Kristen Walton and her family were heartsick when Jax, an 8-year-old bloodhound mix, unexpectedly bolted from her mother-in-law's porch in Plains Twp. on a recent Sunday afternoon.
Family and friends searched the neighborhood, but Jax ran into the woods and could not be found.
"I thought there were going to be many sleepless nights, wondering where he was," Mrs. Walton said. Then she remembered seeing posts on her Facebook page from the Lackawanna & Luzerne Counties Lost Dog Project, a Facebook site that's dedicated to reuniting lost pets with their owners.
She contacted the site's creator, Ellen McCormick of Scranton, who posted Jax's photo. Four hours later, he was home, found a few miles away by a woman in Wilkes-Barre.
"I couldn't believe it happened that quick," Mrs. Walton said.
Jax's case is one of dozens of success stories Ms. McCormick has celebrated since she launched the Lost Dog Project in August. As of this month, more than 100 dogs have been reunited with their owners, thanks, in part, to information provided on the site, she said.
An avowed animal lover, Ms. McCormick, 32, of Franklin Avenue, owns an 11-year-old black Lab/chow mix named Mack. She decided to create the page while working as a volunteer for the Griffin Pond Animal Shelter in South Abington Twp. Some of the dogs there are strays brought in by strangers. She thought putting their pictures on the Internet would increase the chance of finding their owners.
The site's popularity took off in April, after it assisted in finding Blaze, a Siberian husky who was lost in Plains Twp. More than 9,000 Facebook users shared his photo, Ms. McCormick said. Today the Lost Dog Project page has been "liked" by nearly 3,000 Facebook users.
The project is a labor of love for Ms. McCormick, who spends hours each day updating it with information relayed to her by pet owners throughout the Northeast.
"It became my passion once Blaze was found. I was like, 'Wow, this really works,'â'' she said.
Demand for information became so overwhelming that she recently enlisted the help of fellow volunteer Judy Polito Clause of Greenfield Twp. Mrs. Clause, 40, said she got interested in the site after several of her Facebook friends shared photos of lost pets on her page.
"I love animals. If I ever lost one of mine, I'd want someone to help me," Mrs. Clause said.
Together, the women post to the site nearly 24-7. It's a lot of effort, but they say it's well worth it.
"When (pets and owners) are reunited, its absolutely worth it," Mrs. Clause said. "Also, people go through a lot of anxiety when they lose a pet. Just letting them know there are people out there to help them gives them a little bit of comfort."
Jason Seymour, 24, of Scranton, knows that feeling. His golden retriever, Sadie, was lost on May 3 after she slipped her collar while being taken for a veterinarian visit.
"I probably got four hours of sleep waiting for a phone call for someone to say they found her. It's really traumatic," he said.
He contacted Ms. McCormick, who quickly posted Sadie's picture online.
"Within two hours, it was shared over 200 times," Mr. Seymour said.
Sadie was found two days later about six miles from home. He credits the site with assisting in her recovery.
"It spreads to so many people so fast. The more people who know, the better the chance," he said. "
The site primarily features posts from people who have lost pets. It's increasingly being utilized by people who find lost dogs.
Anyone who has lost a pet can get the information posted by uploading a photo and details, including the date and location the pet was last seen, to Lost Dog Project's Facebook page. All submissions are reviewed by Ms. McCormick and Mrs. Clause, who then post them to the site.
Most of the posts on the site involve lost dogs, but Ms. McCormick said she also posts other pets. Most recently, the site helped locate a horse that was lost in Lake Winola.
Ms. McCormick said she's working on expanding efforts. She's currently developing a website, nepalostdog.com, in addition to the Facebook page. She hopes to have the site up within the next week.
While the women are pleased their efforts are assisting to reunite pets with owners. Mrs. Clause said their efforts might not be necessary if owners followed one simple suggestion:
"If people would just go down to Wal-Mart or PetSmart and get a tag and a dog collar with their name and phone number. Dog licenses are great, but over the weekend they're useless," she said.
Contact the writer: tbesecker@timesshamrock.com