Bob Grenier had given up on ever seeing his dog, Mazie, again.
It had been two months since the corgi mix had disappeared from Grenier’s Peterborough property while he was working in the yard on Sept. 12. There had been a few sightings since her disappearance, but no word for weeks, and he said he’d come to accept the fact that she was gone for good.
“She was outside with me, like always. I went into the barn, came out, and she was just gone,” Grenier said.
When she didn’t return that night or the next day, Grenier began his search. As he combed the neighborhood, a neighbor suggested to him that he reach out to Granite State Dog Recovery, a nonprofit organization based in Manchester that advises people on how to search for their lost pets, and can help trap them if they’ve been sighted in a particular area.
Grenier called them, and followed their advice, but for a long time, he said, there was nothing to go on. At one point, he got word that Mazie had been spotted in the area of Bennington Road.
“I was out there for a week, driving for hours and hours,” Grenier said.
But, nothing. And then, no more word. And Grenier said he felt as though he had to give up again.
It wasn’t easy for him to think that Mazie was gone, he said. The dog had been a rescue he adopted with his wife, Betsy, who died three years ago. His wife had a soft heart for animals, and the couple had adopted a slew of them over the years. Mazie – who Grenier said he often calls “Crazy Mazie” – had been homed and returned to the shelter three times by the time the couple found her.
“No one wanted her,” Grenier said.
Mazie is a barker, and had housetraining issues, but Grenier said despite that, she had found her forever home when he and his wife adopted her, and she has been with him for the past eight years.
Over the years, the animals Grenier and his wife rescued together have passed, and Mazie was the last of their shared brood. It made it all the more devastating when he thought she was gone for good, he said.
“I only had Mazie left. She was the last friend I had. I hated to have her go,” Grenier said.
Especially, he said, if it meant he wasn’t able to be with her in the end, as he had been for his other dogs.
But then, out of the blue on Nov. 8, Grenier got a call, from Granite State Dog Recovery.
Not only had Mazie been spotted again. Mazie had been caught.
“I was shocked. I couldn’t believe it,” Grenier said. “I didn’t even know they had set up a trap until they called me. She had been spotted a couple of times in the area, and no sooner had they put out a trap than they caught her.”
Mazie had traveled at least eight-and-a-half miles from her home – quite a way for a little, elderly dog, Grenier said.
“She was thrilled to see me, that’s for sure,” Grenier said.
Mazie has been given a check-up by her veterinarian, and her two-month long adventure didn’t leave her unscathed. She had lost about 20 pounds, and has tested positive for Lyme disease picked up from ticks. But overall, she’s in good shape for her age and how long she’d been lost, Grenier said, and is at home recovering.
Grenier said the thanks go to Granite State Dog Recovery.
“I never expected to see her again,” Grenier said. “After a month and a half of nothing, I figured that was the end of it. They’re pretty amazing people.”
For more information about Granite State Dog Recovery, visit granitestatedogrecovery.com.
Ashley Saari can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.