For Peachtree City resident Lauren Boal, it is not so much a question of finding her lost 10 year-old whippet, it is a matter of corralling “Alex” and getting him home.
Boal, who works at Braelinn Animal Hospital, said on Thursday Alex was adopted in January and had lived with the Boal family and their greyhounds until June 13 when he (literally) jumped the fence while visiting at a friend’s house in the McIntosh Trail/Robinson Road area.
Alex at one point during the visit went through the doggie-door and into the pool area with the other dogs and, at some point, jumped the 6-foot fence and ran off, Boal said.
But running off was the easy part. So is spotting Alex around the area, as many have done. The hard part is getting Alex to come to you, Boal explained.
“We’re basically talking about a dog that won’t go near humans. And he’s terrified of men,” Boal said. “I’m getting 5-6 calls a day from people spotting him, but when they approach him he takes off.”
The same was true for Boal, who saw Alex recently herself. But he would not come to her either, Boal said sadly, noting that either he did not recognize her in the dark of the night or perhaps that he had gone feral.
Whippets tend to go feral even in a few days, Boal said, a fact reinforced by Whippet Rescue & Placement service representative Lindsey Pence.
Pence also noted that whippets are prone to go feral very quickly.
So for Boal the problem is one of somehow securing the dog she loves. So far, multiple sighting and a $300 cash reward for his safe return have not been successful.
“My dog has basically become a deer,” Boal said with a little chuckle, referencing his ability to out-jump and out-run anything in sight. “I’m worried about him and I just want him back.”
Alex weighs 30 pounds and is white with the red brindle spots. He was last seen June 23 off Robinson Road.
Anyone who has seen Alex, or perhaps more importantly, has an idea about how to entice him back home is asked to contact Lauren Boal at 404-786-7261.
