Axle : A journey home

02/07/2020

As we end another day without him, we can’t help but wonder where he is. Another week has gone by and his absence is felt every day. We miss him in ways words can’t describe.

We have but one wish and it’s to have him back.

Please, if you know anything about his whereabouts, we beg you to please reach out to us. We can be reached at 261-1750, day or night.

If you or someone you know has Axle, please do the right thing.

Bring him to a vet, the spca or anywhere else that is safe for him until we are contacted. No questions asked. Just say you found him.

Axle is from a loving home and our family is hurting in his absence.

🐾🐕❤️

Dao and Steff

02/01/2020

The two dogs at Killarney lake belong to the sawmill owner. We’ve confirmed the Shepard was not Axle. Thanks everyone.

02/01/2020

We’ve received information of a possible sighting in the Killarney Lake area. It is NOT confirmed to be Axle; however I am asking everyone in the area to be on the look out for a Shepard with a limp and a mix breed dog running around loose so we can get further information.

How can you help?
Share this post.
If you see them, take a picture if possible and send it to us immediately.
Report the sighting immediately by calling 261-1750 nothing the area and direction of travel of the dog(s).

01/31/2020

Searching for Axle | Information Morning - Fredericton with Terry Seguin | Live Radio | CBC Listen

For your listening pleasure. Please share.

https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-25-information-morning-fredericton/clip/15758158-searching-for-axle

Shaun Waters has the story of a missing dog that galvanized a community, and so far, has no happy ending.

01/31/2020

5 weeks ago he ran off and began an adventure of his own.

We have searched for him tirelessly, and we continue to do so. Looking for him has led us on some crazy adventures of our own. Our only hope is to find him and bring him home so we can continue our adventures together.

We follow up on every lead, exhaust every option and re-strategize when required.

Words cannot express our gratitude for the countless people who are invested in helping us find our boy. Be it by sharing posts, sending us possible sightings, sharing screen shots or messages of loose Shepards, providing words of support and encouragement, putting up posters, talking about Axle’s story... the list goes on.

We hope to one day (soon) celebrate his return with all of you and let the world see just why we love him so much.

Until then, keep sharing, keep looking out your windows, keep watching as you go about your commute, keep talking about him and keep following this page.

Together we will bring him home!

❤️🐕🐾

Dao and Steff

01/24/2020

To the people who say “it’s crazy to keep looking for him” or “he’s just a dog”...

As pet owners we take responsibility for our animal(s) the day we decide to bring them into our families; committing to provide for them, and to love them unconditionally.

Their loyalty is not a right but rather a privilege and honour to have. We are their everything.

01/21/2020

The wait and search continue.

It’s been a few days since we last posted, sadly because we’ve not had anything new to provide. Axle is still missing.

We continue to respond to possible sightings and follow up on leads. We do our best to get back to everyone or acknowledge those who message us. Please understand that this isn’t always possible and if your message was not acknowledged, it was not to be rude.

We continue to pray for a solid sighting; one where the dog is still in sight when we or someone from our team arrive on location or even a picture to help us confirm or rule out that it’s Axle.

We have not lost hope. Despite the cold snap and recent storm, we remain hopeful that Axle has persevered and found what he needs to survive.

After nearly four weeks, we acknowledge the worst case scenarios and know that anything remains a possibility. Believing in the worst will strip us of the hope that we will find him and that he will be home with us again. Your continued support keeps us strong.

Though we have posters in many locations and we have this page, your help in sharing his story, his picture and our contact number will only increase our chances of a solid sighting. Phone calls are much quicker than messages, which sometimes don’t get seen right away.

There is strength in numbers. Your eyes on the look out are more helpful than you may believe 😊 Day or Night.

Again, the number to call is 506-261-1750.

01/18/2020

Thanks everyone for sharing the information about the two dogs running near the Northside underpass. Dao responded to the sighting but was advised while on route that both dogs are now back home.

To our boy Axle, wherever you are; we can only hope you are safe and warm tonight 💔🐾

We will not and have not given up!

Dao and Steff

01/15/2020

Axle : A journey home

01/15/2020

Update:

Axle is still missing and the search for him continues.

The search process has been long and exhausting for our family and our wonderful volunteers who have gone above and beyond to help us get Axle’s story known. Our family is eternally grateful for the support, encouragement and dedication that has been bestowed upon us by this city and beyond.

Tomorrow will mark 3 weeks since he ran and we (including all of you who are on the look out for sightings) continue to do everything we can to locate him.

Everyone has an opinion and not everyone will agree; let’s all remember that what matters most is bringing him home safe.

It’s unfortunate that in this process some have found it appropriate to be negative towards us or to make a stressful situation even more stressful for our family, possibly hindering our efforts or moving our attention away from where it was truly needed.

Axle is a member of our family. No one knows or loves him the way we do. To support us is to do so with a kind heart and understanding; to offer guidance and advice despite your own feelings or opinions and to respect our decisions as owners as we do the best we can with the information at hand.

Please Axle, come home 💔🐾

01/12/2020

Thanks everyone for all the shares and for sending us reports of possible sightings. He ran off on Dec 26 from Canada Street (145). Your eyes will help us bring Axle home ❤️ please keep sharing his story and reaching out to us if you hear anything by calling 261-1750.

01/11/2020

The Shepard reported to be in the parking lot by Staples and Marks is confirmed not to be Axle. Thanks everyone for sharing and keeping your eyes out for us!

01/11/2020

There are no new updates to provide on Axle this morning. We continue to ask for everyone’s assistance in looking out and reporting any possible sightings by calling us directly at 261-1750. Our boy is still missing and we miss him dearly.

01/09/2020

The Penniac sighting was confirmed to not have been Axle but rather a dog from the area which has now returned home. 😔

01/09/2020

Thanks everyone for sharing the information regarding a recent post in the Penniac Rec Center page. We Are looking into it.

01/09/2020

When a piece of your normal is missing, how do you make things normal again?

To Axle time is without existence, yet our days as humans are filled with things to get accomplished, hours, minutes and seconds ticking by, each one seeming longer than the last.

Positivity taking a back seat to the lows that inevitably find you despite your hopefulness and desire to stay strong.

What keeps us going? All of you and all those who surround us with light and positive energy, never letting us falter or lose hope.

We would be the first to say, “Alright Axle, enough is enough, come home now”. If only it were that easy.

We look forward to his return and keep praying that this day is coming soon.

With love and gratitude in our hearts,

❤️🐾🐕

Dao and Steff

01/07/2020

Patience is a virtue and silence is deafening:

Everyday we wish we could come here onto Axle’s page and share that he is back home with his family. We know many of you are wholeheartedly invested in this and check for updates several times a day, and share in our heartbreak and disappointment when another day has gone by.

Patience is now what we need in abundance as this is now about waiting for Axle to decide he is ready to come out and be seen or tired enough to ask for help.

The notion of patience is difficult when your heart is broken and your soul feels shattered. We miss him so much and ask for nothing more than a solid sighting of him so that we know for sure.

The silence can be deafening when you wait for your phone to ring for that one faithful call to say your fur baby has been captured. And with every phone call that isn’t that one, the hurt is felt just a little more.

Our home is missing a family member and though we must forge on, his presence is everywhere and pieces of him still linger.

We hope that the universe will soon hear our voices and return him to us with the help of those who are continuously supporting us (both on the ground or otherwise).

Axle took a piece of us when he ran, our hearts feel incomplete and his absence brings a loneliness only he could fill.

Thank you all for your continued support, check-ins and words of encouragement.

❤️🐾🐕

Dao and Steff

01/07/2020

Thanks to all those who shared a story last night! So many happy endings!!!! We keep hope that someday (sooner rather then later) we will have ours.

While we realize many are anxiously awaiting for daily updates, you should know that it’s not so much a search at this time as it is a waiting game. We are on his time and his schedule. To catch Axle we must first figure him out; otherwise he remains fours paws 🐾 ahead of us.

We are surrounded by great people with a wealth of knowledge and experience in this area and without them we would be lost and probably still walking the area desperately yelling his name whilst squeaking a toy.

Everyone’s faith and patience deepens ours. Good night everyone 🤗

🐕🐾❤️

Dao and Steff

01/06/2020

You all have followed us along this journey since Dec 27 and in some ways have gotten to know us.

We would like to get to know you, our supporters, as you have all been a vital piece to our strength and hope.

Share with us your experiences of a missing pet. How did you react? How long did it take for them to return or be found? How did you cope or shake the feeling of being trapped in a nightmare? Did you find it hard to function? Did you find your pet had changed upon their return? Did you find yourself more cautious with them after? Did you place blame or feel angry at yourself?

❤️🐾🐕
Dao and Steff

01/05/2020

Hello everyone,
We have no new updates. We have implemented a new strategy that will hopefully allow us to get better eyes on Axle.

I (Steff) will take this moment to answer questions or comments which seem to pop up often.

Considering that anything is a possibility at this point:

Any sign of him? - Maybe, but without a picture in a location or an actual confirmation that it’s him (full description or characteristics matching his) it makes it difficult to say with certainty that he has been sighted or that those paw prints are his. What we have are clues.

Where was he last spotted? - Friends of mine came close to him about 5/6 days ago still in the same area but were unable to quickly enough gain his trust as Axle was spooked by someone in a driveway nearby that started his truck with loud exhaust (🤬) and secondly when he came running out of the woods and crossed my friends path and back into a wooded area.

Drones/ females in heat/ dirty clothes/ favorite bed or blanket or even us his owners and doggie sister walking around - these are just a few of the strategies we have used and continue to use when appropriate.

What can you do to help?
Spread the word and share this page. Awareness is key especially in the area of Devon and Marysville but the residential areas in the surrounding areas should also be on the look out - anything is possible. Call me immediately 261-1750 with any possible sighting. A picture is helpful if you can, but if not, try and capture the image with your mind which you can then use to provide details like his markings, his face color, tail colour etc. Note the direction he is moving in, time and exact location of spotting. Do not attempt to lure him or call his name. Without the proper technique to gain his trust and calm him he will turn and run away, so eyes only 🤫

Is this dog yours? - Please keep sharing images or posts about lost dog found. If he is not ours that’s ok, no harm 🙂 Keep sharing as it may just be ours on of these times.

Why won’t he come to you? - dog behaviour is complex and though he ran off as a pet, he’s currently not in that mind frame. He isn’t looking for cuddles and fetch. He is looking for survival: water, food, shelter (and yes maybe a gf lol cause he’s not fixed). Everyone and everything can be or will be perceived as a threat unless he otherwise deems it. It Is NOT a training issue or that he has a reason to be afraid of us (are you kidding???)

I hope this helps answer questions 🤗

Have a great day everyone 🐾🐕

Dao and Steff

01/05/2020

The sun goes down on yet another day without the return of Axle. If it weren’t for the love, support and kindness that has be given to us and the generosity that has been pouring in we would not be as hopeful as we remain.

8 days seems like a long time to us as humans but one of our team members wrote something today that really stood out:

“Don’t watch your clock, Axle does not know what time it is. Therefore it’s an irrelevant tool.”

Time is irrelevant to Axle and he is not counting the days he has been missing, nor should we (yes, this is very hard...)

His focus is to survive and get through each day, ensuring he has met his basic needs.

We as humans often forget to do this and practice self care in times of crisis or trauma. Tonight we continue to trust our dedicated team and most of all we continue to trust and have faith in Axle as we take time self care and rest.

Sleep does not come easy, and our nights are often filled with turmoil and thoughts of him. It is difficult to end another day without better news to share with you, but we find comfort in thinking that one day soon this page will share a picture of our family happily smiling alongside our beautiful boy.

Your thoughts, prayers, energies and words of encouragement will help us bring him home.

Dao and Steff

01/04/2020

New game plan being put into motion thanks to everyone expertise and knowledge to do what’s best for Axle safety and well being.

Looking for a Wifi trail/hunting cam.
Please share or contact me by phone if at 261 1750 if you have one you would be willing to let us borrow. Thank you!!!

01/04/2020

Good morning everyone,
We miss our boy very much and desperately want him home.

Desperation can push you into dark places and even alter your perception making it difficult to make decisions.

We want Axle home, but we also want his safety.
In the last 8 days he has been separated from his family and lost in an area unfamiliar to him. There have been people/dogs in the area trying to find him or track him almost 24/7. With the nice weather snowmobiles have been out on the trails and with New Year’s Eve came fire works.

His cortisone and stress levels have not decreased and his evasiveness is typical of a dog who is being hyper vigilant to remain unseen and travel under cover or hide.

Our first instincts as owners is to want to keep pushing and looking. Doing so comes with significant risks as even we are seen as predators by him in this state of mind and and our presence may even push him further.

The key to getting a good sighting of him will be to let him calm down, to let his adrenaline and cortisone levels drop so his confidence to come out and roam in the open come back. In order to find him, he has to be seen and confirmed solid locations are needed.

Being dog owners facing this situation has taught us it is much like being parents to humans (which we both are). You feel helpless and unsure of yourself not knowing if each decision is the right one. The one thing that should never be neglected is ones internal voice and instincts.

Day 9 begins with the hope that new sightings will soon give us what is needed to bring him home.

Thank you for joining us along this emotional adventure. Axle is loved by so many far and wide.

Dao and Steff

01/04/2020

Please share!

I was recently contacted by someone from Burton who owns a German Shepard trained in scent tracking and in the several hundred messages we’ve received we can no longer find the message. If this is you or you know who it is, please let us know or have them reach out to us by phone 261-1750. Thank you!

01/03/2020

Unless something changes over night, this will be my last post for today.

It’s been a trying couple of days with Axle being even more evasive. We are putting our faith in him and the live traps that with some patience and perseverance he will be caught.

We have an amazing group of people helping us and supporting us and looking out for us and doing everything we can to get a location on him.

We are tired and heartbroken. We look for something to hang on to, even a solid sighting would help boost moral.

To be our best for Axle’s capture and return we must take care of ourselves physically, mentally and emotionally.

Please continue praying for us or sending positive energy for his return 🐾

Which much love for each one of you who are supporting us virtually and on site.

Dao and Steff

01/03/2020

Thank you to all those who continue to support us and follow our story. Axle isn’t just a dog he is a family member and my heart breaks for anyone who has never known the love and loyalty a family can bring.

If the universe could give us a gift at this moment (other than Axle in the flesh) is a good clear sighting of him and for him to be still long enough for us to confirm it’s him with a video or picture.

We remain at his mercy to let us get close to enough to him to find or for him to decide he is ready coming home and to come to use.

The search continues and we will spend another night under stars.

🐾🐕💔

Dao and Steff

01/03/2020

🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

01/03/2020

This guys has been missing for over a week now. Please help us bring him home!!! We love and miss him so. He ran off from 145 Canada street and remains in the area but is constantly moving and is making it very difficult for us to catch him. 💔🐾

01/03/2020

Dao and I spent the night out under the stars. Our hearts are breaking as still no sign of axle near the live traps. He’s gotta be getting hungry and must be very tired 😔 we just need a solid sighting of him. He has left some clues behind that he is still in the area but doesn’t stay in one place long enough for us to get to him. He seems to always be one step ahead 💔

Please buddy, come home!!!!!

01/02/2020

Today was a gorgeous day to be outside. Roxie and I (Steff) sat out all afternoon near the fire (wafting bacon grease) to try and lure him out. Roxie got lots of snuggles with mom under a warm blanket and a nap in the sun. Lots of fresh tracks were seen during our grid walk but no Axle to bring home. Thank you everyone for all the ideas, suggestions and tips.

Tonight Dao and I camp out under the ⭐️ 🥶 to monitor and rebate live traps which we have laced with an even tastier buffet of goodies.

Thanks to everyone for your messages, shared stories and offers for help.

Dao and Steff

01/02/2020

Good morning everyone,
As day breaks this is when Axle would start his day and so we begin ours for Day 7 of searching, watching, listening and tracking.

Please come home boy! 💔

01/02/2020

Please share:

Another day has come and gone and no Axle to help us celebrate New Year’s Day 😞 We have not given up hope, there’s still tonight.

The outpouring of support has been incredible and it’s become challenging to keep track of who can help/how and when. To facilitate this we are going to start a list. If you would like to help, please contact Rachelle on Facebook messenger (see attached for Facebook info) or text at 1-204-740-0739 and provide her with your availability, contact information as well as what you would like to help with from the following:

Watching from homes

Watching live traps (we aime to have 2 tomorrow)

On foot search and track

Motion censored trail cams you would be willing to lend.

For anyone having reached out to help (at anytime since this started), we will be meeting at 301 MacPherson Street tomorrow at 2pm

We continue to deeply appreciate all the help that is being given and offered.

Dao and Steff

Please come home buddy, we miss you!!!!

01/01/2020

Thanks everyone for checking in. So many people offering to help. Can only respond so fast to all the messages. Axle hasn’t been posted today 😞 but we are still looking for signes of him to come up with a game plan for this evening and night.

01/01/2020

Good morning everyone!
Happy Jan 1. New year, new snow. Let’s bring Axle home ☺️ The search continues.

01/01/2020

Final update of the day (unless things change):

The past six days have been an insane roller coaster of emotions with many highs and just as many lows. Despite not yet having captured him and 2019 soon coming to and end, we enter 2020 with new friends, stronger bonds with those we already had, a stronger relationship and a new appreciation for our community and the power of social media.

We could feel sorry for ourselves and end the year on a negative note but we both have so much to be thankful for. Our supportive friends, family and community, Roxie our other dog, healthy children and the strength to overcome life’s twists and turns together.

It may sound cliche but the traction of this page and the hundreds of messages we have received have all contributed to our ability to stay positive.

There have been so many kind words from near and far ❤️

As this year comes to an end, hold your family
Members (human or otherwise) closer and move into the new year with positivity in your hearts.

Axle will be home very soon and we will celebrate together as many of you have come to love Axle like you’ve met and known him as we do.

❤️🐕🐾

Dao and Steff

01/01/2020

So many have been kind in helping us look for Axle so tonight I am going to try and return some of that kindness.

The below message was sent to our page’s inbox.

A phone was found today by one of our search members on Forbes street and we are hoping the owner is following this page or someone on this page recognizes the face on the locked screen.

Perhaps it was lost by someone who was kind enough to help look for our boy.

Please contact me if you can help ❤️

12/31/2019

Dao and I are wishing each and everyone of you a happy and safe New Year’s Eve.

Axle remains on the loose but we’ve had a great day with several solid sightings. Unfortunately his Houdini game is strong but we won’t stop until he reappears in our house ☺️

To answer a question I’m getting a lot:

Axle isn’t a kennel dog therefore the live trap isn’t going to naturally draw him. A kennel has never made him feel safe so I don’t suspect he would see the live trap as such.

Things we’ve learned:

Axle is resilient and does not disappoint in the area of Shepard intelligence and survival skills.

Axle is no longer our little boy, is now in full blown teenager mode and has found a girlfriend (she better be good to him 😾) and needs to be fix ASAP! 😹

This city (and country because this page has gained traction we weren’t expecting) is full of amazing and kind hearted people and has made us see that in a world so crazy and sometimes consumed with negative, there is good left.

As always if you are outside and see him please call me at 261 1750.

Eternally grateful for all of you 🙏🏻

Dao and Steff

12/31/2019

Nothing new to report as of yet. Stay tuned 😊🙏🏻

12/31/2019

Please share this post:

If you live on Crocket Street, Bridge Street or Irvine Street PLEASE watch for Axle 😁

Axle seems to be chasing female 🐕 ... lord help me...🤦🏻‍♀️

12/30/2019

Day 5: Thank you everyone for being patient. I was quiet today in order to let the search teams do their work and maybe have something new to share with you. Unfortunately Axle has yet to let us get close enough to catch him. We were hoping that garbage day would lure him out enough for confirmed sightings or capture but he’s being smart and very stubborn. We have a few possible sightings but darkness and his speed have prevented people from being able to get a good look at the dog to help us determine if it’s him.

We remain confident that he has established a perimeter in the area from which he ran off and he’s established a routine for himself for movement... now to crack the code.

We have a live trap set up again tonight and will see what will come of that. We are concerned about the storm but the following things keep us from falling apart: Axle is not injured and seems to be doing just fine running around (grrrrr)...

New snow will mean an opportunity for fresh tracks and possibly hinder his food/water source thus making the live trap more appealing.

Today has been one of my (Steff) worst days emotionally. My enthusiasm took a nose dive for a few hours, I’m guessing the fatigue and worry allowed some darkness to seep through. We are ready to face day 6 (if needed.... AXLE... get in the trap)!

We will update you if the above circumstances change before morning.

❤️🤞🏻

Dao and Steff