Support for Lost Pet Recovery Efforts

My name is Katie Albright, and I live in Bend, Oregon. I was trained by Kat Albrecht of Missing Animal Response Network in 2016 as a Missing Pet Recovery Specialist and have been volunteering my time for the past nine years, primarily in Colorado and Oregon. I currently live in Bend, Oregon and have been helping owners here since before I moved back to the area in 2020.

For the past nine years, I’ve volunteered my time to help bring lost pets home. It’s work that often means late nights, early mornings, no sleep, and a lot of out-of-pocket expenses. While some owners donate, many aren’t in a position to do so, and others may not fully realize the time and resources this work requires.

The reality is that this work is time-intensive and expensive to sustain. This past week brought both the heartbreaking loss of a dog I had been trying to trap and an unexpected financial hit that couldn’t have come at a worse time.

While in the middle of this intense search for the stray puppy, I took on a new case. I met the owners out in the field late at night, already exhausted and drained, and I had a mishap that will cost me $3,400 or more.

After this, all I wanted to do was go home and sleep, but I went straight back to the trapping location for the puppy and stayed until the early morning hours, with no success.

The next day, I found out the puppy had moved several miles away. Once I was able to pinpoint the new location, I set my trap again, knowing this was a Hail Mary effort, but time was not on our side and the area was not safe. Once again the dog fled and was found hit and killed on the parkway last night. Not wanting to leave this sweet dog alone on the parkway, I went and retrieved the remains, but efforts to determine the gender were unsuccessful, as was my scan for a micrcohip.

Getting that pup to safety was my focus all week. I’m heartbroken by how it ended and now sidelined from fieldwork until I can recover from the expense. Fundraising and self-promotion aren’t things that come easily to me, but I’m doing my best to put this out there.

I’ve listed a couple of personal items for sale, but the only things of real value I own are the tools I rely on for this work: my trapping rig, thermal equipment, and field gear. I’m setting this GoFundMe at $5,000 to help cover the cost of the mishap and possibly replace one of the traps I recently had to sell.

I won’t be able to take on new cases until this is resolved. If you’ve worked with me in the past or followed one of the many stories I’ve shared, please consider donating or sharing with someone who may be able to help.

Please note I am not a 501c3, and all funds run through a business account, although I work on a donation-only basis.

I’m hoping to be back at it soon with some changes that will allow me to keep doing this work in a way that’s sustainable for the long term, and where unexpected expenses won’t leave me unable to continue.

Thank you for your support,

Katie Albright

Missing Pet Recovery

facebook.com/missingpetrecovery