After a month long run, Chickie, the stray dog seen all over social media in west Michigan has been captured.
The dog was first sighted about a month ago running around west Michigan.
Since its first sighting, Chickie has appeared in Mason, Oceana, Lake and Manistee Counties. Many residents tried to captured the dog, but no one had been successful until Manistee County resident Sheri Pefley spotted the dog in her neighbor’s yard, recognizing it from Facebook.
“I was making dinner,” she said. “My husband said, you know, she was next door in the neighbor’s yard. So then I started, after I found out the story behind her and that how everybody was trying to catch her. And she’s been on the run for a month or so, making some phone calls.”
Pefley stated that she reached out to Mason County Mutts, a non-profit organization and the group’s co-founder, Teresa Swist brought her a live trap to try and catch the dog in.
“So we just had to set that trap,” Pefley said. “And we picked the next day. The next morning. And she seemed like she was comfortable here. Well, she must have, because she came back again and so, yeah, and it was that morning that we got her in the trap and then came and got her and got her some help.”
Along with Mason County Mutts, Manistee and Mason County Animal Control were on the scene to make sure Chickie was taken to the proper places to receive treatment and rehabilitation.
“I’m a big supporter of agency cooperation, multi-agency cooperation,” Manistee County Animal Control Officer, Dillion Rosa stated. “Shout out to Mason County Animal Control, as well as Mason County Mutts and then the community as a whole. Even by sharing posts on Facebook and commenting where the dog’s located, it helps out animal control and other agencies just figure out and pinpoint a location where we can set up live traps, tranquilize the animal, or just catch the animal by either catchpole or just a leash.”
Chickie was taken the the Manistee County Veterinary Clinic, where she was evaluated and treated.
“The dog was transported by animal control to the vet hospital for an overall wellness exam and then to get the container on its head removed,” Rosa said. “The cost was generously covered by Mason County Mutts, and their explanation for that is to free up possible costs that Manistee County could acquire. In other cases with animal control. So we’re very grateful for that donation as well.”
Now a resident at Homeward Bound Animal Control, Chickie is on her way to getting back to her old self and ready for adoption.
“Any time we see any animal or dog running at large through the county, we keep a very close eye on it and hopefully ends up here,” Homeward Bound manager, Shereen Edmondson said. “Well, she definitely needs some more follow up care with veterinary care, some testing and stuff down. She’s very thin. You need to get her at a good weight, a nice foster home would be great to get her more personalized care rather than a shelter care. Not that we don’t do great care because we do. It’s just better for animals in that type of condition to have more of a foster home, a more close care type situation.”
The question that still hangs out there is who the owner of Chickie is. Currently no one has come forward to claim her, so the shelter is doing their best to get her ready for a possible new home.
“She definitely had quite the team involved in getting her captured,” Edmondson said. “And, you know, everybody did such a great job in their role and good for them. You know, it’s
wonderful. And now she’s in a much safe place right now, being well cared for.”
As for Pefley, she stated that she has thought about reaching out for more information about Chickie and possibly bringing her into her family, but she’s not ready to make that decision yet.
“It takes a village,” she said. “Everybody wanted to help. I mean, I think everybody has fallen in love with her and she’s just a sweet girl. Just she was scared on the run, but,
yeah, everybody wanted to help and like she said, I think everybody that, you know, was feeding her and giving her water and trying to help. I said, feel very fortunate and honored that I was able to help at that. I’m so, so happy that she’s safe now and, not on the run and scared. I just worried that, you know, especially with that thing on her head, that I was surprised she didn’t get hit by a car because there was a lot of people who were trying to catch her.”
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