Stripe is Missing in Hampstead, NC

Description

Yellow Lab, Intact, 80 lbs, lean build, 10.5 years old. Has Chip, but no collar. Very Friendly, a little bit stubborn at times, but not aggressive. All annual shots up to date, including Rabies & Bordetella. Older age with two significant health conditions. Surgical repair to back left ankle approx 6 years ago, only scare tissue holding that joint together and favors that leg. Can not have heavy impact on that leg..like jumping off back of pickup truck onto concrete/hard surface without an assist to ease impact on back leg when landing. MOST IMPORTANT , our vet diagnosis him with LAR PAR, a throat condition that makes it difficult to cool himself efficiently when he pants.. Ans his panting is more labored and stressful on him. As long as he is out of the heat in cool location he is fine. He may not take water right away when offered even when overheated. But he willl take water when he gets in a cool place, and breathing /panting eases some. We were told this condition is not uncommon in aging Labs.

Message from Owner

Our family is in anguish!!! He is my ‘PUPPY LOVE’, my heart, my special boy, always has been! Our dogs are human to our family. Our ‘Logie Bear’ (Nick name for our black female) is so sad. We are all in deep grief and so fearful for Stripe due to his age, health limitations and poor tolerance to heat. We have had him since a pup in a very loving, attentive, responsible, safe, fun home with a very large mature treed yard…with tons of room to run, deep porches to nap and nooks and cranny’s to explore on a dead end wonderful community, with our children, places to swim in local waterways and creeks. Our 6 yr old black lab is missing him terribly. We have had both since weened pups!! We have an underground electric fence they both are well trained on for years. It was a fluke they got out without their e-collars on: We located our female in just a couple hours; she basically headed home from hearing our calls while searching. We began a large search party with about two dozen neighbors immediately, searching in vehicles, golf carts, canoes, paddle boards and boats, bikes and on foot. Checking wooded areas, trails, marshline at watersedge, creeks and cuts, alone with posting on many sites and pages, doing text chains and next working with Photo and detailed info. Talking to everyone we saw and continue to see outside and even knocking on doors. We have notified all animal agencies in our county and neighboring counties, our vet and several other local vets, and local police departments. We began putting out flyers Laminated for outdoors, all over our immediately area neighborhoods and on fronts doors and windows of local buisness, the post office, police station, ect in our small twp of Hampstead NC. When have reached out to people in all neighboring communities to please post on their neighbor Facebook and Nextdoor pages the best we can. We have been searching hard now day and night, on little sleep. And continue to network down to Ogden (Wilmington) and up to Surf CIty mainland (Near Topsail Island and Holly Ridge) and put toward Cross creek and Castle Hayne..He could be anywhere by now, since he is intact and still has a high drive inspite of his age and health conditions. We are people of strong Faith and believe in the Grace and goodness in people. We are asking for Prayes and HELP to bring our boy home safe and sound! We want him to spend his final years with the only family he has ever known, surrounded by love, attentive care and sleeping back in our bed curled with his girl our black female. I can’t bear the though of him getting heat stroke, dying alone in the woods, suffering, hit by a car, or never getting found by a good person who gets him home! PLEASE get him if you see him. We will come get him IMMEDIATELY without delay, no matter how far you may be. I have never had social media and I’m getting help from friends neighbors a neighbor teens to post to as many pages and sites as possible to and cast a broad net. I am posting this directly! THANK YOU from our family of 5 humans and 2 beloved dogs (which includes our missing boy)