After 12 days of tireless searching, pet-related heartache and fraught Facebook campaigning, Jennaye Derge has found her dog.
“YEAYYY!!” she wrote Tuesday in a triumphant Facebook post. “I’m so happy to say that early this morning on Animas Mountain I found my little miss Sula!! She was lying on her blanket that I left out for her, sound asleep. I tiptoed up to her, and when she heard me approach she lifted her head and got so excited and happy.”
The reunion was a happy one. Derge writes that Sula “wiggled right up to me and showered me with kisses! She’s a little skinny and (has) a possible hurt paw, but otherwise she’s just fine!”
Sula first went missing Feb. 5, after what should have been a happy hike gone horribly wrong thanks to yet another local instance of canine-outdoorsman conflict, when a mountain biker blazed past Derge and Sula, provoking the 18-month-old Australian Shepherd to run for the hills. Sula was not on a leash.
Derge, a former photo intern for The Durango Herald, put out a cry for help on Facebook, the modern equivalent of featuring a missing child on a milk carton.
“Yesterday I took her on a hike up Animas City Mountain when a mountain biker spooked her and chased her down and then off the trail. I’ve been looking for her ever since, and would love anyone else’s help in finding her.”
The post was shared nearly 500 times. Dozens of sympathizers contacted Derge through social media to offer tips and strategies to locate Sula.
In an interview, Derge said she might not have found Sula without their advice.
On Tuesday, Derge thanked the many people who offered support throughout the ordeal. “I have her home now and she’s sleeping soundly next to me on the couch. I couldn’t be a happier momma! Thank you ... to everyone who shared my post, shared their own stories, and shared advice. Without any of that I would not have gotten Sula home.”
cmcallister@durangoherald.com
