Southern NJ Humane Tracking & Trapping Org

On November 15, 2022 our dog was believed to be abducted from our car while parked at a nearby Wawa at the corner of Aramingo Avenue and Wheatsheaf Lane. It is unclear what happened in the days following his disappearance, however, following an extensive public outreach campaign we began to receive notifications that he was loose in nearby neighborhoods. After sightings, we met with the professional dog tracking and trapping organization Southern NJ Humane Tracking & Trapping Recovery Group. They have extensive experience and have successfully returned hundreds of pets to their owners.

This nightmarish ordeal had come with a bit of a learning curve for us, having never lost a pet before. It would be intuitive to think that calling for our dog, using his previous training and familiarity with us would be enough once we locate his whereabouts. This, unfortunately, is not the case. As we learned from the Tracking & Trapping group and countless educational resources, domesticated animals quickly revert to a “feral” state after being lost in the wild. They no longer recognize the comforts of their owners or familiar surroundings and smells. They rely on survival instinct and all beings are considered a threat. Even their owners. This makes their retrieval extremely difficult. One must rely on their instincts to hunt and trap them; a process that can take days to even weeks in certain circumstances.

Glenn & Kathleen and the entire organization are 100% volunteers and work to bring home lost dogs almost entirely on goodwill and donations. During the time Theo was lost, they used multiple traps, trail cameras, and food, and they drove an hour+ to bring these supplies to us to help bring Theo home. The trap that finally caught Theo, The Missy Trap, costs nearly $1,000 to make, so it should come as no surprise they are not easily accessible.

Theo was missing for 18 days, and while we would not wish this ordeal on anybody, we would like to raise enough money to give back to the organization that helped bring him home. We want to ensure they have enough resources to help other pet owners if they ever find themselves in this situation.