Dear Editor:
We would like to express gratitude to the North Shore community for your support in search for our lost dog Chase.
Chase, a 10-month-old border collie, got spooked by skiers on Mt. Seymour Resort on Saturday, May 15, 2021 at 9 a.m. From there he ran through Mt. Seymour parking lot and got lost.
Then the search began. We spent a full day on Saturday walking around Mt. Seymour area hoping Chase will show up and we will all go home. We posted posters - on the mountain parking lot, on the trails, at Parkgate, Myrtle park, Deep Cove. We informed every biker and every hiker we saw. We posted a Facebook call out for help.
And we got a response from the community! Word about lost Chase spread fast and the North Shore community came together and stepped in to help with the search.
There was no sign of Chase on Saturday. With heavy hearts we set up our car on top of Mt. Seymour with an open door and Chase's bed as per guidance of Petsearchers. That was a rough night as we had no sighting since we lost him. Chase did not come back overnight.
Then our spirits lifted as on Sunday we had first sighting around 9 a.m. - 24 hours since Chase got lost! He was seen again around 10:30 a.m., however bolted from people and run away. Then again around 3:30 p.m. He would pop out on the road and then run away to the forest. We got our hopes up and down that day!
At that time there was another very similar dog found by Mosquito Creek and that caused some confusion however this was not Chase so our search continued. Every sighting gave us new hope. We knew Chase was circling around Mt. Seymour parking lot, Deep Cove Lookout Trail and CBC trails.
Chase was looked for by so many people by that time and it seemed that every person we saw knew about Chase. People hiked, biked and drove up/down in search for Chase. People came from all over the North Shore. We did not find Chase on Sunday and night rolled up.
On Sunday night, we set up two cars overnight waiting for Chase. One at the top of the mountain and one where he was last seen. We set up his kennel with bed and blanket, our clothing and food. Had car doors open and settled for the night with hope we will Chase and not attract bears :)
Chase did not show up the second night. Now we were searching for 48 hrs! Chase was spotted on Monday early in the morning at 7 a.m. by a park ranger. Our spirits lifted up again and search continued. We took the day off from work. There was no way we would be able to focus on work while Chase was roaming up the mountain.
We continued to drive around, from the place he was seen last to the place he was lost. We hiked trails and drove some more. Chase was spotted by a biker on CBC trail just around 2 p.m. We started searching from both directions - top and bottom of the trail - no luck! There was a bit of detour in search for Chase as I actually got lost on CBC trail. I was found by swift actions from our community neighbours Angela and James. Thank you both!
Weather changed, it got foggy and cold, rain started and we were getting ready to spend a third night camping out in cars. I drove one more time to Tobogganing area to look for Chase and then a miracle occurred.
Just as I was getting ready to leave the area Chase popped out from behind a tobogganing building. I froze at first. Then I opened the car door. Chase slowly, slowly, walked around, jumped into the car. I closed the door. Hooray! Chase was back! 60 hours later! He walked back to us :) and just in time before a big thunderstorm! What a miracle!
We would like to express gratitude to North Shore neighbours for support in looking for our lost dog Chase.
Our thanks goes to the staff of the Mt. Seymour resort. From the moment Chase was lost , every step of the way Mt. Seymour team was with us working side by side. They helped spread the word, team looked for Chase, alerted biker community, enabled us to put posters up, to stay overnight (two nights), stopped by at night to ask us how we were doing and alerted us when Chase was seen. We are so grateful for your support.
Thank you goes to Katherine, Cathy, Lindi and Ilona. You kept our spirits up and supported us all the way through. You grounded us by taking charge of calling Petsearchers, postings on Facebook, checking kennels, bringing food and water, driving and hiking every day looking for Chase! You were our angels!
Special thanks to Angela and James for coming out to search for Chase and then finding me when I got lost :). Thank you!
To all North Shore residents - we are so grateful. Many of you came out, drove up the mountain, hiked, biked, and in general sent us positive notes. Every step of the way you were all with us working side by side with us looking for Chase. Your support gave us a needed boost of energy and relief. It felt like the whole neighbourhood was working together to find Chase.
Thank you all. Your help directly contributed to finding Chase! We are so grateful to all of you.
Chase is now resting, drinking tons of water and repeating the process! And we ordered a tracker for him!
We have no words to describe how grateful we are for your support. Thank you! Thank you all! We live in an amazing neighbourhood.
Sanja Frketich and Family + Chase
