Update: A missing husky-shepherd that went missing Jan. 26 was reunited with his owner on Thursday.
Four-year-old Keno took off chasing an elk on Mount Prevost in the Cowichan Valley during a walk more than two weeks ago.
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A lost doberman is back home with his owner and healthy, but 30 pounds lighter, after 12 days lost in the hills near Ladysmith.
Bono, a 3 1/2-year-old doberman, went missing Jan. 26 during a hike with his owner on a mountain in Ladysmith behind South Watts Road. He often takes off to chase something for several minutes, said owner Cyan Maretic, but he had always come back, until that day. She spent days searching for her missing dog, even taking time off work and sleeping in her truck.
Friends, acquaintances and volunteers with ROAM and FLED, two groups that help reunite missing pets with their owners, assisted Maretic with the search.
On Friday night, Shelley Meyers, who had been looking for Bono, was out near Holland Lake — about four kilometres from where Bono went missing — with a friend, fixing a vehicle that had broken down. The friend’s two dogs started to behave strangely, as if they smelled something in the bushes, she said.
Meyers thought it could be Bono, but she also worried it might be a cougar, so they went for a short walk in the area, calling for Bono, then headed home.
They’d been unable to fix the vehicle, so she returned to the area on Saturday. Just as they were getting ready to leave on the second night, Bono turned up.
“He was very, very skinny and cold, and the way that he walked up, you could tell he was scared,” Meyers said.
Meyers brought him to the pub where Maretic works for a “super sappy” reunion, Maretic said.
“I had a big old cry session.”
Maretic said she took Bono to the vet right away to get checked out and he’s healthy, but had lost 30 pounds in the nearly two weeks he spent fending for himself.
He settled in quickly at home, and Maretic said she has been soaking up all the cuddles she missed out on while Bono was missing.
Meanwhile, a Duncan man whose husky-shepherd also went missing on Jan. 26 is still searching.
Jesse McMaster has been out hiking nearly every day to find four-year-old Keno, who took off chasing an elk on Mount Prevost in the Cowichan Valley during a walk more than two weeks ago.
Keno was spotted in Coombs, and McMaster believes he found some of Keno’s tracks near Little Qualicum Falls.
He has set up Keno’s bed, complete with the scent of Keno’s best dog friend, on a road near the falls, and he’s hoping Keno will find his way to it.
An anonymous donor has offered a $1,000 reward for Keno’s safe return. McMaster thanked everyone who has helped with the search, including ROAM and the Arrowsmith Animal Rescue Foundation, as well as the donor.
Keno has a white face, with one blue eye and one brown eye, and some black on his back. He may be trailing a long leash. Anyone who spots Keno is asked to call ROAM at 778-977-6260.
