Searchers believe missing Melancthon husky may have been stolen

Written By ALYSSA PARKHILL

One of the most terrifying feelings when owning a pet, is to have him or her go missing. 

A beautiful husky with bright blue eyes, and striking red fur has been missing since Jan. 2 and may have been stolen from his Melancthon family.. 

Owner Mik Hayward and members of the community have been on the search for two-year-old Darce, and now have a strong suspicion that he may not be missing after all.

Aid 4 Paws, Search and Recovery team was called for assistance to help locate Darce. Aid 4 Paws has been in operation since 2015 and consists of several trained and experienced volunteers who are dedicated to locate and bring home missing animals. The Facebook page provides information and details about the missing animal and consistent updates on sightings and progress of the search. 

On Jan. 7, the post was updated stating, “This two-year-old Husky boy left his property when sudden gun shots took place & scared him off. He is microchipped & is wearing 2 collars & tags.

Darce is very bonded to his family & brother. He is friendly but probably scared. Please don't pursue him, he'll think it's a game and run off. Being a Husky, he could run very far!”

Strong suspicions have led those in the search to suspect that Darce has been found but not reported. Several steps to relocate the missing husky have been taken, but haven't worked out yet.

“He's a beautiful husky and in spite of everything we've done so far to locate him, which would normally work, there's some strange events around this particular case which leads me to strongly suspect that this dog was found by someone,” explains France Lajeunesse, founder of Aid 4 Paws. “He was either kept, or maybe something happened and they're just not reporting it.”

She added, “The owner and the family have done everything and then some to find Darce.”

Darce went missing from 30 Side Road and 3rd Line between Honeywood and Badjeros. He wears two black collars clipped with a tag with the owner's phone number and is micro-chipped, but the micro-chip can only identify the dog if found and scanned by a vet or animal services, not locate his/her whereabouts. 

Aid 4 Paws and the family have posted 60 large neon signs as well as more than 600 flyers all around the area to spread the word about Darce.

“There's been a significant amount of online marketing for him, and one of the posts, somebody just flippantly commented that a dog had been dead on the side of (County Road) 124 and the corner of 15th Side Road. When we reached out to this woman and questioned her a little bit more, she just gave an intersection and then stopped responding to us,” explained Ms. Lajeunesse. “The trail is completely cold. We've had absolutely nothing.” 

When finding an animal that you may not know, it is vital to report the animal to the proper authorities to make sure the animal goes back to its home. Animals are property in law, and should not be harboured if they don't belong to you. You should do everything in your power to make sure the loved animal makes it safely back to their family and their home. 

Mr. Hayward is grateful to the online community as the word spreads about Darce. 

“People sharing on the internet is amazing. People call me from everywhere. That is the best thing right now,” he said. The post on the Aid 4 Paws Facebook page has been shared almost 700 times. 

He added, “My dog isn't just running around free. He wouldn't do that, most dogs don't. They go to people, so it's not like I'm going to find him walking around in the forest. At the beginning I was searching on foot, but couldn't find anything. I think now it's just trying to spread the word. All I know is my dog is gone, and it's weird. I just want my dog back, and I think someone has him because he'd be home otherwise.” 

The search for Darce continues and the owner alongside the Aid 4 Paws team encourage those who have any information on the missing husky to contact Aid 4 Paws or Mik Hayward. For more information, visit the Aid 4 Paws Facebook page.