Have You Seen Zadie?

On May 27, Matt and Ellen’s dog Zadie, a Coonhound-Shepherd mix, was walking on the Reservoir Trail in Stoneham in the company of the friend caring for her. Spooked by a group of hikers, Zadie took off down the trail and into the parking area. She then ran up an embankment, through one of the large openings in the chain-link fence separating the area from 93, and onto 93 South. 

Motorists saw Zadie and frantically called state police, who arrived on the scene quickly. They clocked her at 17 miles per hour as she ran down the highway, and tried unsuccessfully to corner her with their vehicles. The officers last saw Zadie when she ran off 93 South in the median between 93S and Route 28, and there has not been a confirmed sighting of her since.

Zadie going missing has set off a desperate search for her. Matt and Ellen, with the help of friends, family and Granite State Dog Recovery volunteers have posted flyers with Zadie’s picture in the towns surrounding the Fells and in the towns bordering those towns, posted notices in the Lost and Found section of the local Patch publications, sent a missing pet alert to two towns where there have been possible sightings, made calls to area animal hospitals and shelters, created a blog, a Facebook page to enlist help and keep supporters up to date on the search, contacted local animal control officers (ACOs) and spent hours hiking in the Fells looking for Zadie. But a month later, Zadie is still missing.

“With no reports from the ACOs or the Public Works departments of deceased dogs matching Zadie’s description, we have to believe she’s still out there,” Matt says. And there’s no reason to believe she’s not; Granite State Dog Recovery recently rescued a dog that had lived on her own in a neighborhood for seven years. Dogs are resilient and resourceful, and as long as they stay smart, they can live outside on their own indefinitely. But Zadie’s owners hope she won’t be out there too much longer—fending for herself isn’t much fun for a dog, especially for a dog that’s been cared for as lovingly as Zadie.

Zadie is from Tennessee, part of a litter in which the mother died giving birth.  The litter was fostered with the assistance of a rescue organization, and Zadie was bottle fed from day one by her foster family. When she was 10 weeks old, Matt and Ellen adopted her through the online pet-matching service Petfinder.  She was the runt of the litter, and the last to be adopted, but she was just what Matt and Ellen were looking for. 

“We chose her partly because we were looking for something different, as well as something familiar,” they explained. “Zorba, our long time dog who died suddenly in November, was a Border Collie-Chow mix, and we wanted a dog that was different from him to help the healing. So we thought a female puppy who was a mutt but with a different mix of breeds, and was sweet, smart, independent, and athletic, would be perfect.”  

“It was that picture of her tugging the leash that did it,” Ellen said, referring to seeing Zadie's picture online. “It showed she has spunk, which we like. We just miss her so much.”

If you think you may have seen Zadie, please call 617-800-5588. And if you do see her, please do not chase her or call her name to avoid scaring her from the area. Just call the number and let Matt and Ellen know where you saw her, when, and in what direction she was headed. Here’s hoping that many eyes will help bring Zadie home.