News from Karin!

We got an email from Karin last night and the news is much more hopeful than we originally thought. Here is Karin's email to us.

The word is definitely getting around. Today I was stopped on the road four times... once by a police officer as I was re-hanging signs that had blown down on Highway 20. All were people who had seen the signs or heard of Piper's plight... even the police officer stopped to see if there was anything he could do...I thought for sure he was going to ask me to take down the signs but he flashed his flier of Piper and offered to give me a lift back to my car... this is the response we need... and we are getting it!

The first map shows only the work we did today (does include yesterdays track in red). The lime green lines indicate new trails where the dogs found Piper's scent. We found this new trail from Powder House Hill Rd... it is a continuation of the ravine... It is where the ravine goes under the road, turns into a creek and then goes out towards the river. All the dogs picked up Piper's scent in the new area... each coming at it from a different direction. This is how I confirm the information by giving each dog a different area to start from. When they all end up in the same place.... we know this is a trail. Cade and Mason each tracked up a long driveway from Powder House. Brodie came from the opposite side of the creek and ended at the trail Cade and later Mason would find. No one was home at this house and it looks as if no one has been there for a few days. I looked around and left food near the driveway just in case.

As the railroad tracks were adjacent to this new trail we drove to the river entrance and began scanning the tracks from a 1/2 mile away. The perimeter scans for scent are indicated in pink. At about 1/4 mile Cade alerted that he had scent and ran up the tracks towards the new trail. He ran a little past it and then alerted that he no longer had scent. I had him circle back and he went back to area of the new trail near the house. At this juncture... it did not look like Piper's scent continued down the hillside onto the tracks. We did the same perimeter scan on Powder House with Cade and Mason. Each dog went to the old ravine to the south first and then tracked up across Powder House Rd., up the long driveway and to the creek to the west.

Based on the new information I put up more signs in this area so anyone driving by has to see them. The problem in the area where we have been working is that there are very few people that live up there.

I received a call in the afternoon from a woman who said she saw Piper but she did not know what day. She only knew that it had been about 6:45 in the morning. Another gentleman stopped as I was adding signs in the area and said his wife had seen Piper the same day as his neighbor so just his neighbor had called. It turns out that all these sightings are in the same court... the same court the witness from yesterday lives in. Based on this I took the dogs to the court and gave each scent. All three dogs tracked across the court, behind the far house and headed north into the ravine. This is about where we ended our trail yesterday but about 200 yards to the west through some very thick woods. The witness who called today confirmed that his was the path and direction the little dog she had seen had went in.

Today I also got a call from a great volunteer, Jim Webster. He has agreed to add signs to the downtown and area on the other side of the river. He has a jpg. of the sign we are using and is making his own copies… Thanks Jim! He has also agreed to be a local contact should I leave and we need to keep the search going.

In additions Kris the mail carrier for the area has stepped up to help us. She is not only carrying around a Piper flier in her mail truck but went out with a friend and hiked back into the nature preserve with her labs to see if she could see anything. The nature preserve is about a ½ mile past the area where we found Piper’s scent today. And did I say… all of these places are only available on foot… yep… no way to drive…so hoof it in and hoof it out. Jus like the railroad track scans we did today. Only one way in and out… no roads. Anyway, Kris believes she may have seen what could be small dog prints in the snow out in the nature preserve. Tomorrow, we will check this possibility for Piper’s scent.

Sorry this so lengthy but I am receiving emails from people all over who are praying and crossing their paws for Piper’s recovery… We all appreciate your thoughts and energy towards this goal.

Mommy and I think this is good news and we are ever hopeful that Karin and her team or rescue pups will be able to get on a new trail of Piper's today!

Thank you all for all of your support! We are trying our darnest to get this little girl home!