Dobby and owners, reunited: The search for “Dobby” reached as far as 10 miles away from the crash site. All involved are very excited to know the pup is okay. PHOTO COURTESY OF BRITTANIE DICKSON[/caption]

After eight days and seven nights of searching, Dobby the dog was rescued from Golden Gate Canyon State Park. The pup and his owners were involved in a rollover car accident by Kriley Pond. Although the owners and pet were not injured from the accident, Dobby took off from the crash site up the nearest mountain.

Brittanie Dickson, the owner and founder of Mountain Paws & Claws, is experienced in animal rescues from her volunteer work with animal transport, foster care, and emergency scenarios as well as her time as a member of the Gilpin County Sheriff Animal Response Team. Dickson was a crucial member in the search for Dobby as she understands the complexities that arise when an animal experiences a traumatic event.

In a written statement to The Mountain-Ear, Dickson explains why Dobby ran away from his owners at the crash site, “When a dog has entered survival mode, very often [every] human is viewed as a predator... including their owners. When a dog regresses to their primal instincts, it means that in their mind, they are on their own.”

The search for Dobby immediately commenced through lost dog signs, social media outreach, and “scent stations” placed in areas he was spotted. These “scent stations” consist of articles of dirty clothing, dog toys, dog bedding, or anything that the pet associates with home and their owners.

Based on the sighting from locals, Dobby’s trajectory led particularly far from the car wreck. According to Dickson, dogs in crashes typically remain within one mile of the crash site, Dobby traveled over ten miles away.

About a week after the crash, on Thursday, June 15, 2023, at around 10:30 a.m., Dickson received a text message: Dobby had been spotted. Dickson rushed over with the owners, setting up new scent stations, and instructing the owners to stay put so as to not confuse Dobby. It didn’t take long for Dobby to cross paths with his owners, snap out of his survival mode, and come running to his family.

Dobby was taken to a veterinarian hospital to check for any injuries and was miraculously deemed healthy, which is especially strange for an animal that survived a car wreck and then lived in the wilderness for a week. Dobby the dog then spent the next few days taking a well-deserved rest, very happy to be back home.

For more information about Mountain Paws & Claws, please visit their website at https://www.mtnpawsnclaws.com/.