Dog missing since Caldor Fire evacuations rescued from snowy South Lake Tahoe mountainside

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Russ is one lucky dog and he has a team of animal lovers and rescue experts in South Lake Tahoe to thank.

In August, Russ was in South Lake Tahoe with his owner who was in town for a temporary job when the three-year-old pit bull mix went missing. A lost dog report was made and given to Animal Control, but the whole town evacuated within two days due to the Caldor Fire and Russ's human had to leave without him. He returned home to Riverside County thinking he'd never see Russ again.

Both before and after the town repopulated reports were posted on Facebook about a black dog with white markings on his chest appearing on their front porches and yards or spotted in the neighborhoods around Gardner Mountain.

As time went on, Russ's human figured he'd never see his pet again.

Fast forward to December 16 when Christian Holland, an employee at Azul Latin Kitchen, was out with a friend snowboarding and skiing between Twin Peaks and F Street in South Lake Tahoe. They saw a black dog in a tree well in the snow, unable to move. The dog growled at them and they couldn't retrieve him. Christian took photos and posted them to a lost and found pet page on Facebook where Wendy Jones, founder of Tahoe PAWS and TLC 4 Furry Friends, saw them. Her group is professionally trained on finding missing pets and she travels throughout the Sierra and Western Nevada to reunite humans with their beloved pets.

El Dorado County Animal Control Officer Kyle Shumaker was notified and went to F Street but he was unable to access the area due to the five-foot snow depth and steep terrain as he did not have gear with him.

Wendy was out on another missing pet case and called Leona Allen, a member of her team, to try and rescue the dog.

Leona, a former firefighter and former leader at Lake Tahoe Basin Fire Academy, called Elsa Gaule, a member of the Tallac Hot Shots and academy instructor, to assist in retrieving the dog.

Leona was given the photos Christian took and a map of where he and his friend had been. She and Elsa suited up with snow gear and drove to F Street. It was already dark and temperatures were closing in on zero degrees. They found the snowboard and ski tracks from the two men who had seen the dog and hiked straight up the hill where Leona found dog tracks.

"I saw a black blob in the snow thought the dog was dead," said Leona after a mile climb up the hill in the snow.

As she got closer and the dog moved, Leona said it was "the happiest moment I've ever had."

Elsa retrieved an ice rescue sled from Officer Shumaker and headed up after Leona.

Leona calls Elsa the "dog whisperer" and she was able to immediately calm the dog down and gave him treats, salami, and a warm down coat. As she was petting him, the dog put his head in Elsa's hand and they sat together for about 30 minutes.

Seeing the dog wouldn't be able to walk out on his own, they put him on a sled, but when the dog jumped out, Leona sat in the sled with him and bundled him up. Elsa pulled the two down the hill on the sled. The sled tipped and Elsa carried the dog the rest of the way.

There was a lot of laughing involved in the rescue, a sound Leona and Elsa saw immediately calmed the dog down.

"It was not a smooth ride," the ladies said as they methodically made their way down the steep hill in the dark.

Officer Shumaker took the dog (still in Elsa's down coat) immediately to a vet to get him checked out and Leona and Elsa had to hike back up to retrieve some items left at the top.

"I am super glad it happened the way it did," said Leona. "He wouldn't have made it through the night."

The next day Leona went to see the rescued dog at the animal shelter and he wouldn't leave her side, a bond had been formed. With the assistance of EDC Animal Services, volunteers with TLC 4 Furry Friends & Tahoe PAWS visited Russ every day to remind him that he was loved until he could make the journey home.

Animal Control checked the dog for a microchip, and found one but found it wasn't registered. They saw that it was once in Riverside County so they called every veterinarian in the county, trying to track down who owned the found dog. They then found the old "lost dog" report from August and called the dog's owner. He had not paid to renew the microchip as he thought his dog was gone forever.

Animal Control took the dog they then knew was "Russ" down to Placerville due to the pending storm, and the dog's owner was able to pick him up there on December 26, four months after they had been separated.

This is a great reminder that microchipping your pet and maintaining the registration in your name is important. It’s also essential that you report your pet to the local Animal Services office if it goes missing.

Leona has been involved with PAWS as a tracker since December 2019. She's been involved in 10 dog rescues and eight cat rescues where significant action was needed (tracking, cameras, traps, overnight stays in the woods, etc). Nine of her 10 dog rescues were successful, and five of the eight cats were. One of the cat rescues required overnight stays above Emerald Bay in the snow. She's assisted in about 20 others.

If you are interested in volunteering with TLC 4 Furry Friends (animal search and rescue) or Tahoe PAWS – a Community Animal Response Team (disaster/emergency response), please contact Wendy Jones at 775-721-3647 (DOGS) or tahoepawscart@gmail.com. https://tahoepaws.org/

They do not charge for their services. Donations may be made at Tahoe PAWS,
PO Box 8292, South Lake Tahoe, CA 96158.