Community members work together to help find lost dog

It’s the time of year when bears are in the woods hunting for huckleberries. It is a coincidence, though, that a group was busy looking for one lost Huckleberry along the streets of Othello.

Members of Adams County Pet Rescue, the Adams County Sheriffs Office, Othello Police Department and ResQ Angels, of Yakima, spent months tracking the elusive shepherd mix as he made his way from one spot to another to avoid human contact.

“We had been trying to catch him since February when he was first spotted off Kaylee Road in the county,” Kyya Grant, director of ACPR, said. “At first, we just noticed he had porcupine quills in his face.”

By June, calls began coming in from the area of Columbia Basin Health Association saying it looked like his collar was cutting through his neck. It was at that point that ResQ Angels stepped in to help.

“We worked with them before and they immediately caught another dog off Taylor Road,” Grant said. “She turned out to be his sister Currant.”

As the weeks passed, Huckleberry was spotted all over. ACPR put a call out on Facebook and people began responding. Once they had his location narrowed down, they chased him for two days to Olympia Street.

We asked for help from the animal lovers in Othello,” Grant said. “It’s nice everyone in the community helped.”

It turned out that not only did Huckleberry have quills in his face, his one-inch nylon collar had dug into his neck. Once he was caught, local veterinarian Sheena Sorenson of Sage Hills Veterinary operated to remove the collar. Now, the dog has staples all the way around his neck and is on antibiotics and pain medications. He also receives laser treatments every other day.

Grant said most of the quills appear to have worked their way out of his face, but there are still some holes where others may still be embedded.

“Huckleberry is about 1 1/2 or 2 years old and was not socialized,” she said. “He was very leery, but we finally got him to eat.”

Grant is still amazed that they finally caught the dog. What finally did it was cameras set up at night to spot him.

She recommends not approaching a stray dog if you come across one.

“Call ACPR and we will tell you what to do,” Grant said. “If it is after hours, call the police department or sheriff’s office.”

She also asked that you not feed a stray if you find one.

“We are not being heartless,” Grant said. “We are ensuring a better chance of catching a dog by keeping him hungry and luring him into a trap with good-smelling food.”

Grant is pleased with Huckleberry’s progress. He was able to enjoy some sunshine once his bandages came off. She said the important thing is that he stays quiet and heals.

“Huckleberry is on the road to recovery,” Grant said. “He’s still afraid and leery of us, but we think once he’s feeling better, we’ll be able to work on that fear.”

Adams County Pet Rescue is located at 1961 Bench Road east of the fairgrounds. Hours are noon to 6 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The facility is closed Mondays and Thursdays for cleaning.

To contact ACPR, call (509) 488-5514 or email adopt@ AdamsCountyPetRescue. Be sure to visit the website at www.adamscountypetrescue.com and like their Facebook page.