some good weather !
Hmmm.....wasn't expecting that this weekend that's for certain, and although we were 'daytripping' in sunny Welwyn for the best part of this weekend, it was made all the nicer for the sun being out. Hell we even found an ice cream van and sat scoffing our 99's (with flake!)amongst people washing their cars and cutting hedges on the estate !
I tell you, lost dog searching has shown no boundaries of luxury lol !

For the past 6 days we have trudged around the various housing estates in Welwyn trying to catch a glimpse of a dog that could easily be mistaken for Jacob, or quite possibly IS Jacob.
what the chances are at actually seeing this person I really don't know. The odds are quite unfairly stacked against us, but hell, never ones to give up, we drive round in ever decreasing circles until we both need to get out of the car for fear of tripping on our own senses.
I am pretty sure that at one point after the '99 I started to hallucinate as I saw a dog I was sure was 'Jacobesque' in a back garden, only to see it next time we drove around as a Springer Spaniel, complete with long waggy tail. It was defintely a Homer Simpson DOH moment !
Maybe those '99's these days contain things other than ice, milk and cream, or failing that I really must get more sleep !

About 4pm yesterday found us walking the Stanborough lakes, to ease our weary minds and our legs more than anything, but hoping also that we might see some of the dog walkers we'd be-friended to find out if they had any information.
Sadly it was obviously family day yesterday, the fair was in full swing and so apart from the odd few dog walkers (who we flyered) it was a hotch potch of Mum's and Dad's running after toddlers and groups of hormonal teenagers snogging the faces off of each other. Euwwweee !

We made some enquiries about CCTV at the local store where the Jacob clone was seen, but they are not sure there is any form of 'Big Brother' equipment around there.
I am not convinced either but then there is a bank cashpoint nearby the actual store, so I emailed the bank and am waiting on their email back. If there's valid CCTV it might be that they caught this dog/man on their recording.
The search would be easy as we have definitive times he's been seen there, so it wouldn't be hard for them to look. Might be that the CCTV only points at the cashpoint though, so we'd just get a glimpse of many people's backsides, not the backside we need, that one of gingery proportion's, carried by 4 white speckledy legs.

The next step for us is to go the whole hog and posterise that whole area with gusto.
We have some posters up and around, but we perhaps need to go at it like Lemmings and poster each and every street, alongside all focal points. I think that's the way forward there.
Not everyone would know about the sightings there, no all would read local papers, so many might be unknowingly walking past him raising a smile at his gorgeousness.

The thing that bothers us both (all) is the sheer fact that the description of the man, the circumstances how he gained the dog, alongside Jacob's photo, all went into the local Welwyn (and surrounding areas) paper, and yet you would assume if he was of any normal standing, he would come forward voluntarily, even it it were to rule out any similarities of mistaken identities to the dog he owns. What does he need to hide ?
Noone is bothered about the circumstances he got that dog, where he got it, or who he got it from, we just don't care.
We purley just want to eliminate him from our enquiries, that's it.
If it's not Jacob, what's he evading us for ? All he needs to do is call and we can talk it over like civil human beings.
I've said it before and i'll say it again, we are not baying for blood.
We're just frustrated as hell that 3 people have now seen this 'Jacobesque' dog and we want to know why.
Is that too much to ask for ?
Seems so.

One thing to consider here is that we have many people on board now around that whole area.
The Ginger Army has expanded somewhat largely these last few days !
Some people have kindly offered to help and that is purely though reading Doglost or this blog. They don't know of us from Adam, but feel the urgency in bringing this nightmare to an end for us, and so have taken time and effort to drive/walk around the area, and look round the particular areas we've told them he could possibly be.
To offer their free time as they have done has been fantastic, and we really appreciate extra eyes on the ground when we can't be there.

Quite frankly now, we will just carry on searching that area, until something else comes to light, or another phone call add's to the collection of maybes, and adds a few more peices to the jigsaw.
I have to say this past week has seen us go from elation in thinking we might finally be over the dark side and close to bringing Jacob home, to being back at the lowest ebb of unknowing (and everything in between).

My 40th Birthday looms this weekend (I was sure someone doctored my birth certificate, as I could swear I was born in '89 not '69!)
Hmmmm - Still until such a time that I can find that person (!) I will go on this week hoping that the present I want more than any other, will appear, suitably wrapped with a big red ribbon around his neck, and a huge Bracco "Happy Birthday" 'yodell' going on to boot.

Meanwhile I will enjoy my last few days of being (apparently) 'thirty-something' by severely mocking the afflicted (that's anyone already 'over 40' !!) and hoping that much wished for present can be mine for the keeping come Saturday.

Mission 'Ginger Whinger'.......

2009-04-15T14:55:00.000-07:00

REWARD MONEY NOW OFFERED AT £1000 FOR SAFE RETURN

Now forgive me, wasn't it only a few days ago I was cursing how much we hated these silent times ?! I was wasn't I......!

Well today (thankfully) that silent lull was broken, and news sped it's way across to sunny Essex about another possible sighting of a 'Jacobesque' dog being seen near some shops, tied outside whilst a shopper filled his or her basket.

Have these folks never heard of dog knapping ???!

So, in haste, we all downed tools, and the Ginger Army was meticulously rallied, and operation 'Ginger Whinger' went into action.

Whilst we all sped across to Welwyn we were both conscious not to get our hopes up as this dog might well not be our lovely boy, and we really didn't need any more dashed hopes.....

But then of course it could well be him, oh lordy, can you imagine.

No, we mustn't get our hopes up, we just have to hope a little teeny bit, but be otherwise realistic that there are perhaps some dogs out there that look very similar - but then well, there aren't many that do are there ??

As we got further onto the main roads, we were held up by police escorts (sadly not ours, but I was tempted to ask them do they not realise the urgency of us getting to Welwyn, but thought better of it as we dutifully abided by the speed limits !)

I was getting so uptight and frustrated as we just wanted to be there to start looking around for clues that may lead us to Jacob, or the dog that might be like him at the very least.

Nothing worse than delays when you're on the trail, walking boots at the ready.

On arrival the 'Ginger Army' grouped, and with military precision, we each went off in different directions to cover all options.

We flyered lots of people both around the shopping arcades, the parks, the lakes and people walking dogs nearby any of the above.

I'm amazed at how helpful people are, and how willing they are when they know it's about a dog.

Many I have to say scowl and try to walk away, no doubt thinking we're canvassing for double glazing, or a 1/2 hr questionnaire about their soap powder preferences, but as soon as you show them a flyer they mellow, the frowns lighten to a slight smile, and they will tell you all about their own dogs and offer to help.

It's absolutely brilliant how people rally. I know I say it over and over, but it's true.

Never a nicer person than a dog lover.

Most are genuinely happy to help, or at the very least, keep an eye out for you.

It felt a bit strange today, just because the man we are advised may be the person who has Jacob, is supposedly a really nice guy, and really loves his dogs. All good in my book.

I hate this supposed manhunt that we seem to have going on, it feels a bit wrong, though I have to admit I can honestly say we're not vageuly interested in him, just the dog.

We understand that he (if this dog is Jacob) rescued him from travellers, who "could do nothing with him" apparently, and so in our eyes, he has saved him from lord only knows what.

For that alone we are eternally grateful, and so whoevers' dog this is, he can't be a bad person can he ?

I just hope, deep down that if this is a dog that he feels is ours, he will take courage and get in touch with us in order to dispel any doubt or show it is him.

Okay, it's a hard thing to do, he may well have grown attached to this dog by now, we totally understand that, and like I say it surely will take some encouragement, in that there's no doubt, but if he genuinely loves dogs, and knows right from wrong, then it's the right thing to do for all concerned to come forward, or hand him into a vets or rescue if no further involvement is wanted.

People have asked us time and time again, are we baying for blood here, and to be quite honest, we aren't.

That's the truth, we don't feel any malice for what's occurred in the past, we put that to the back of our minds, as we're pure and simply only looking forward, not back.

There's no point causing trouble about what's past, there's nothing to gain only further heartbreak, and quite frankly we've had a lifetime of that already, hence why we rely on this being over by Jacob being returned safely by anyone in the know.

So far, despite our joint efforts we haven't spotted anyone walking this dog.

To be truthful, I don't think we expected to, but it's times like these when you don't go out expecting results, that deep down in your heart you really want them, and perhaps you'll be suitably rewarded for your doubt.

So, today we've flyered lots of locals, the shops, supermarkets, and dog walkers, all of whom have been very helpful and promised to report anything they see that is 'Jacoblike'.

We can only rely on these people now, and also send out huge Thanks to Chris Richards at the Welwyn Times for writing such a heartfelt appeal for our boy, and helping to widen the audience for Jacob for us so wonderfully. Many Thanks Chris.

Meanwhile, we'll keep you posted of any further developments here, and fingers crossed some good will come of the whole Welwyn scenario in the next few days.

Someone must know something, it's just courage that's needed now to get those in the know involved, and make that call to help this nightmare end.

Time for my straight jacket if you please !

2009-04-14T02:44:00.000-07:00

" Say Cheese" !

After a busy Easter weekend doing what seems like nothing and everything all at once, i'm glad to find us back to normality again.

Being back at my desk at Ginger Army HQ makes me feel good, and somewhat lifts my spirits.
It feels good to be back being pro-active once again. I hate this quiet lull, a sense of no direction leaves us feeling the loss even more.

So today i'm back in the GA hot seat and working out what direction we take next.
I am thinking of contacting all the traveller liaison officers across the country in order that I ask them to keep a lookout for Jacob on their visits.
Now, of course this task for me is easier said than done as how do you diplomatically ask someone involved with a minority group, to look for a missing dog, without it coming across as you seemingly say they have him.
It's a difficult one to tackle, and one which will take a few email drafts to get right me thinks.
It would be good to have these 'lookouts' but I fear their could also be a down side to us doing this also. That said, if word spreads throughout the Traveller community that there's a missing dog out there, and additionally there's a really substantial reward then it could set up a hunt for him, but then hey, if that's what it takes then that's what it takes.
Quite frankly we're running out of ideas right now, and so will soon no doubt find ourselves covering old ground to think back to things that maybe offered clues, but were suitably dismissed at the time as being no go's.
CSI has nothing on the Ginger Army - ;-)
Once we get some clues or leads, we spring into action, and the 'thought lab' goes into overdrive to decipher the information until it's rung dry !

I wish I could relive the dream I had last night and change a few things in it, it was very vivid and those that read into dreams may be able to take something from it perhaps ?
I was in a huge factory, in fact forget factory, think huge processing plant of some kind, the type with massive steel cylinders all around and steel walkways and ladders.
This place was the size of a football pitch, and I was walking around and saw 2 other dogs their, cross breeds tan and black, then in the far distance I saw Jacob, but he had grown a longer coat, it was slightly fluffy, about 3/4" long. He came closer when I shouted his name, and didn't know who I was (I remember feeling bereft at that moment), I walked closer, slowly, and he did too.
He was interested in me, so I crouched down and he came across, suddenly realising it was me, but not quite sure all at the same time. As I had my hands on him, I slipped a belt round his neck, I had him. We started to walk away through the factory and the belt had a knot in it, so I stopped, took it off to untangle the knot, and then suddenly he was no longer there.
He was gone again.
What does this all mean I wonder !? (apart from i'm losing it!)
I was then looking over a beach with thatched parasols, and next to the side of the water were 2 men (foreigners) of which one of them was in the water baptising (I know but remember it was a dream !!!) 2 dogs who were visibly floating under the water.
The next thing I remember thinking (dreaming) was that oh, no they aren't dogs perhaps, as on the side of the water were monkeys !
Most of all I remember waking and feeling terrible anger that i'd had Jacob in my grasp but had lost him.....I remember shouting out his name in my sleep, then that awful reality check, you know how you feel when you wake from a dream and it feels so real you confuse it with real life.
(Have I lost the plot I hear you ask......well, yes, most probably !)
Hmmmm ! Dr Ffion, Dr Tim, I think it's time for my straight jacket now please !
I think I definitely need that chaise longue Ffion, but I think I will definitely need to be the patient, and you the psychiatrist this time !
:-0

Jon just had a call from a lady in Dover, I think she said she worked at the port.
She saw our poster in a vets there over the weekend, and remembered seeing a Bracco go through the port the day after Crufts, or the Monday, so 8/9th March.
She was very savvy about all the details, Jon said had times etc if we needed them.
She knew it was a Bracco as she was going to get one, but later chose another rare breed (which breed slips my mind right now) - so she would definitely not confuse a Bracco with another dog.
The lady was Swedish, and the car plate was Spanish. She said the dog looked quite thin too.
I am wondering, could this be World Champion Bracco Axel ? isn't he owned by a Swedish lady ?
But the Spanish plates ? I cannot remember what colouring Axel is but I was sure he was Chestnut and not Orange ? Off to interrogate the Bracchi community now, someone would hopefully know more information and put this (hopefully) down to being a dog that was shown at Crufts.
Time to call in the CSI.GA !!

Will report back later on my findings..............

The GA cogs have been whirring
The dog that the Dover lady saw was definitely Axel, and yes he is orange and white, and actually looks quite like Jacob (except Axel is a heavier build) - so this lady was very keen eyed, for which we are very grateful indeed. We are very thankful for her letting us know.
It's good to know that there are people like her who are visibly out there, looking and taking note. Thank You, i'm so glad we know it's Axel !
PHEW ! Off to take a nerve pill now !! - EEEEK !!!!

Contemplation and Persil

2009-04-10T15:08:00.000-07:00

Today I woke thinking it was Saturday, and then realised it was of course Friday !

From those waking moments it seemed the whole day has continued to carry this state of confusion, and we've both felt a little out of sorts today.

I can't quite put my finger on it, but there is somewhat a definite feeling of anger and frustration for us both today.

I can't quite explain it, but you long to make plans, and enjoy holidays etc, but feel and know there needs to be a conclusion (of the happy sort of course) to this scenario before we can mentally move on.

God I miss normality SO much !

We both were out with the Spins this morning in the nanoseconds worth of sunshine that descended on us.

It was lovely.... no wet, no mud, no rain, and 3 happy Spinoni running about like huge lolopping (Easter) bunnies. Quite relevant really what with it being Good Friday I suppose !

Only problem was that as we both sat on the 'log of contemplation' by the side of the fields (I would say don't ask ! - but it's our tree stump, just a lovely place where you can just sit, and be, ...silent and full of nothing but your own thoughts) we were watching these Easter bunny imposter's chase after blackbirds (when will they ever learn!) knowing 3 should be 4.

We missed our boy being there, part of our family. I can honestly say I shed a tear, probably more out of sheer anger and frustration, but also because emotions were running high, and looking out at the Spins, well it was so evident that Jacob was not with us enjoying this moment. He loves his walks, he should be here where he belongs.

It really dawned on us he was most definitely not here. BUT....Where the hell is is ?

This is just bloody ridiculous, no dog has yet (to my knowledge) been abducted by aliens, nor has any dog fallen off the face of the earth (NASA may prove me wrong) so if he's not currently getting studied by the Mars pooch detectors with Sky (Coats) then where the hell is he, who has him and why don't they come forward and end this misery and worry ?

Stupid thing is it could all be over so easily, we don't care about the circumstances that have gone before, just bring him home, hand him over to someone, call us....

Sometimes when the whole missing thing is in full swing and we're out searching or emailing hundreds of people, or talking to many of the people who take time to call and give advice or a shoulder to lean on, we kind of forget in a strange way.

We allow ourselves to feel a luxurious titbit of normality, and we're acting like normal people do, visiting friends, taking leisurely walks and going shopping on a Saturday.

BUT we find it hard, it feels very wrong, and as much as we crave that normality again, it just feels strangely illicit. I hate that feeling.

We feel we can't move forward yet, we can't cancel his insurance, we can't move his bowl away from view, nor tidy away his favourite toys that still sit on his bed, hell we can't even launder his favourite blankie (and believe me it is very Gingery and SO desperately needs some Persil !)

.... how sad is that !

I can honestly say we are far, far off from doing any of those things.

I'm really glad that we are too. It would be a sad day the day we say enough is enough.

I doubt we ever will to be honest no matter how times moves on around us.

Someone, if they have him, should know that us Haggerwoods don't give up without a fight, and he can't hide away forever.

We feel we can bring Jacob home, it may well take some time, some effort and clever thinking, most likely a few more tears along the way, but we can do it.

We have the 'Ginger Army' ready and waiting to be deployed on their latest mission at the mere drop of a ginger whisker.

We'll find you Jacob, just hang in there boy.

An update on another ginger boy and that's the Lurcher x Saluki we found and rescued last Sunday.

We took him to a rescue as you will remember, and I phoned through the week to check on his progress.

Poor boy, he's obviously had a really hard time of it lately from his previous (I hate to call them this) owners.

After a series of x-rays, it does show old 'breaks' and that he does have problems relating to these injuries both new and old, and as such has had to have a splint.

He's had a good clean up with some 'derm' washes, and lots of lavished care and attention by the rescue fabulous staff.

By Monday he will legally be 'owned' by the centre, and I for one will breathe a huge sigh of relief as on that 8th day it will signify a new start for him - hopefully in a loving forever home.

He so deserves that, his body tells us that he's been through an awful time and he couldn't take much more I am sure.

I'll let you know what else we find out about his progress later next week.

HAPPY EASTER WEEKEND everyone......

Don't eat too much Chocolate......

......"remember a moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips"

More Galaxy anyone !!? ;-)

Thankful for small 'Twitterings'

2009-04-08T04:13:00.001-07:00

Today has started well, whilst eating toast and watching GMTV's article about Twitter, the lovely Jenni Falconer mentioned Jacob and stated that his search had reached it and had had many "Tweets" - Fantastic ! (our Twitter is adoredpaws)
I have to say a huge Thanks Beverley Cuddy (Editor of Dogs Today magazine) for her absolute sterling efforts in bringing his search to life on Twitter for us. We even had Twitterings from Richard Hammond (Jon was chuffed as he loves Top Gear!) yesterday.
We so hope to reach the dizzying heights of Twitterdom, and get mentioned (Re-Twittered) by the greats that reside there, the big cheeses such as Wossy and Stephen Fry would be fantastic. Raising the missing profile for Jacob is so very much needed right now as we have fallen into that dull silence that makes it difficult to know what to do next.
Like I said yesterday, we point blank refuse to let him fade quietly into the distance. I know you will all agree that if he were your own dog, a member of your own family, that you yourselves put into our position would do the very same.
It's funny the campaign kind of takes over your emotions sometimes (a good thing) and when you get these dull silences you kind of react to the situation more intensely, you sit and take a step back and realise what it is that you are campaigning for. You miss the dog, you miss their little ways, and more than anything you just miss them being yours and being around you and part of your life.
Someone asked me do I feel anger towards that person who might have Jacob tucked up somewhere, albeit they might not be aware he is missing ?
Well, to be honest it's a catch 22 situation that.
I would be glad that he's alive and being looked after, but on the flip side, that person would obviously know there's a chance he belongs to someone somewhere, noone is that dumb or ignorant surely.
He would have been acquired through abnormal means too (i.e not through the average rescue channels) so whoever had him would know there must be a history behind him, and most probably a distraught owner desperate for him to come home.

Yes, I know, for many this all seems somewhat over zealous and extreme with regard to the lengths we will go to to be reunited with our Ginger Whinger, but until you've had the unconditional love of an animal, and grown to love them as one of your own, then quite simply you can't quite explain to someone who hasn't, that utter sense of loss you feel when they aren't here any more.
Some folks have a dog, and it remains 'a dog', others like us, well that dog becomes a family member, like a child would be to a parent, we worry about it in the same way as a Mother would about her child. Surely noone would just turn a blind eye to a child missing, and as I have said before, and as controversial as that is for some, I won't apologise for the comparison, childless as we are, we miss Jacob as he is our child, and would stop at nothing to bring him home

I used to apologise to people when they queried us and our motives, and the sheer extremities we've gone to looking for Jacob, now I most definitely don't. Why should I.
There's no embarrassment to me that we love that dog, and that we want him home, it's up to them to judge us for that, however they want to - mad, insane or otherwise barking we'll campaign with the 'Ginger Army' in tow until we see those stunning amber eyes staring back at us, and those gingery paws snuggled up under his duvet again !

Calling the "Ginger Army" !!

2009-04-07T04:16:00.000-07:00

Very quiet on the Jacob front today, however we plan to target all the main cities and larger towns for a mass email, so i'll be calling up on "Ginger Army" later on today for their help.
That's not target with missiles you understand (eeek!) but with posters and flyers to show dog orientated businesses, organisations, and rescues that he is missing.
After the smoke screen that is Welwyn not giving off any clues there, we need to be pro-active again whilst that area is worked alongside in the background.
If we can target large cities, places not too far away from us here, then it might offer some more clues as to his whereabouts.
Quite frankly his gingerness could be absolutely anywhere right now.
We'll start off with such towns as Huntingon, Newmarket, Peterborough, Northampton for starters.
I wish we could get some tv, or a mere mention at primetime, in fact anytime
I just know for sure some sod out there knows something, they are cleverly pulling the wool over many eyes it seems.
It's so difficult without having a valid 'angle' to alight some media interest.
What do we need to get that interest I hear you ask ? - hmmm I don't really know......
but i'll do my best to search out that 'angle' as best I can and let you know any updates!

Right now, everyone involved in Jacob's search all just feel we should be doing something rather than nothing, and we need to ensure our gingery boy remains a focus of attention and fresh in people's minds.
Quite simply, we will just not allow him to become yet another lost dog statistic, one of the 16% who are never reunited, and whom fade into the background never to be heard of again.
As an important, and very much loved member of our family, our fur-kid deserves this mass focus of attention and we'll make sure he gets it.

Stop Press
If anyone should want an up to date Missing Poster - to make life easier please email me haggerwoods@aol.com
Thanks

Stray Lurcher x Saluki Photo's

2009-04-06T05:08:00.001-07:00

'What goes around comes around' ???

2009-04-06T04:20:00.000-07:00

It's been a very quiet few days, hence nothing to really report on Jacob or the whole Welwyn scenario.

I'm wondering what's doing there, but have to stay hopeful that this man will materialise with the dog we all want to see.

There are many (many) posters out there for all of the public to see, as well as we have postered the other dog walking haunts also. If he is about, he will be seen.

It feels terrible that we seem to be on a witch hunt for this fella, but really it's not like that at all. We are reasonable people and we just desperately need (for our sanity to remain intact!) to rule out that he's managed to acquire Jacob, or rule out completely that it's not him.

This waiting for him to show is absolute torture.

The sheer thought of someone else having your dog puts you to the test in itself.

Now, whilst the whole Welwyn thing is on hiatus, we'll carry on campaigning for him to be kept fresh in people's minds.

We'll try to get some more coverage in the press, although it's difficult both in the media and the tv channels as they all need an angle to promote his appeal or run his story (there are some wonderful exceptions to the rule, the dog press such as Dogs Today and Dogs Monthly for whom they can't help enough).

To the majority, unfortunately it seems he's just another lost dog statistic, not a precious member of our family we are desperate to be re-united with.

Our local news are not interested until there is something other than him being lost (doh!) and the opposite channel (BBC) were suitably revved up by a fab friend (Thanks G) but sadly they don't cross stories other channels have already covered (double doh!)

We did previously try The Paul O'Grady Show with little effect.

I think looking back, the mass of emails got too intense, and perhaps we blew it out of proportion somewhat and it had a paradoxical effect of scaring the producers from understanding what it was we were actually wanting, and that yes, we are for real.

I had a text from someone recently saying he read an email live on air recently for a lost Springer, so maybe I will email him today and ask for him to appeal for Jacob.

I'll also target a few other 'celebs' I know have a great love of animals, and who I feel might be willing to help. If anyone else has any ideas/media connections that would be great.

Some days it has to be said that we both feel at an utter loss as to know what has happened to our beautiful boy.

It's a strange feeling as you never want think the worse could have happened to him, (we're assured by farmers and farm workers, gamekeepers and other rural workers he'd have been spotted by now if he was dead locally in the fields ??) nor do you believe he could be out there in the wilds, fending for himself totally unseen. Jacob is clever, but not that clever.

Further still you would like to hope that should someone have him, or know about his whereabouts they would be forthcoming by now with information, I can't believe for a second that someone would knowingly withold information, noone is that cruel surely?

I know we haven't and couldn't reach everyone, so it's quite possible actually he's sitting on someones comfy sofa getting loved. Rather that than dead in a field, but all the same

I just wish it was our sofa that's all. We so miss our boy.

Yesterday though, a strange thing happened.

We headed out in our car along the single track lane 5 minutes from our house, and saw 2 cars driving terribly slowly in convoy, and made in the distance ahead there was a gingery coloured dog in front of them, ambling slowly, winding across the road and back into the surrounding fields.

Shamefully these 2 cars passed this dog by revving up impatiently as they passed it.

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

Knowing this could have been Jacob, you'd have hoped someone would have stopped, but it just confirms that "not getting involved" mindset of people these days.

It's shockingly evident it exists.

We stopped nearby where he was in the field, and noticed he seemed in pain with his back, he was exhausted, painfully skinny, and was wary initially of us going too close.

He looked to us like he was a Lurcher (turned out he is a Lurcher x Saluki)

Half an hour later we managed to bring him within 10ft of us by just sitting quietly and not looking at him directly.

Probably another 4 or 5 cars passed by our awkwardly situated car (not far you can go on a single track road, and we didn't want to risk losing the dog in sight)

Not one of those drivers came to help, or even wound down their window to ask is it our dog, or did we need any help - quite frankly it's shameful how they just passed by.

15 minutes later we had a lead on him (phew!) and were off with this lovely friendly boy to our vets to check if he was chipped.

Sadly no chip, so after a good few hours, he was passed into the safe hands of a rescue centre where he would receive medical attention and a full check up, as well as much needed meal and some love.

Real Life Images

2009-03-31T05:59:00.000-07:00

Nothing to report as yet on any sightings from Welwyn, we are just hanging on every unknown call right now, hoping it'll be the lead we need there.

I thought I would add a note for those of you who have asked me recently if I have any video footage I can send in email.
Rather than me do that, I thought it would be a lot easier for you to look at the YouTube videos put on there some weeks ago.
If you go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1Ecg5Sjgmk&feature=related
there are a few videos on there of Jacob in different places, though I'll say here that perhaps they aren't very clear.
It may however give you a rough idea of size, colouring and gait etc.

I'll take a look in moment to see if I have any others I can add.

Good news for Ffion and Tim with perhaps fresh sightings of Sky in a familiar area.
We SO hope that it can prove to be him - boy that would be the greatest lift ever.
Good luck both, 'come on Sky, enough of that extended holiday, time to head home now'.

Jacob Houdini ?

2009-03-30T03:51:00.000-07:00

Apologies the late posting of news.
It's been (to say the least) a crazy, and somewhat very tiring week.
That is tiring both physically, and emotionally.

Before I waffle on and bring you up to date I have to say a huge Thank You to everyone who has emailed us and sent advice and support, it's truly amazing how many of you are out there just willing Jacob to be back home.

There are also many of you who are also looking for your lost pets, and I sympathise with you all knowing the heartache it brings.
It's been a (very scary) eye opener for us as to how big a business dog knapping is, it's incredible the lengths these thieves go to to get the dog they want, so please, please make sure your dog is microchipped, and take extra care leaving them in your garden if it's easily accessible to anyone. From the stories I read, there are no lengths a thief won't go to to get the pet it wants.
So beware. You really don't want to have to go through this nightmare, take it from me.

I have to mention a lady that has a blog that reaches out to lost pets everywhere, she is doing sterling work, so please support her where you are able, and take a look at her blog in case any of the pets there are ones you might have seen in your own area.
Lesley lost 2 cats, one of which is still missing, he is Sam and is missing from the Peterbrough area. Full details him are on her site below :

http://www.foundandlostpets.blogspot.com/

Thank You................

...............Back to Jacob's plight, well we have, as you know been on the trail of someone who has been seen with a dog very much described as being Jacob, this dog in question being walked in a park over in Welwyn Garden City.
I can tell you that now, as we have waited and waited, and waited some more for him to walk this dog, but have unfortunately not been lucky to see him no matter what time of day we've been there, and we've been there some odd hours I have to say.
The lovely lady who has initially informed us of this sighting in the first place, has herself been out too, as well as our brilliant friends, who have trailed themselves around the park in all weathers, in order to try to catch a glimpse of this fella and the dog.

Jon and I have been there too, most days, and all weekends up until Saturday.
So far none of us have seen this fella, which as disheartening as it is, is pretty strange too.
We wonder now if somehow he knows we are out looking ?
That said it's hard to know if he's been out or not, it's difficult to know as it's so easy to miss people.
A lady I spoke with on Saturday just gone, had said that some of the fisherman around the park are not all as nice as they might firstly seem, so we wonder now, that as we know the fella likes fishing, that perhaps one of them we discretely gave a flyer to last weekend had tipped him off we were out in force.
Who knows ........

It's fair to say that in the past 10 days not one of the regular walkers has seen him, and we did flyer many of them in the hope that one of them would catch a glimpse. So far nothing.
We can't understand it. Even the lady who initially called is bewildered too.
We do know that this fella had been ill, we know that through someone who vaguely knows him (but not well enough to tell us where he lives etc) so that kind of covers a few days last week.
We also know from this fella that the dog is constantly wanting to go out, so it makes us wonder, does he not have garden access, does he live in a flat or apartment ?
Seems noone has seem him around, which is extremely strange, as a dog needs a walk whatever time you have, be it a 10 minute trot round the block or a 2hr trek, they need a walk surely, and Jacob I know for a fact would drive you mad being cooped up all day without a run.

After spending more time around the park at W.G.C than we have done at home this past 10 days, on Saturday we grouped together some friends and decided that we would put flyers through the doors on the estate we believe he lives on, and also we also postered the whole of the park, and the surrounding areas.
If he is a kind man, then hopefully he will give us a call, even if it's to eliminate the dog he has if it's not Jacob. We just need to know, one way or another.
Right now, it's taking the emphasis off us doing anything elsewhere.

I'm assured that the fella we want to see is the sort of man who would want to do the right thing, and we're told he would not want to deny us our dog if it was Jacob, and that does reassure me a little that he may well ring us in time.
We heard that he bought the dog from Travellers, and that it was from a place called Dale Farm.
Of course we Googled Dale Farm in Welwyn, which only came up with a Dairy Crest depot, whose manager kind of laughed at us requesting info about any Travellers working there, or having been there at all.
Then the penny sort of dropped, and we remembered back to that original Googling and that it brought up a Travellers site called Dale Farm/Crays Hill in Billericay.
This is the Travellers site that is one of the largest in the UK, and is usually in much controversy over the ownership of land etc, and makes the news quite often I am told.
I am not saying they are bad people there, but could this be where this fella had 'found' Jacob ?

He apparently said that he 'got' him from a 'Dale Farm', so perhaps he was working nearby in Billericay, met up with travellers in the local pub, and got asked about the dog ?
Apparently it was chained up at a Travellers site, and that the Travellers said "So do you want it then or not, we can't do nothing with it, we've tried"
I daren't think what that means, but if this fella saw this dog chained up, and took pity upon it enough to hand over £100, and drive off with it, well in my eyes he can't be all bad can he.
Really, if it does turn out to be Jacob, then he did us a huge favour didn't he.

If he is reading this, and is worried, all we want to say to him is this.
"We just want to know if the dog you have is ours. Nothing more, nothing less. It's that simple. We aren't looking for any trouble, getting the police involved etc, we just want Jacob back if it's him, and the monies paid out by you will be suitably reimbursed.
We don't need any contact even. Just leave him with someone, a rescue centre - a friend of yours even, and let us know where to find him. Even a photo of him to 07828 671550 would be a good way for us to see if it's Jacob or not.
A local vet would be a good start if not, as Jacob is microchipped so they will see we are his legal owners. I hope you will do the right thing, for everyone's peace of mind, and to make this nightmare be over for us. Pure and simple, we just want our dog back, not any trouble that you might feel could come with that".

So, as you can see, there really is not much else for me to tell you, even though there is much going on, for the most part so far without result sadly.

We have now, as I said earlier, postered the park and surrounding area so that the public can do the work for us.
We will stay away for a while now, and take a step back to let things evolve naturally if they are going to.

We really hope that something good can come of the hours we've spent over there, the work we've left behind to do that.
Our emotions are running high right now, waiting to know if he's there, or whether the dog is Jacob or not. One way or another we will find out.
It's hard to move on from this until we know for sure. It's like mental torture as for a second there we felt we had him in our sights, but as time moves on the tunnel of light just keeps getting darker and darker........
Someone must know something surely, and I hope that they will step forward and tell us any information they know regardless of how irrelevant they feel it is.
The posters and the flyers have to do some of the work for us now.
We just have to wait and be patient ................ again.

All good things, come to those that wait.....apparently

2009-03-24T14:44:00.000-07:00

Ahhh such a tired boy in this photo
When he's that tired, we always joke that he's got the 'hoody's on', as his eyes just drop like stones and he curls up like a cat, and looks so lovely - !

Again, can I start my blog by Thanking everyone for their support, for both logistical and physical help these past few days, you all astound us as to your willingness to help. THANK YOU !

Well, the past few days have passed us by in a whirlwind of rushing about and travelling to and from the place where he was seen with this man last week.

We've spent countless hours wandering about this place in the sheer hope that one of us would come across this fella and be able to see what dog he had acquired.

So far though, no luck, despite 5 of us being out at all times of the day and night.

It's utterly frustrating, but we know we have to be patient, and as they say all good things come to those who wait.

Well, blimey, I think we've waited long enough Thank You very much.

Reward time for good behaviour if you please.

The curiosity of wanting to know if this dog is Jacob is making us ill, we are both feeling crappy these past few days.

I think that unbeknown to you at the time, the stress levels rising and the anxious feelings you have, and I suspect coupled with lack of sleep, eventually, well it's going to catch up and take it's toll. Right now I feel I could curl up and just sleep and cry !

As much as we try to stay strong, just sometimes I feel like I want to have the most awful outburst, and shout and scream outloud "WHY US" ! Hell maybe one day I will !

I know for a fact that we have put far too much emphasis on hoping this can be Jakey, and for everyone involved it's hard too, including the lady who told us about him in the 1st place - it must be worrying for her as she knows how desperate we are for it to be Jacob - of course we are excited, but also we are not naive enough to think that it could also not be him, and for that noone would be to blame.

This lovely lady who helped us, and was kind enough to come forward in the very 1st place (whereby some would have just turned a blind eye) is seriously unwell too, and bless her heart she's been out and about, hour upon hour trying to locate this fella and dog.

So, I really should stop feeling so sorry for myself, buck up my ideas and carry on.

Another good vibe we have in the pipeline is that we might be able to get some tv coverage, which in itself would be fantastic to highlight both Jacob's being missing but also Sky, Ffion and Tim's lovely Lab.

It's an angle we hope to 'sell' to the media, and we just hope that if we can locate both of our boys, none of that will be needed.

Poor Ffion and Tim were welcomed back into the arms of the UK after 2 relaxing weeks in Japan and New Zealand, by their phones ringing off the hook with sightings of black labs, mostly ones which unfortunately were not Sky.

I really feel for them, they are tired, jetlagged, and having to carry out their stressful jobs 12 hrs after stepping foot back onto UK soil.

I hope something good comes from all the calls you two.

You can see their blog to locate their missing Lab here http://skyisstillmissing.blogspot.com/

Thinking aloud about our current search, I think that maybe this 'search for man and dog' scenario will take a week, maybe two before it's concluded with one of us seeing the fella and said dog, and I pray more than anything that it's concludes with us taking home another gingery passenger.

Between us all we'll continue the search, we'll not give up for a moment.

Come home soon Jakey boy, to your fresh duvets, drinks from taps, and lots of love and cuddles from your family.

The beginning of the end of a nightmare ?????

2009-03-20T15:22:00.000-07:00

Hunting high and low

2009-03-20T13:41:00.000-07:00

I wanted to add this photo as it occurred to me today that we have never showed a photo of the top of Jacob's head.
The 2 'diamonds/paint splodges' on the top of his head are quite distinguishable, so it's good to show them clearly here, just in case it helps.

I think firstly I have to make my apologies for the lack of posts in the last 5 days.

It's been very hard not to bring you up to date, but the news we have to update this blog with should always be so that you can know what we have done and by doing that, ultimately what we achieved from it.

Firstly at the start of the week, we had information given to us that suggested that Jacob was with the local hunts people/terriermen.

I now those of you have followed us in Jacob's search will know that we have had calls before to the same tune, but this time we had a little more credible information, and some that had some weight to them in their suggestion. I can't be more specific at this point as I have to make consideration that perhaps, just perhaps, whoever has our boy could well be reading this just as you are now.

I just can't risk too much detail as it could well perhaps endanger his life, the very thing we fear most.

I don't think it would ever come to that, and forgive me for sounding so dramatic, but it's difficult (and as much a I want to share everything) I have to be careful this week to not take on specifics.

Please therefore forgive me for that. I will of course, once this is all explored and fully investigated tell you what has been going on. Hopefully it will be good news, we so, so hope so.

So, back to the beginning of the week, and on a bright Monday morning we found ourselves driving round all the local (and not so local) hunt kennels, just to satisfy ourselves that Jacob was not there, or being held by them accidentally, or for whatever purpose intended.

I have always maintained they had no reason to keep our dog.

They have their own breeding programmes and on the travels around we met some of those involved who did explain that breeding a dog like Jacob, a HPR, to a hound, it was not guaranteed that any puppies resulting to be born, would have that naturally occurring instinct as their own hounds would have. It would be therefore deemed too risky, and I for one would accept that as fair reason for them to not have him.

All the same we were offered at one of the local hunts, a look around which we did, and although the rest we visited seemed somewhat nervous at our arrival, they were happy to talk to us about Jacob, and took our posters stating they'd call if they saw him.

We couldn't ask for more than that really under the circumstances.

After all I am sure they get saboteur's arriving on their doorsteps, and that would account for their nervous approach and standoffish behaviour.

We made sure that we postered the areas on route too, so that was another 100 or so posters were put out even further afield.

Driving along at lunchtime, I think we had a call from the teenager who called with her sweet apology some 24hrs earlier.

Obviously thinking a little more than before, she decided she'd withhold her number this time (police say this is actually still reversible so good to know for the future should we need to trace any calls)

I am not sure (and won't apologise if it's not her as once bitten and all that)....but she put on the same accent a I remembered from before, and then as soon as she waited for me to answer, my silence obviously annoyed her, as it materialised that she had, and was playing up to her teenage audience (how very grown up she was!) and they proceeded to 'egg' her on to "put her on speaker phone" and loudly shouted out "we've got you do-o-og" whereby I rang off.

Idiots.

I am sure I was never so cruel as a teenager.

Monday evening was rounded off nicely for us by another text, a different number this time, and simply said "we just saw your dog".

Oh happy days...just what you need before bedtime.

Stupid as it is, it affects you, I can't explain why, but it does. I am sure whoever wrote that would take joy in reading me write that, but I think all that's gone on this week, it has helped us lick our wounds and move on with our heads held high.

Wednesday evening this week came a huge (possible) breakthrough. I had a call from a lovely lady who had said she had taken regular daily walks in a park about an hour from us, had been doing these walks for a long time (won't mention the place for reasons that will become apparent) and had obviously come to meet regular dog walkers in that time.

She had met a guy that used to have a dog until a few months ago, and sadly that dog had died, and hence he hadn't been going for walks any more......

Until last week.

He had acquired a new dog, he had bought for £100 from travellers.

The description this lady has given matches Jacob in almost every way possible, and of course would make sense why he has not been seen locally for almost 8 weeks.

He could have been passed pillar to post and eventually ended up in the hands of this man, and as much as I am pleased/relieved he is perhaps with, what seems to be from information we have, a caring person, we are absolutely out of our minds with worry about getting him back.

The lady who offered us this vital information (I won't name her here) told us times he was seen walking the dog in question, and where abouts he walked it.

She kindly looked at this blog and said that the top photo (as was) of Jacob in the hay bag, really looked like the dog she'd seen.

She mentioned his silky soft ears, his ginger colouring (very orange) and his freckles.

This coupled with the height issues etc.

She even said the man who had said dog, mentioned how when he lit a fire, he was so close to it he was almost in it ! (anyone knowing Jacob knows how he adores fires, and lies as close as he can without physically being burnt alive!)

I felt physically sick after I heard all of this, my heart felt like we had a chance again.

It was a fantastic feeling after such awful, awful weeks.

The description she gave to us and the mannerisms felt so close to Jacob that when she was describing him, I could almost feel and touch him. It is without doubt the closest thing we've ever had. We both felt sick with anticipation when we spoke to this lady that evening, and came away desperate to know more.......is it him, IS IT HIM.

The lady said she would walk the same time as she had seen him that day, as the man with the dog said he'd be around about that time.

She would take a photo and text it to us from her phone.

We Thanked her and agreed we'd wait for that to come.

It would be a long night ahead.

Unfortunately, for whatever reason, he didn't turn up at the park that day (Thursday), and as desperate as we were, we had to wait for her to let us know when he did.

She texted us to not worry, and that sometimes he'd go about 3pm, so we waited anxiously all day, but again no show.

I don't know if Tiva our eldest Spin senses all of what's going on here, but yesterday she became very ill, off her food, sick, and very depressed.

Anyone that knows us well, knows that poor Tiva, being the eldest Spin has seen in the last 2 years, 4 of her doggie mates die (3 in 4 months) or (as of now) 1 go off not to come back.

It's taken some calming and reassurance that going into the car or another dog going out of the door, and her being left home, doesn't mean they aren't coming back for good.

She is a sensitive soul is Tiva, a dog in a million just like her litter Brother Ollie our epileptic.

We saw Tiva decline over Thursday and eventually passing lots of blood, so we had to rush her to the vets, who prescribed her as having a high temperature of 104, and possibly a gastro bug of sorts.

She was given a huge injection of antibiotics intravenously, pre-biotic paste to bring home and more pill form antibiotics.

We decided (against better judgement possibly!) she would stay in our bedroom so we could keep an eye on her, but my goodness, it was like sharing a bed with a kicking hippo !

On the bed, in the bed, out of the bed, and start all over again......awhhhhh

She snored then moaned, and i'd rub her tummy, and then prop myself up on one arm rubbing her tummy over and over as she moaned, me trying not to fall asleep

I woke like i'd done a 10hr flight - zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz !

Today we went over to this park ourselves, and had help from 2 lovely friends who live pretty closely. Between us we had a wander round one side and us the other.

We finally came home all of us, after not seeing any dog vaguely familiar after a few hours walking.

I don't think he had been there.

The lady texted us afterwards to say her dog walking friends had seen him much earlier than we had been there, so we'd missed him.

Damn it !

So, again we have to wait for this lady to be able to show us a photo, or ring us with more information having spoken to the man with the dog.

We hope to get over the this place at some point tomorrow, so we can resume the search, we can't rest knowing this dog exists as a possibility as being ours.

We need this nightmare to be over, and over soon.

It's taking it's toll on us, especially after this week, it's been absolutely awful to say the least.

The call on Wednesday evening brought us so much hope, hope were scared of wishing into, but we can't help it. We need that optimism to keep us sane.

It's the photo we need really, we dream of it being our boy more than anything we've ever wished for. We feel so close, so very close.

We are not trying to raise our hopes too much, we of course could be heading for an almighty fall, we know that.

One way or another we need to see this dog ourselves and rule it out, or bring home Jacob.

We'll keep you posted as to the findings of course.

Once we know either way, things will become much clearer and obviously slightly less cryptic. We desperately wanted to flyer all the people at the park today, many fisherman probably could hold clues, but we shall wait, but soon we'll put up posters, but we can't do that just yet.

We don't want to scare this man off for fear of what he could do with Jacob if he feels hunted.

I am sure he'll be reasonable, i'm told by the lady who called he's a nice chap, so fingers crossed if it is Jacob that we can work things out easily, he is ours after all.

Fingers/toes and paws all crossed for a photo tomorrow.

Panic over

2009-03-15T13:19:00.000-07:00

This photo reminded me how lovely natured and what a clown Jacob is.
We'd moved some hay and put it into a rubble bag, only to look around 10 minutes later to find he'd made his very own nest and lay quite happily in it, legs tucked in tight, very comfy indeed !

Out of the quiet that was yesterday came the shock call from the mobile phone number we have desperately been trying to trace, and that was in the hands of the Essex Police, and a few other people helping us track down the caller to ensure she/they didn't have Jacob.

At 6.23pm last night, just as we were finishing working in the garden Jon's mobile rang and he immediately noticed the number.

Answering the phone he was greeted by a youngish sounding girl, maybe 15 years of age who proceeded to say that she had spoken to me last week, and was very sorry for all the trouble she had caused by not answering and not texting us back.

Poor Jon was in shock, he was very angry and did well to control his emotions knowing that this girl had rang us claiming to have Jacob, deliberately cut us off, turned off her mobile and then not another word. This girl went on and said she thought she had seen Jacob in Debden near her home there, and that the next day she saw the dog in question again only this time with someone being walked. It wasn't Jacob after all, it was a villagers dog.

Jon questioned her about the dog she saw, and they agreed it definitely was not him. More over he told her that she had caused an utter furore with her actions, lots of stress and worry for us as we thought she had him, and quite frankly could have been anywhere for all we knew.

She continued to apologise, and I think Jon almost felt sorry for her as this joke of hers (and possibly her friends) had somewhat seriously backfired on them bigtime. He said that she should now call Paul Webb at Essex Police and tell him what she had told us.

So in a 4 minute phone call, the answer to who the person was on the end of that call last Monday was answered.

I don't know whether we were relieved or disappointed not to be moving further ahead, maybe getting a call saying he's been dropped of at so and so, and we'd be bringing him home. Most of all I guess we are just over the moon that we've solved the mystery and can stop worrying ourselves half to death who this lady (or as it materialises, girl) was, and why she had evaded us for almost a week. Silly, stupid girl, she should feel utterly ashamed.

Other than that we've been inundated with kindness as far as the tracing of that caller, we've had calls from people who don't know us from Adam, and who felt they would help us in one way or another with help and advice as to how to go about tracing the call, or by them doing it for us. THANK YOU to you all for your utter kindness, it goes without saying that we are grateful for taking the time and effort to call us.

So, after a huge sigh, where do we go from here ?

Well, we'll dust ourselves off and pick ourselves up and carry on again in a new direction. Moving the search further afield would be a good idea, and we need to start to tackle making people in larger cities around the UK aware that we have a missing dog. If they hadn't read the national newspaper coverage back on the 9th February, well they would be none the wiser that he was missing so we need to readdress this in a big way, and try to get TV coverage and or more national press coverage.

We need to target a much wider audience somehow, I just need to work out how !

If there's nothing else there's HOPE

2009-03-13T05:40:00.000-07:00

First off I have to Thank everyone for their kind wishes and hopes for the phone call drama.
We have had no luck so far tracing this ladies mobile, but have 'people in high places' who are doing their best to find out and offer us a location at the very least.
There are so many people willing to raise the profile for us, we've had such kindness these past few weeks what with companies displaying Jacob's poster at Crufts, and now companies sending his appeal to their customers.
One lady Sam emailed yesterday and said she would send to 2000 people, another Dave, to 900 people, it's just amazing how people rally to offer us help.
The dog loving public are a nation like no other.

Tim, you made me think after reading you comment, you are right and I hadn't began to perhps peice it all together like you had, and it may well be there's another angle to that call after all.

To be honest, I have all sorts of possible scenario's playing out in my head, have done for the past few days, and isn't it always the middle of the night when they are at there most vivid !
I have this vision of a gang of people, they are keeping Jacob, and this one woman had seen the beautiful, gentle side to Jacob as he lay shaking and frightened in a corner somewhere.
Consequently she decided to throw us an olive branch in finding him, but got caught out.

I know, I know, all very dramatic, and somewhat far fetched, but there's just something about that call that niggles us, something that makes us need to know it was a hoax.
Apparently people who get great joy out of hoaxing for whatever the reason don't give out readily their mobile number. It kind of dampens the flames they like to ignite.
Kills their joy at knowing that the person at the other end of the phone can't reach them, they become the all important unreachable. They know the worry, hurt and desperation playing out, and live on enjoying that vision in their minds.
Quite frankly they are bloody sick, no other word for them, they need serious help.

Apart from that, we've had a call back from the lady from Broxted, having asked her Son to view the blog and the website http://www.adoredpaws.com/ to see more photo's of Jacob, he thinks it isn't him. Damn it ! Just as we had high hopes again after such a long pause, it's dampened.
Never mind, as this lady rightly pointed out, it doesn't mean it's not definitely him, they just don't think so.
Stranger things have happened, and after all, it was dark.
We will have to wait and see if the dog they saw re-appears and they are allowed a good look at him. I guess only then can we categorically say it wasn't Jacob and move on.

Someone asked me the other day if I thought Jacob was dead, having sadly perished earlier on in the bad weather.
I wasn't shocked to be asked this as some people do ask, and as much as it makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end, i'm glad of their honesty if that's what they are thinking.
All I can say is that I really don't know. Jon and I aren't naive enough to think that this isn't a possibility, of course we'd be stupid to think that would not/could not have been why he hasn't been seen for 6-7 weeks.
There is a possibility this is what occurred, but how will we know until someone finds his body (if it's identifiable) I just don't know.
I guess knowing Jacob, he is a fighter, he is a savvy, cheeky chap with an incredible intelligence other breeds can only dream of.
He isn't frightened of people, or dogs, and if that weather had been coming in, I would like to feel that rather than him suddenly having gone feral in a matter of days, and been skulking about like a fox darting from being spotted, he would have been doing what 'Jacob's' do and making himself known.
It's why Jon and I wonder if he was picked up very early on.It kind of makes sense really.
The snow came about 10 days after he went missing, so there was plenty of time for him to be suddenly found to be in the wrong hands.
I always said in the snow that he would be spotted if he was out there to be seen surely, but nothing materialised, it's not to say he wasn't 'holed up' knowing it really was the safest thing to do, but believe me, we spent more than a few nights cooped up in Chez Explorer, and every day and night for 3 weeks, driving and walking around when most folks were cosied up by a roaring fire.
I am sure the repetition would have given us a glimpse ?
Who knows !
Right time, wrong place - all plays a part in this nightmare I am sure.

Saying that we then of course question how someone would suddenly find him, pick him up, and it be the wrong person.....I mean what's the chances of that happening.
Well according to Doglosts stories, and others i've had emailed, pretty high actually.

The thing about this whole Jacob missing scenario is we just don't know where he is, if he is alive still, if he's out in the fields somewhere local, or far away from home.
Is he sitting enjoying cake on someones sofa being loved and cared for (and not wanted to be given back) or is he in some remote rescue centre somewhere, chip not working and ready for rehome (oh blimey, please no)

I just don't know. I wish I did, I really do.
The only one thing I do know for sure and that's one thing is keeping us going right now and that's a four letter word ........HOPE.

Visit to the dark side

2009-03-11T01:03:00.000-07:00

Strange two days here.....

From the silence comes the mania......

Monday saw us get a call from a European sounding woman who started to say "Hello, I have your dog, Jacob the Italiano Bracco" shocked and excited I replied "oh really", to which she continued "Yes I think so" - just as I was replying to her, the phone crackled and went dead. Tried ringing the mobile number she called on back - straight to the answerphone (T-Mobile) Oh damn it I thought - bad signal area no doubt, so consequently sat with phone in hand for 30 mins thinking she was running after him, trying to get him for us.

An hour passed, still going onto answerphone, that's was okay, she was probably by now with him at the vets, maybe he was hurt.

2 hrs went by, where could she be ? Maybe her battery was flat ?
Still going to answerphone.

Next morning after a sleepless night (and still trying the mobile at silly o'clock) Jon rang the phone 7am, only for it to ring 8 times and then someone abort it to answerphone. Damn it.

Was this our 1st hoaxer as Jon had predicted 5 minutes after the very first call ?

All day, between the 6 Jacob detectives we rang, including the police, who are now in the process of tracing the call to locate the caller to take action. I even texted the mobile to say, if you have our boy, please let him go to somewhere where you can tell us to pick him up, or if it's about the reward, no questions asked.

Also are you someone who did this as a joke, if so just text to say. We won't bother you again.

What a day :-( MANIC ! Guess if this was our first hoaxer, we just weren't ready for how how it would hit us, and I have to say here, how the hell can someone think it would be funny I will never know. I won't swear here, but they are callous beyond words.

If it is a hoaxer, they might need to change their number, as I seem to have become very addicted to that number for some reason, it could be nice to have to ring it over and over (and over)....I too enjoy a good 'laugh' you see !

Last night about 8pm a lady from Broxted called to say her son was walking their Boxer and Dog De Bordeaux, in a field behind their house and where their horses were in the paddock.

They were confronted by a dog that went bouncing in to her dogs, and also then was annoying her horses. Of course Jon's reaction was that Jacob was very friendly, and would never try to annoy anyone, but then we have to remember, he's (if it is him) been out there 2 months now, and maybe not quite so 'Jacob-like' anymore. It suddenly occurred to us that should we get him back, we might have some difficult issues to contend with in order to return him to his 'Jacobness'.
The dog her son saw was in between the 2 breeds they have, so size would be about right, he was orange and white, and mostly white on the chest. All good descriptions of Jacob.
He went around them, and then off towards Thaxted direction.
We went storming over there, walked the fields behind this ladies house, and then the others directly opposite and around the area, we were out there til late, but saw nothing at all.

It was a lovely night as it's a full moon, and was like someone left a lightbulb on, quite good to see. Especially for me, i'm someone who literally goes blind in the dark and will trip over my own feet !

We'll go back there in an hour to resume the search and speak with the lady at her house for more details if she's in.
It could be Jacob, who knows, maybe the 'hoax' Monday was a call to 'suss' us out, maybe they got scared after all the calls yesterday, and now the police are involved, we have to follow this all up - just because it could be him.
We have to leave no stone unturned in our search for our boy, if it's him, and he's been out for almost 2 months in the depths of winter, he deserves to be found doesn't he.

Calm after the storm

2009-03-09T03:59:00.000-07:00

When I found this photo to put on the blog this morning it made me smile.
Just because I remember taking it like it was yesterday. Jacob had found a bunch of fake Gerbera's I was throwing away and took great delight at throwing them around the living room floor, catching them and whooping and singing with delight as he paraded round like he'd got a t-bone !
He is so funny sometimes, the silliest things with him turn into huge hilarity for everyone else and he just can't see what the fuss is all about, or why it's oh so funny for us !
He is the clown here, goofy as they come.
Of course it's photo's like these that are constant reminders of what it is that's missing from our home, and what encourages us to carry on to find and bring him back so we can enjoy the same again.

Seeing Jacob's Sister Diva at Crufts also brought home to us how much we missed him.
Diva looks very much like her Brother and seeing her made me crumble.
I was sorry to do that so early on, and more especially as I had promised I would hold it together, but well, Diva just threw me off course !
I was glad to shed a little emotion though, I think it really helped to be able to do that quietly with Cathy and Diva.

As per usual, Crufts went by in a haze of craziness.
The PD's were there in force, handing out flyers, postering them onto walls where we could, hoping they'd remain there for all to see. I was happy to hear that they were still there yesterday on the final day. Thanks to Donna and Jane for adding more flyers to the benches after everyone else had gone home. I think with the audience that Crufts brings - we pretty much covered every angle there that we could possibly cover.
Now comes the hard bit, we have to wait, maybe some time for the penny to drop that someone has seen him, maybe with someone, maybe out in a field, near a road, being walked, maybe they remember something, anything that we can put together and finally find that all important missing piece of this jigsaw.

We were pleased to see more posters on stalls than we expected. Some were quite obscured by their own stand paraphernalia (how dare they lol !) but some most prominently displayed, and some even pride of place. Thanks to Dog Theft Action especially, and John Paul Pet stall holders who even had his poster in a crystal frame right next to their till. It's because of people like them who helped that we might find some information comes our way.
As for us PD's, if there was a blank wall, we postered it ! Some were swiftly removed by staff, whilst others in differing halls were kindly left.
I guess we just have to remember, not all staff there are dog lovers just because it's a dog show, and of course there are some who are just 'job's worths ! Shame on them !
Most people were willing to help, and most people we gave flyers to took them and walked away reading them.
It was lovely to manage to meet up with the ever helpful Geraldine (Cove-Print), who we had our beautiful Rosie from some 10 years ago now. To see 'Geezer' strutting his stuff still was a lovely moment, what a handsome boy he is, and very much had the 'kind' look about him that made us love his Sister so.

It's now a wait and see game again, time to allow people to read the flyers they probably chucked into pockets or bags at the show -
I know I haven't had time to read anything I brought back yet.....
So, we just have to remain patient, but pro-active.

Good to read Tim and Ffion managed to make it to Tokyo, and now onto NZ without too many airport staff casualties resulting in the fight for Ffion to be dragged onto the flight ! ;-)
Enjoy your break you two, I am sure you need it, and it'll do you the world of good.
The Sky PD's (pet detectives!) will continue their hard work in your absence I am sure of that.

Us, well we'll carry on too, one day at a time and armed with enough ideas and stamina, we will all now be thinking of what to do next, what action plan we can take to keep the Jacob home campaign fires firmly alight.

New campaign

2009-03-03T11:10:00.001-08:00

After the activity of the weekend, and the lack of anything else as far as sightings go, i've been putting on my pro-active head in order to get the publicity machine back in full swing.

Knowing that we have Crufts coming up, and how much we are looking forward to seeing all of our friends (and fur friends), it suddenly dawned on me that there is an opportunity to be had there. A real audience to be told that our dog is still missing.An opportunity not to be overlooked.

So, hot chocolate at the ready, and wrist poised, I went to the website for Crufts, clicked on the exhibitors page, and hall by hall emailed every single stall holder, from Arden Grange to Pet Boutiques.

I think all in all I sent nearly 420 emails, and had an astonishing response from then emailing me back, telling me how very sorry they were that Jacob was missing and that "yes absolutely" they would display his poster on their stand. RESULT !

Fantastic ! My aching wrist, and headache for sitting emailing straight for 6 hrs was very much worth it !

On the back of those emails I can only hope that coupled with the missing posters on many stands, and our joint effort in offering out flyers to every single person we meet, I just hope more than anything that someone sees the information about Jacob and remembers something.

A neighbour who mysteriously has a new dog but is cagey about it's origins?

A dog someone has seem roaming about in their area many times (wherever that be),

someone acting suspiciously with a uncooperative or perhaps frightened dog,

just something that could lead to us seeing our lovely boy come home.

I am sure that someone knows something. I don't believe that a dog can mysteriously not have been seen, not for almost 5 weeks straight without anyone knowing something.

Please tell me that this world hasn't become so hostile and uncaring that the general public would rather walk away from a dog seen wandering than calling someone, anyone, to make them aware of it perhaps being lost or in danger.

This quiet, this awful quiet always sets our minds wandering.

The luxurious allowance of deep thought and contemplation isn't something we relish.

The mind can play out many 'what if's', and can (if allowed) end up making us just so distraught with those scenario's racing through our minds, that is can be difficult to not think the worse has happened to him.

We of course aren't naive enough to not know that this is a possibility, but then so is the fact that either he's out in there on a huge adventure, or he's with someone being fed cake and digestives whilst perched on a comfy sofa. I just want that to be our comfy sofa !

Quite frankly, we'd much rather be out there, hot on a fresh lead, driving round an area, hoping, really hoping this will very much be 'J' day.

I'm hopeful the 'Cruft's campaign' can realise some information for us. I'm excited at the prospect.

I have to mention Ffion and Tim, as they head off to New Zealand for a few weeks, we can only hope that now that you have dared to step out of the comfort zone, that boy of yours will decide it's party over, time for warm log fires, and snuggly blankets 'Thank You very much'.

I do so hope that come a few weeks down the line, the souvenir Sky brings back from his travels will be just himself :-)

Have a wonderful trip guys, you so deserve it.

Mistaken Identity 3

2009-03-01T11:25:00.000-08:00

Stop Press ! -

I should have said in my blog last night that the Beagle was actualy owned by a nearby house, and was not in need of us rescuing it !
Just for those that asked lol !
-------------------------------------------------------

It's been a frustrating weekend here in Essex.

Yesterday (Saturday) we had a call whilst we were out towards Newmarket postering, a man had left a message on Jon's mobile stating he was certain he had seen Jacob whilst he was out running near Farnham, Bishops Stortford way.

Unfortunately due to the rubbish signal, Jon's mobile went straight to voicemail, so we only knew about the call, some 5 minutes after it was received. DAMN !

Tried to call this chappy back, but to no avail.

Sensibly he had left us exacting instructions as to where he was when he had seen the dog in question, so we downed our staple gun, and hot footed it to Bishops Stortford, trying more times than was acceptable to get this guy on his mobile to confirm what he saw, and to start the usual interrogation of height, colour, ear length, and tail etc etc ........

It took us some 30 minutes to get to Bishops Stortford and by this time we'd rallied a few friends on 'standby', just in case they were needed.
Finally, and hour after the initial call the man called back. Phew !

Jon's interrogation was in force, no the dog was most definitely not a greyhound (wow!) he had long floppy ears (double wow!), and was very much orange and white, certainly not brindle (heart palpitations!)

So....armed with what seemed to be the best description ever, and the man having only been some 20 yards away from the dog in question, we set out, armed with the info and determined that this would be 'J' day, and and end to this ongoing nightmare.

Off on foot, we all search through one side of the area, split up and for an hour wandered around, calling his name and whistling. Nothing.

We re-grouped, and then some of us set over the road and around a small wooded area, where Jon went on ahead at speed like a man possessed, only to have an intense 'feeling' that there had been, or was dog in the area.

He went on in front of us all, and around the dip in the woods, almost like a huge den, he saw a head.....orange and white, floppy ears, and then it went back out of view. OMG !
His heart racing, he stood, quietly, still, careful not to scare whoever it was.

A few minutes later, the dog re-appeared, this time in full, a Beagle came wandering out, oblivious, wagging it's tail happy to see him, as if to say "nice to meet you, but what's the welcome party for ?"

DEEP SIGH......It wasn't Jacob :-(

Mobiles at the ready we called everyone, and so we all made our way back to the cars, down and disheartened. Damn it !

Still, at least we managed to rule that out rather quickly.
If we hadn't have just stumbled across the dog then, we'd most probably have been out all night and today, as the description was too good to overlook.

He did have it pretty much right though. The dog was orange and white (and brown) floppy ears, and I guess to the untrained eye could be mistaken for our boy.
What a kind man he was to have run home, then get in his car and drive to a poster for the number to call us.
If there were hundreds out there like him, things may well be different right now.
Thanks Chris.

Poor Jon, his heart must have been beating SO fast having sighted that Beagle.

His words to me in the car as we quietly drive home, heads low, was how he just wanted to turn that Beagle into Jacob, it was not fair it wasn't him. He felt nothing short of being mentally mugged. I think i'll always remember us driving home, holding hands across the handbrake, me desperately trying not to cry every time he tightened his hold as if to silently say "don't worry, we'll get him" without actually saying one single word.....

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Sunday, well today we've been following some information given to us from Grace and her Mum, two lovely, caring and very giving people who are trying to locate Jacob for us.
They have given so much to the search, just as Joanne has, and between them all they continue to offer us hope, strength and support just when we are at our lowest ebb.
We can't Thank them enough.

Right now having been over towards Haverhill, and Steeple Bumpstead postering, we hope that if he is out towards that way, he can be spotted now, and those spotting him can know he is missing. Farmers are out ploughing, kids are out playing football with Dad's, Mum's driving to Sainsbury's....people are out and about -
Seems as much as we concern ourselves about people not knowing about Jacob's missing status, for the most part, each person we've handed flyers to or stopped on their walks already know.

I think if someone saw him, hopefully we'll eventually get to know.
It may be a week, or maybe even three weeks later, but hopefully we'll get to know.
We just need that ONE fresh sighting, or call to say someone knows where he's at.

We live in hope that the posters, and publicity will bring our gorgeous boy home.

It just HAS to.

All quiet on the Jacob front :-(

2009-02-26T14:33:00.000-08:00

We seem to have come to a silent pause here in Jacob-Land.

After the buzz that was Monday and Tuesday, and having those 2 sightings in Bishops Stortford it now materialises after many (many) long and drawn out phones calls between the Police, dog warden, and numerous rescues, that the dog that could have been sighted as Jacob on those 2 occasions, was in fact a brindle greyhound......

The dog warden assures me that there are two loose and have been on the run for many weeks in the area Jacob was apparently sighted.

After letting out a rather huge and somewhat disappointed SIGH, we dusted ourselves off and with stiff upper lip decided to start a new plan of action.....I think we must on Plan E or F by now !

Having postered all the areas locally and the towns beyond, we really don't know what else to do, we feel helpless and guilty just sitting doing nothing, so have decided that our next campaign at Jacob HQ will be for Crufts.

We'll get ready hundreds of laminates that we can ask stall-holders to display, and also print off 1000 flyers to hand out to passers by.

As much as it will be an emotional reunion with all of our friends (and their gorgeous Spinoni and Bracco) at Crufts, we know deep in our hearts that it is an opportunity not to be missed, so brave faces firmly in place, we shall go into battle and poster and flyer the British public to our hearts content.

Who knows what people know or are privy to as far as information goes, there most certainly might be someone living next door to someone else who has mysteriously just got a 'new' dog -

Stranger things have happened and we may get a valid lead from our efforts.

We look forward to seeing all of our wonderful helpers and those people who have offered us so much support these last few weeks (and it has to be said over the past few years too for the other 'upsets' which I won't go into here)

I know for sure there will be many Thanks to give out to you all. Waterproof mascara is a must for me that day I think !

We have to give a mention here to Ffion and Tim who right now are in the middle of exciting times where Sky's sightings are concerned. Having brought in a trap on loan from Martin Soar (Thanks Martin) they are now waiting to see if their boy has finished his adventure and is ready to come home. I am sure it's his turn now for reunion and we have fingers and paws crossed for you both for some fabulous news this week

As for us, we we will await our turn as patiently as we possibly can, and know that it will come.

As the PD's keep telling me.....

..............Positive thoughts, positive thoughts

Just like buses.....

2009-02-24T10:57:00.000-08:00

......you wait and wait and then 2 come along at once !

We had our second call today, a lady called saying she thinks she saw him in the car park of a children's play barn in Birchanger, Bishops Stortford on Wednesday 18th Feb around 7pm.

She said she was sure it was him, he was tall, very, very skinny, and orange and white.

She saw him on her way past initially, as she was travelling towards the airport at Stansted.

On her return back past the same road half an hour later, he was still there (oh how I wish we knew that - that is SO painful to know)

She said this time she got out to see if he would come to her, but as she had 2 young children in the car couldn't make a chase for him.

She also said she remembered his eyes, and thinks it was him having seen a poster yesterday.

The lady said he ran off towards the car sales place just across the road to the play barn, and then disappeared.

Jon came hurtling back from work about 11.30am and we gathered 120 laminated posters and 100 flyers and went off to the area. We have literally postered the whole place and surrounding villages to within an inch of our lives !

Now we have to sit, and wait......

I really hope that someone sees the posters in the next few days.

Surely one person only couldn't have seen him.

The road is the main road through to both Stansted, Stansted Airport and Cambridge, so people would be going through there all hours of the day and night.

Again, we are at the mercy of the public, and all we can do is hope for that call.

We have called the local police, dog warden, Homebase, children's play barn, Focus DIY, car sales lot, BMW garage all of which are in the direct vicinity of the sighting.

The JD's (our name for the 5 Jacob Detectives!) have been keenly emailing and calling everyone from taxi companies to dog trainers this afternoon.

Once we get a call, those JD's act with military haste, whilst we get out and search and poster, to have such dedication and help from these girlies, well, they are just brilliant.

As I said earlier, now we just have to sit patiently (yeah right) and wait for the calls -

Much the same scenario is playing out for Ffion and Tim with their missing Labrador Sky.......

3 calls today, something that no doubt would have had them reaching the ceiling with hope, but sadly all were about a dog which seems reliant of dashing their hopes. ROCKY !

I wish Rocky's owners would keep their dog from wandering.

Keep the faith you two, we'll share that champagne once our boys have found their way back from the Dogs Club on Mars....!

Wratting affair ?

2009-02-23T09:58:00.000-08:00

We've not long had a call from a lady stating that she saw a dog that she really thought was Jacob along the Balsham/Wratting road.
This was going back to roughly the 29th Jan. The lady thinks it was a Thursday and near the end of the month. If it was the previous Thursday, then lost hunt dog may have been who she saw.

She and a lorry stopped in their cars, and she said she saw 'him' face on, he was very muddy and tall and slim build.

She said she would have stopped and tried to catch him if she'd have known, but she couldn't as she had her son in the car.
Jon was quick to ask her if she could be confusing the dog she saw with a hunt dog, as we have still had those 'sightings' nearby this area. He also asked if she could remember if the dog had a tail, which she couldn't sadly.

The main call from that way some 3.5 weeks back eventually led us to the hunt people stating the dog that a lady and another driver had caught was theirs.

It was duly collected the same evening from the house it was dropped off at, and therefore not logged as missing.

We've left messages again with the hunt people, in the hope we can find out for sure what happened there.

Of course this would be another 'hunt' dog if not Jacob as the dates of the other dog don't coincide.

We have already postered that area well, and so know that it's covered, but we'll drive out there again tonight and have a wander about.
It's a long time ago, so we're clutching at straws again, and of course as there are weekly hunt meets, it might another hunt dog after all. BUT then it could be Jacob.

We just have to keep an open mind......
I just wish these calls weren't getting reported weeks after sightings, (though we're grateful they do call of course) ...it's just they are a little stale and past there due date by the time you get them, but do help to piece together another part of the jigsaw.
We just crave that FRESH sighting now, or a call from someone who knows something about his whereabouts.
Fingers crossed

**********************************

Stop Press !

A lady just called back from the hunt in Thurlow. They did not have a hunt locally in Thurlow on the 29th January..... They had a hunt over our way, in Gt Chesterford.

So the dog that the lady who called today, could well have been Jacob IF the dates are correct and she can confirm the day she saw this dog was definitely the 29th.

We are now going to call this lady and ask her to look at some photos of Jacob, maybe that will trigger her memory as to the dog she saw that day.

Will of course keep you posted with any developments

Oh dear oh deer

2009-02-22T14:58:00.000-08:00

This weekend marked us putting out our first lure in the shape of a dog cage.
It felt like quite a step forward for us, having had a long spell of silence, we feel that maybe this is a step in the right direction.

We had a call late Saturday afternoon from a lady called Val who lives near the water tower on Thaxted Road.

They had seen in the fields directly behind their house that a deer leg, very gnarled and chewed had been left nearby. They also noticed lone paw prints of a large dog, and decided to call us, just in case.

We of course went immediately to investigate the prints and the deer bones, and we also walked the area around the water tower, although this was hindered by the failing light.

The prints in the mud could well have been Jacob's - it was a large dog, and definitely there were no other human footprints nearby. The owners of the house also said they had seen the same size lone prints around the back of the house in the snow, but never put 2 and 2 together and thought it could have been Jacob. That's fine, we are just over the moon that Val called us as it might well be a lead, maybe he is in the area still as remember, we have a number of sightings out that way, and so many other things pointing us to that same area.

We decided that it would be worthwhile putting out a cage in case Jacob was round. This is not a trap, just a simple black anodised dog cage, with the door wedged open. We have put a pair of Jon's stinky socks inside, (Oh Jacob for that alone I apologise !) as well as Tiva's blanket and another blanket over the top to make it look less threatening. So far today, Val reports nothing has been touched, no food has gone.

It's of course a long shot, but it's worthy of a try for the time it took to organise.

We might well get lucky and if Jacob finds the cage and familiar smells he will stay closeby, I know from reading up that the dogs will usually just stake out nearby and check the cage is not a threat firstly, so for the next few days we will have to sit tight and wait and see.

I know there are many people willing Jacob to go to that cage, I SO hope that for once he is ears pinned back and he is listening to the advice !

Highs, lows and conspiracy theories

2009-02-20T13:01:00.001-08:00

For the past 2 days we seem to have gotten back onto the rollercoaster.

Although the silence was absolutely driving us both crazy, sometimes when you get third hand information, that could or could not be true, you feel you just cannot ignore it.

As such we have now been trying to locate local hunt kennels having been given information that Jacob was being held, not by the hunt individuals themselves, but by people that are in some way connected to them. I wont go into detail here, because I do believe that for the most part, those that are involved in the hunts around the local parts are good people, and really have absolutely no valid reason to be intent on having kept our dog on their premises.

The doubts we have of any involvement are really slim, but those on the 'outside' of the hunt, we need to eliminate from any involvement based on the information we have been given.

So, for 2 days we've postered and postered around the places the local hunt kennels are, and also around the areas where each hunt takes place.

We haven't gone in guns blazing and accusing anyone of anything, because we don't have any evidence of that. We are purely just trying to make another area aware that if he's out there, and someone has him, we are hot on their heels to find him.

Maybe someone knows something, maybe we're on another wild goose chase, but when you are intent and bloody desperate to find something you love and miss more than words can possibly say, you will grab at any straws that could offer a maybe..... or a means to an end.

We have spoken with our local gamekeeper, who has only to be applauded for the help and advice he offers to us very freely. He himself has said he would be ashamed if it were found that someone locally had been involved in any way with Jacob's disappearance. I know he really thinks that too. He would be really genuinely upset.

We were given information from a few people today that know the local hunts people and also those involved. They will make enquiries for us where we could never do.

It's knowing that they can ask about and do that in the right way that makes things an awful lot easier for us.

We don't believe deep down that these people are holding our dog, our minds race with possibilities like no tomorrow, but I don't see that there are any real reasons as to why they would need to keep him.

Jacob is entire, but i'm sure he wouldn't be the first choice for most to choose to mate a dog with. It would only offer a cross, effectively a mongrel, as if they chose to try to breed a Bracco to Bracco we would be alerted in a heartbeat. It just wouldn't happen.

So, you see their are many things swimming around like time bombs in my head, waiting to explode into a 'what if' scenario.

Sometimes these days I find it hard not to imagine many things. Conspiracy theories, where he can be, who is with, why he is with them. I also have these awful visions of him lying somewhere curled up, helpless, broken and dead. That breaks my heart because we should be there for him, we are his protectors, and we feel we have truly let him down. That's a bitter pill to swallow I can't tell you.

I know, i'm sorry, this blog is just reading like a bad luck story these last few days, and i'm really very conscious of that. I wish so much I could write it in an upbeat manner, it would read so much nicer than this.

I do try to make light of the situation where I can, and try to reason it's not all doom and gloom, and yes, I know there are people out there in much more awful and desperate situations than this will ever be. But to us, this is a crisis, and we make absolutely no apologies for treating it as such.

Right now we feel well and truly fed up and very sad, we don't want much, we're not asking for thousands of pounds, diamonds or new cars, we just want our dog back, there's nothing else, surely that's not much to ask ?

We just need to resume normal life, go back to enjoying it, rather than just going to bed wondering and worrying what tomorrow will bring, and whether it'll be yet another crazy day of plastering another place with missing posters.

We just hope tomorrow will be the day that cures all this grief and heartache.

I so hope so, I hope that Wendy is right, that he will come home soon.

I can't tell you that that day just can't come soon enough.

Slow down, I wanna get off.....

2009-02-18T13:59:00.000-08:00

What a day.......

Does this ever get any easier !?

This morning we had an email from our local Police Officer Paul who said that a very kind lady had called him and was concerned she might have seen Jacob.....

in Welshpool, Powys.

At first I thought - surely not, it cannot be, but as those of you know, you cannot doubt anything where a dog is concerned. They are not always in control of how and where they get somewhere, and of course within a few hours they can be halfway across the UK, or in this case Wales.

I left a message to that lady who spoke to Paul, and waited for her to call me back.

Meanwhile I contacted all the dog wardens in that immediate area, and unfortunately was told they only take calls between 8am and 10am each day.

A very helpful lady at the council agreed that I could email her all of ours, and Jacobs essentials along with a poster, and some clear photo's for identifying him if the need be.

So, this was done, and I sat back and hoped it wasn't Jacob, then I hoped it was, as then at least if they had him, we could be home by midnight with our boy safely back where he belongs.

I called the lady again around 4pm this afternoon, and she picked up. She had just that second walked in only to find herself being bombarded with questions from me.

She was really kind and answered everything with great precision and detail, even down to the exact places she had seen this stray dog.

I wrote down absolutely everything she told me, and we agreed for the sake of ruling this out for sure that I would email her clear photo's of Jacob, to which she would be able to really see the distinct shade of his colouring, and see if it matched what she remembered she saw.

This was all done and dusted, and we knew we could do no more until the dog warden and the lady had checked details.

Surely he couldn't have been picked up the day after he went missing ?

But then, everything is just a possibility now.

At 9.45pm tonight the lady from Welshpool very kindly called back.

She had taken time tonight to investigate and call a meeting in her area of people who she thought could help us, and it now materialises that a farmer in the area the dog was spotted has a young, light coloured hound, who quite often is loose in that same area as the dog in question. They all came to the same conclusion that this is what dog she saw, and it most definitely wasn't Jacob.

I don't know if we were relieved, or sad to be truthful, I guess a little bit of both.

Sad that perhaps it could actually have been him, and we might have been able to retrieve him from a kennel somewhere in Wales, but then on the flip side, relieved it wasn't him in case he was loose in a very strange and far away place that none of us would know where to start to look.

I'd like to say a huge Thank You to this lady for taking the time to call, I wish there were more people out there doing just the same as one of them could lead us to Jacob.

One thing we decided to do, was to really try to see that the rangers at Audley End did definitely see Jacob on the Monday after he went missing.

We aren't doubting what they saw, we just need to know 100% that Jacob was the dog running about there that afternoon. As we have a few niggling doubts perhaps about the Purton End sighting, we need to have some form of reassurance that Jacob was at Audley End that day. Otherwise, worryingly, he would not have been seen since Jon last saw him running into the distance on the 21st January.

One thing that struck a chord tonight, the kind lady all the way away, some 175 miles from our area, had taken the time to call up the police after the 2nd sighting of a dog she perhaps thought just possibly could have been our missing dog. She took time and effort to rule it out for the sake of knowing how much we wanted to find him.

Surely it goes to prove that others would have most probably have seen the same dog, and just totally dismissed it even though it was running loose, dirty looking and wandering nearby a road on it's own, quite clearly not with any owner in sight.

Belies belief really, and yet, here we are 4 weeks later, and in the local area, and where supposedly only 2 people have seen Jacob in all that time he has been lost.

What does this mean ?

Are people scared of involvement ? if so WHY?

Does it mean that he has been/is laying hurt or injured somewhere and has unfortunately succumbed to that injury, hindered only by the bad weather and freezing temperatures ?

Does it mean that because he hasn't necessarily been seen, it's because he isn't in this area to be seen ?

I don't know, but I do know that between Jon and I we have to remain positive and think that he can survive out there, yes it's a vast, vast area, yes we've covered an awful lot of ground in the last 4 weeks between us (personally for us some 600+ miles just in the car alone) but hey, it doesn't mean we've covered the ground where he is at.

Hopefully that day will come soon.

I'll only accept a HAPPY ending for this story, absolutely NO substitutes.

Memory Lane

2009-02-18T01:52:00.000-08:00

I love this photo of Ollie (our epileptic Spinone who is no longer with us)

and an 11 week old Jacob, purely as it epitomises everything we love about

the 2 breeds we have

--------------------------------------------

Today we acknowledge that it is 4 weeks since we saw Jacob
4 weeks, it feels like a lifetime to be honest.

After trying to settle into normality yesterday, and then sitting here scouring email addresses for vets, dog walkers, dog groomers and couriers in the Cambridge areas, I did what I know I shouldn't have, and took a trip down memory lane.
Those that know us well know we don't have any children, that was not to be, so the dogs in our life became 'furkids'. Consequently where most people our age have a hard drive full of cute kiddie pics, we have a hard drive full of cute doggie pics, that is, some 25,000 odd to be precise !
No wonder this computer is slow !

As I sat here looking back from puppyhood and to the future browsing through the photo's it suddenly hit me as to what we had lost, what the work we are putting in each day (and night) is to bring back home.
I won't lie and say that it wasn't a relief to have yet another good cry, it felt lovely looking back through the memories we'd all created together.
I could only liken myself to the episode of 'Everybody Loves Raymond', whereby Deborah takes her 'me' time away from the kids to secretly sit with slushy love songs playing, and a box of tissues to make herself cry.

For me after the tears, it spurred me on to get Jacob, find where he is, and never let him out of my sight again.

We decided last night that we would have a late night drive around the areas we cover on a regular basis. Sometimes when it's dark, things stand out more clearly, or you can just sit, and listen.
We were planning to go out early hours, but it seemed unfair for Jon who had to be up and out by 8am to do this, so we went out just after 8pm and drove round, sat, got out to look through the NVG's and generally had a good look around.
We saw 2 badgers scurrying along the verges, in 2 separate areas, so it was nice to watch those through the NVG.

Thankfully, I think in the 2hrs of being out we met about 4 or 5 cars, and that was on the busier country roads. The back roads were absolutely silent, eerily quiet actually, especially as the fog came down more heavily. It did reassure us that if Jacob is moving around, and moving around at night particularly, then crossing the roads wouldn't hopefully be causing him much worry.
By 10.30pm we had to come back home as the visibility wasn't beyond 10ft in front of the car.

I really hope that in the next few days we hear something positive.
We need a boost, we desperately need something to say he really is out there

Silence is NOT so golden

2009-02-16T12:29:00.000-08:00

Jacob's most favourite sleeping position !
Happy, content and most of all... 'home'.
-------------------------------------------------------------

I don't know why, but I knew that we wouldn't get a call today -

I guess you can call it intuition, but I just knew it would be a quiet day.

Jon went back to work for the 1st time properly today, daring to venture out of the 5 mile curfew for the first time in 3 weeks.

I could see in his face he really didn't want to go, but you can only put off not working because of the snow for so long....well, especially when there isn't any that is !

Between the 'J' girls, we decided that a new plan was the order of the day, and between the 5 of us we're emailing far and wide now. Covering a further distance each between us so that we can be sure that towns some 20 miles away get the same coverage as the local area.

Jacob could be moving further out, so we need to leave no area isolated.

Between us we'll cover everyone from dog walkers to DHL in the hope that we can let people know he may be out there whilst they go about their daily business.

Someone must know something, surely ?

It occured to me today that there are definitely people not in the know about Jacob being lost, where we think the publicity is doing wonders, and I know that's true, I just feel some people need a constant reminder, so we need to ensure the profile of Jacob is kept high.

First things first, i'm trying to get the papers to re-run an update, and will let you know if i'm successful.

Most of all, Thank You for all the thoughts and kind words everyone still has for his safe return.

We have had people sending cards just addressed 'The Haggerwoods', Saffron Walden, Essex, (with a note to the postman to 'get it to us please') and one just addressed to to Tiva, Solly, and Clouseau -

Needless to say they all arrived safely with us and really went that extra mile to lift our spirits.

Sometimes they arrived just when we most needed them, like they were meant to arrive just when you needed a huge pick me up.

I just hope that the same powers to be are looking after our boy, keeping him safe and from any harm, wherever he is right now.

Send him home to us now please......enough is enough.

The Sunday Blues.....

2009-02-15T13:03:00.000-08:00

Oh how we wish you were right there Jacob, looking guilty having found our bed, and making Bracco eyes at us as a stand against getting off.

What I wouldn't give to see you curled up there now.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Is it me or do the weeks seem to be roaring by ?

Before we know it it'll be March, and that's just 9 month's to Christmas.

A scary thought I have to say, but true all the same.

Today we spent most of the day putting up more posters, and flyers through doors in the Thaxted, Broxted, and surrounding areas. A kind lady called Grace feels he is around that area, and not ones to doubt, we duly scoured the area again today, and made sure we felt it was covered.

We also made sure that having put down a fresh scent yesterday, we also drove around the areas we walked, just in case these fresh enticements would bring Jacob out somewhere where we could see him.

As many times as we drove by, and parked high on the hill at the back of Newport (our 'vista') to view the mass of fields beyond us, we saw nothing more than a few deer in the far distance, and two baby hares playing not far in front of the car.

I think we've started to become accepted by the wildlife out there now, we're hardly noticed !

I think word is out there are two sad, and somewhat lonely folk, who spend their entire waking hours driving round in their 4x4 taking in the view !

If only it were true.

We came back home at 5.30pm tonight, having stopped at our local Tesco to fill up on essentials (Old Mother Hubbard has nothing on me) that would at least let us have toast and soup for a few more days at least.

Driving home, we had a call from a lady in Harlow, who was totally upset by Jacob's going awol, and who offered us her help if and when it was needed. It really lifted our spirits, as this lady is not known to us, and out of the blue was calling us up offering a helping hand to find our missing dog.

It's always a sad time for us both when we make the decision to end the search for the day.

I don't know why, but as it gets dark and we put the car headlights on, it's like we admit defeat for yet another day, and possibly subject our lovely boy to yet another night under the stars, in the cold, the wet, sans duvet and no log fire to singe his bum on.

It's just so bloody heartbreaking. Why can't he just come home ?

Just to add to the sadness we both feel for Jacob, Jo told us the sad news of the Beagle that was reported as being Jacob last weekend, the dog Sarah and Stewart went to try to locate for us near Southend, lost her battle to survive the elements today.

This poor girl had been living rough around a 'Sally' Army farm for weeks, and although the Police and the RSPCA both knew of her being seen daily in this farmland, they chose to do nothing to capture her, and offer her a new life if she was not anyone elses.

Noone had reported her missing.

Sadly having been caught today, she was found not only to have had puppies in the past 4 months, but also to have a very badly dislocated hip.

She was in much pain, and the vets feared the anaesthesia for any op was not an option.

I do believe that as she was noone's pet, unloved and alone, that may have made the decision to end her life, and not prolong her agony of the injury that little bit easier.

She was sadly put to sleep, a dog that was missing from someones home, had perhaps served her purpose as a breed dog, and who was not missed by those she once trusted.

To me that is just heartbreaking. I am not naive enough to know this dog isn't one of many who fall by the wayside, for whatever the reason, but knowing of her plight made the news she was now gone all the harder to bear.

I rest in comfort only knowing that Jacob is much loved, and much wanted back home by all that love him.

RIP Mrs Beagle, let's hope what goes around, comes around to the one time owners who knowingly left you to fend for yourself.

With the sad news in of Mrs Beagle, it kind of set our minds racing.

Jon and I both have no idea as to what's happened to Jacob, that is one thing we discussed today on our driving round. We went through every conceivable scenario imaginable, and couldn't decide between us which we thought was most likely the possible answer to his whereabouts. Some we didn't even want to discuss, others were not even mentioned even though we both thought the same thing.

More than anything we just want answers, but when will they come ?

It's probably very wrong to compare the agony between lost dog, and lost child, (but I won't apologise as Jacob is our child, so please do forgive the comparison) but today I found myself thinking of Madeline Mccan's parents, and that lingering despair they must live with, day in, day out, that not knowing where their Daughter is. The sheer fact she could be happily nestling in oblivious, with people she now calls Mummy and Daddy. Those poor Mccan's.

How do they carry on ? My heart goes out to them.

I truly hope it's soon we can have that phone call we long for for bringing Jacob home, and finally this huge tidal wave of emotion we find ourselves riding on will be absolutely well and truly be over.

A perfect day if only.........

2009-02-14T08:23:00.000-08:00

.....Jacob was here and we were all out walking through the woods, enjoying the freedom, the sunshine, the open space and the absolute quiet.

I can hardly believe really how the dynamic has changed at home since Jacob has been missing.

It's just one dog taken out of the equation, and there are 3 others left here, but as I said to Catherine my friend today, things just feel really strange, like a loss surrounds us, but one where you cannot grieve.

I guess that is because right now, we have no idea where Jacob is, is he alive, out there surviving the elements or sitting happily on someone elses sofa being fed toast and cake ?

I wish more than anything I knew the answer to that question, I really do.

The not knowing is what hurts more than anything else, we cannot ever move forward without not knowing, how can we ?

One thing that keeps us alert, and positive is the fact that 10 weeks into their search for Sky, Ffion and Tim are still upbeat (or as best they can be on this rollercoaster ride) and they remain pretty positive they can bring Sky home.

Their efforts and sightings this far into the dog lost saga can only spur us on knowing Sky is out there, waiting on being found.

10 weeks missing and he's beaten the weather and the lack of food.

If anyone should be rewarded for their love and efforts to bring their dog home, it has to be them.

Today for us started off with a call from a local builder, he had seen a flyer we'd dropped through through his door from yesterdays mission, and had thought he saw a dog similar to Jacob running at speed across fields near Wimbish on Tuesday or Wednesday of this week.

Colours matched, rough type of dog matched, but as he was seeing from the car, at a distance, obviously we cannot be 100% sure it actually was him.

The things that worried us was would Jacob still be able to be running at 'speed' across a huge field. Surely energy levels would now be suitably low, unless he was being fed regularly.

Of course that is a possibility by now, but we are not sure.

I guess it could have been Jacob seen in the midst of capturing his dinner, and that would make sense of the speed, or failing that maybe what this man saw (as he saw a few cars parked nearby) was hare coursing in action ?

All the same, we deployed our fab helpers into action, and headed out to comb the area for signs, knowing that on route we'd leave the scent of both us and our dogs around in case it would draw him out of his hidey hole for someone to see.

Regardless if this builder had seen Jacob the walkabout and scenting would be a good exercise done now the snow was gone.

I have not long come back with Clu, and Jon and the menfolk are now on the way home too having gone through a huge wood near Carver Barracks that they wanted to rule out again.

I guess as with all of the leads we have, we have to duly rule them out, and it's just so frustrating that the pieces of the jigsaw seem to always come a few days too late to be fresh, and to get our adrenaline pumping in the sheer thought you just might be there at the same time he is.

Still, it's put fresh scent down today, and if he is in the area still, then between 6 of us, we've covered a good 4 points of it today.

Fingers crossed something good can come it it, I hate the thought of another week being nearly here, and another 'anniversary' of him being missing (4 weeks) coming up.

I keep thinking if I pinch myself, this nightmare will be over, and i'll wake up and laugh to myself as I see Jacob curled up on the end of the bed grunting with content. Ahhh if only eh !

Seeing double ?

2009-02-13T11:07:00.000-08:00

We today released a reward amount of £500 for Jacob's safe return

Today we decided to 'stalk' the village of Wimbish as there have now been 2 separate phone calls to us reporting a dog very similar to Jacob, being walked on the lead by a man.

The first call early this week, from a reputable farmer, who knows his dogs, and who even went home to check his breed book. He phoned us back and said was sure it was Jacob.
It just seemed incredible that anyone would have enough gall to walk a missing dog past the many, many posters, and through the village without a care in the word ?
Surely not......?
The second call came through last night from a lady, also stating the same man, walking the dog described as being Jacob. Spooky.....

Having been out in Wimbish with friends earlier in the week to rule out the farmers sighting, this second sighting kind of prayed on our minds, we needed to rule it out, find out whose dog looks like Jacob, and mark it off the list.
So, this morning we set off armed with 50 more laminated posters (would we find a bare telegraph pole there needing postering I wonder!) and 100 flyers.
Between both of us, Jon and I used every last poster, and came home with about 10 flyers left.
We spoke to many people in the village, asked about this dog that had been sighted, but no one seems to know anything.
Hardly surprising really though....

Wimbish is a drive through kind of village, whereby houses are set into clusters, or large farmhouses are set back from the road and are lonesome.
If someone did have Jacob there, he could quite easily be being kept without causing any reason for suspicion.
To try to fathom out who he is, we have put flyers through each and every door and farm, basically in the hope that others in the village might also report a dog being walked by this man, and know who and where he lives so we can go and talk to him and see the dog in question.
We have 'stalked' the place this man and dog were seen, and at the same times, but have seen nothing.
We just have to rule it out as a dog that looks similar as we know through friends there are no other Bracco in that area.

I guess that the problems in general you are faced with with a scenario of people 'seeing' our dogs, or any missing dog are pure and simple, and it makes all the difference as to who it is that 'sees' him or her.
You are faced with a few things that really can and do hinder information being forthcoming:

1. Some folks simply don't like dogs, so wouldn't really care if they saw your dog, knowingly aware that it is missing, matters not
2. Some folks don't want to be 'involved', so even if they are privy to info, choose not to pass it on for fear of getting involved
3. There are folks out there that believe a dog without a collar, rough, underfed and 'found' means it's anyones for the keeping - i.e no collar, no home. I am sure these people really do exist.

These 3 pointers worry us, and I guess most others riding this rollercoaster.
You have to rely on information from all of those above, and more so on the good people out there that have dogs, and generally do care and want to help you be reunited. They are the ones who have the ability to bring the missing dog back home.

It will be 2 weeks tomorrow since we had the Purton End sighting, it's been a long 2 weeks, but we are very hopeful that now we have released a reward sum of £500 for Jacob's safe return, someone who knows something, or even anyone that has him, can let us have him back.

Hoping so much that tomorrow will be (as Jackie would say!) 'J' Day, and the day we can all celebrate his homecoming

Monopoly money isn't legal tender sadly

2009-02-12T05:54:00.000-08:00

Today was the day when we we both had to return to work.

As we are both self employed, we just couldn't take any more time than the 3 weeks off unpaid.

Those bills that keep appearing in the post box apparently can't be paid with Monopoly money...... buggar it!

We did have a little bit of a detour from work first thing though, Jon was live on Radio Cambridgeshire at 7.30am, appealing for anyone having seen Jacob, and then we decided to take a look around and poster out towards Thaxted and Broxted area, an area that a friends colleague, a psychic said Jacob could be located.

We endeavour to leave no stone unturned, so decided to scour the area to see if we could see anything at all.

We looked through the woods there, pulled into many of the farms and buildings on the side of the roads that could hold clues, and we stopped many people going about their day offering them our flyers about Jacob being missing.

Each and every person we stopped, called in on, or flagged down on the road had already seen his missing status somewhere already.

The publicity is working I guess, there's no doubting that.

Maybe Jacob is out towards this area, we will keep searching it and not rule it out. As always around here, the areas are mainly agricultural land, so vast open spaces as pretty as they look, can hold an awful lot of hidden 'treasure'.

Maybe that treasure is our boy. I just hope he is somewhere, healthy and surviving.

Each day that goes by, we worry that little bit more for him, but alongside that worry, we have to bolster it with much hope and positivity.

There's nothing difficult about this, it's plain and simple.

We just miss him so much.

Where are you Jacob ?

2009-02-12T04:28:00.000-08:00

This blog is dedicated purely to keeping both ourselves and other people kind enough to care, updated about the search for Jacob, our missing Bracco Italiano.
Jacob went missing on the morning of 21st January 2009.

I guess in this, my very first post, there will be lots to catch up on.
These past 3 weeks have been something of a blur for Jon and I.
There have been some incredible highs when a call came through to say he had been sighted, and despairing lows when they sadly came to nothing.
People who have gone through this missing dog scenario tell you that it is one huge and bumpy rollercoaster, one where the ride is free, you just pay with your heart until it's time to jump off......They are not wrong.

In order for me to update this blog to be absolutely current, I will summarise from the very beginning.

Jacob went missing from the back of the woods near to where we live.
This area is CB11 4XB - Littlebury Green, Saffron Walden, Essex.
A rural area, a hamlet village, for the most part open farmland surrounds us on all sides.
Jacob knows the area as we are lucky enough to live this rurally, and he gets a good walk in the immediate area he was lost each and every day.
He has gone missing for a few hours here and there in the past, (that nose of his sure does get some neat smells!) but always he has been found, or at the very least, has come home after a good few hours to himself.
I have to say he has never ever disappeared off the face of the earth before, which i'm afraid to say seems to what's happening here.
I'm not one to query David Bowie's perceptions about "is there life on Mars?" but if Jacob is as elusive and Houdiniesque as he's proving to be, I may well be forced to reconsider his apparent alien abduction !

So, we'll start at the beginning, and to the 21st Jan, the day Jacob ran off happily playing within a pack of deer, Jon was hot on his heels but sadly lost sight as the herd and Jacob crossed into fields and wooded area at some speed.
The whole of that day and night, friends and us alike, spend hours and hours looking for him, returning home at 3am after scouring the area.
I have to say we were convinced then that we would hear a familiar Bracco wail in the early hours simply to say, "okay guys, adventure over, i'm home, where's the duvet ?"
Sadly this was not to be.
Jacob was posted on Doglost, and the fabulous Jo, is still ever helpful offering advice and encouragement that yes we can find him and all be reunited.

For the next 5 days Jon and I alongside a team of friends, doggie friends and family scoured the areas we thought he could be in.
We bought a night vision monocular to enable us to search in the dead of night, and left more wee trails than can be possibly decent for health and safety limitations.
Still nothing.
We found it hard to sleep, hard to eat, and more than anything found it hard to comprehend where the hell our dog had disappeared to ?
Dogs just don't disappear like this do they ?
Sadly, after looking at the lost dogs on websites such as Doglost, it seems that unfortunately it's just a common occurrence, and you wouldn't necessarily know about them, unless you became a 'dog missing' victim yourself.

The one thing I have to say here, is the absolute mind boggling amount of help and advice, time and effort all of our friends, e-friends and complete strangers have given to us.
At a time when the world seems to be teetering on the edge of madness and hardship, there are people out there, offering advice, driving miles to be with us in the searches, spending money phoning everyone from dog groomers to DHL, as well as sending out posters to farmers and businesses about Jacob being missing.
The absolute generosity of you all, well it's just astounding.
We just can't begin to Thank You all for your continued support.

Extra Special Thanks must go out to our fabulous friends and absolute towers of strength Sarah, Stewart, Catherine and Simon, Tracy, Shaun, alongside Jane, Janet, Jackie and Carol for their continued support and advice.

Sincere Thanks to you all for the shoulders to lean and cry on.

The Spinone and Bracco communities are as ever the most wonderful group of people you could wish to have around.Their help and advice, and utter kindness really does hold no boundaries.

We do feel we should mention a very kind lady in our Thanks also. Joanne Hull, www.joannehull.com a reputed Animal Communicator, who that if through her dedication and free giving advice, thoughts and visions alone, would bring Jacob home in a heartbeat.

Despite a huge search on Saturday 24th Jan, with over 20 people and dogs arriving from all parts of the UK to form help (and nearly ending up in a few of us being arrested for deer poaching!) we all arrived back home, tired and aching, and with heavy hearts, there just wasn't any sign of him.
We de-clogged our walking boots, and hung up our coat for yet another night without our boy.

On the afternoon of Monday 26th Jan, we were out scouring the back roads and postering some 15 minutes away when a call came through from a ranger at Audley End House, a stately English Heritage house some 2 miles from our home.
They had apparently spotted a dog in the parterre garden, and it matched Jacob. 4 rangers agreed it was him.
We shot through those back roads as speeds I daren't remember, knowing that time was of the essence to get there before he had gone.
Sadly, even though it was some 10 minutes before we arrived, the area was vast, and the rangers hadn't really watched his whereabouts, so on foot we went and searched and searched the boundaries, anywhere he could be holed up, trees, buildings, but not a snifter.
Jon and I stayed out that night, and was still trespassing (ahem!) well into the early hours, NV firmly in hand. Again Jacob had outrun us, he wasn't waiting around.
Another low moment, we felt we were so near, yet obviously so far.

The days after the sighting meant we stayed pretty local to that particular area, late night searches and trespassing seemed order of the day (and night) but it turned up nothing at all despite our huge effort.

Again, after the 1st sighting, we had real hopes someone would see him around. Surely no dog can choose to be that elusive ?

To not see a distinctive orange and white large breed dog trundling along the fields or dare I say it, the roadside, well how can that be ?
We knew that the hundreds (and hundreds) of posters we'd put out were in prominent places, they were evidently being seen as everyone we stopped, already knew about Jacob, sadly they didn't know where he was.

We decided to set about trying to gain some media coverage in the local weekly papers, and thankfully were warmly greeted by them both covering a spread about the length we'd gone to to locate his whereabouts.
This week was only dampened further by our worry for his safe return to us as the worst snow for 2 decades hit our area (and largely most of the UK)
The night Jon and I were out, snow falling at such a heavy pace, must have been the lowest point in the search so far. How could he survive this weather. Would he survive it at all ?
We tried desperately to push those thoughts to the back of our minds, knowing that by now he surely would be resorted to losing the domestic dog identity we had given to him, and duly gaining that of a feral being.
We hoped he would be okay, we hoped more than anything he had somewhere warm and dry to shelter, and even more than that, we just hoped he could find food. He needed food to survive.

On Saturday 31st Jan, another sighting came through when we were out in convoy with a group of trusty friends. We drove through the town, to a 'blink and you'll miss it' hamlet called Purton End, apparently a passer by had seen a dog similar to Jacob ambling alongside the deep ditches on the country road passing through there. She thought it was definitely him having stopped nearby the town to get our number from a poster.
We all jumped into our cars and split up to get there.
We couldn't have been there more than 5 or 7 minutes later, but there was no sign of Jacob. We spent the whole of that afternoon, off in groups, looking, scouring woods, old buildings, walking miles to see if he was around there.
Sadly nothing again. Another low point.
I myself have some doubts about this sighting, just based on the fact that one of our friends who was out helping that day had driven by the very spot the passer by noticed 'Jacob', and was confronted with a liver and white Springer in almost the exact same spot.
On a friendly phone call back to her in order to reconfirm, she was adamant the dog she had noticed was most definitely not a Spaniel, and that she knew her dog breeds, Jacob and a Springer looked distinctly different. Amen to that. But I have this niggling feeling about it.
Especially hindered only by the fact that further investigation with the neighbouring houses led us to find out that yes, the Springer was 'always hovering in those ditches, and yes, one day it would be dead on the road if the owners weren't more careful'. Hmmmmmm

Since that time, we have had no real further sightings of Jacob.
We have had numerous possibilities that we have followed up, some which were definite no go's and some that are just plain silly.
All of them we have taken very seriously indeed, just because you just never quite know.

On the morning of Sunday 8th Jan, we received a call from Dr Ffion Coates, who with her husband Tim, has also been desperately trying to find their missing black Labrador Sky.

Sky disappeared on 1st December 2008, so has been missing for some 10 weeks now.

Please take a look at their blog, http://skyisstillmissing.blogspot.com/ and see if there is any help you can offer should you be located nearby.

Both Ffion and Tim are going to extraordinary lengths to find Sky, they too have a great team of support and have mastered their response to sightings in militray fashion which can only be admired.

Unfortuntely, their huge efforts have recently been hindered by the upset of those out to make the search that little bit more difficult for them, (like they need that) that is, by trashing their cameras and traps.

Sometimes other humans can be so cruel and absolutely mind bogglingly idiotic.

Thanks for the advice and support Ffion and Tim, we can't wait for both our boys to be finally back home.

We have managed this week to obtain media coverage on many radio stations,
Radio1, Heart Fm, BBC Radio Essex and Cambridgeshire, as well as full page articles in some of the weekend national papers, Daily Mirror, Daily Mail, and the Telegraph.
Jon also managed to gain airtime on ITV Anglia news whilst out on a major search on Monday 9th Jan with Solly our Spinone, and Stewart and his Spinone Barney.

We are very confident now that we have reached the local (and somewhat national) heights of people knowing about Jacob being missing.
We just hope that after all of our combined efforts that 'call' will come to say he's been found.
Our hearts still leap every time a number we don't know flashes up on the mobile, just hoping and praying that perhaps this one call will be the one call to say they have our boy and he's safe and sound, ready to come home.

I can't wait for that moment. I just hope it's destined to happen.