Lost and Found Amid Hurricane Irene

As many other families were hunkering down for Hurricane Irene or evacuating, the Reabold family were spending hours looking for a valued member of their family.

Amid the chaos and preparation of Hurricane Irene, as the Reabolds were rushing to secure valuables that were tied down, put in storage, sheds, garages, the Reabolds' dog Bailey escaped from their property near Fischer Boulevard.

“We were so busy preparing, we hadn’t realized that Bailey had gotten out!” said Peggy Reabold.

Bailey, their beagle/Brittany spaniel mix, had slipped out without anyone in the home noticing as they hurriedly prepared for the storm. They searched for hours, but he was no where to be found near their home off of Fischer Boulevard.

They called the police, but they were busy with the chaos of hurricane emergencies. The Toms River animal shelter would not be open until two days later on Monday and when Monday came, the phones were down.

“We showed up at their door, and two nice ladies were there,” said Reabold.

Bailey was safe and sound, having been turned in earlier over the weekend, by a neighbor who called and reported him on Kenton Drive, just around the corner from the Reabold home.

The Reabolds were blessed that their furry friend was found, the family said. Dale Beley, of Toms River, said there had not been an increase in lost animals during the storm.

“People were pretty well prepared,” said Beley. “The pet friendly shelters really helped and encouraged people to go to the shelters and bring their pets. That was a huge plus. A huge plus!”

Many dogs and cats and a hermit crab were all part of the mix in the pet portion of the hurricane shelters, said Toms River Regional School spokesperson Tammi Millar. About 600 people took shelter.

The and the shelters were pet friendly which encouraged households to bring their pets, relieving the stress about where to provide shelter for their faithful animal, Beley said.

“When people are in a situation when they need to separate, it causes stress. Whether that was the reason, because of the pet-friendly shelters, it was a huge plus,” said Beley.

When lost-pet emergencies like this do occur, Beley said that the best way to find the lost pet is to contact all the shelters.

“We keep a lost pet log, most shelters in the county keep a log, so that if they match, we do contact the owners,” said Beley. When an owner reports a missing animal, the shelter catalogues animal’s description so they can contact the owner if they find one that meets their descriptive report in their system.

To prevent the worry and stress of losing a lost pet, always keep the animal identified, he said.

With wandering Bailey the beagle, he had been mid-tags-transfer when he got out of the Reabold house. Without the identification, the family was concerned.

“Normally somebody calls. He’s so friendly, but we were switching collars so he didn’t have his tags,” said Reabold. With the hurricane coming and the household batting down the hatches, “it was a conglomeration of crazy.”

 “Always keep the pet identified, collars, microchips, registered with the county. That will definitely help track the animal,” said Beley.