Peri

A call first thing this morning from a lady who had just seen Peri in the same area as she was seen yesterday. No sign of Cotton. I took food up there last night and today I'm going to take a blanket the other dogs... Diamond (Peri's mom,) Keogh and her pups... have been sleeping on for the last two weeks. I'm hoping their smells will calm Peri and we'll eventually be able to catch her. Also going to call the animal shelter and see if they have any of the large traps available.

As for Cotton, I'm afraid. I guess that says it all. Several people have warned me there is a man right there who shoots every dog he sees because he has horses and people "should keep their dogs locked up." One lady, who was in an altercation with him last year, told him the next time his horses were on her property, she was going to shoot THEM. The lady who called this morning said they heard shooting over his way yesterday.

The weather has gotten dramatically colder... highs in the 50s (versus the 70s) and lows the last couple nights in the 40s, supposed to go down into the 30s tomorrow night. 30-50% chance of rain over the next couple days as well.

We need prayers and incantations and anything else that might help.

Later update
It's possible that they got separated because Cotton did not look out for Peri. When I saw them, a week ago Friday night, Cotton was running a good 50 feet ahead of Peri. Peri saw me and something was going on in her head... I could tell by the way her gait changed... but then she looked ahead and saw Cotton still running, and ran after her. Or maybe someone was able to trap Cotton and Peri wouldn't let them get her. Or something terrible could have happened. It's interesting that Peri found her way back to Larry's place because they were a good distance... miles... away. AND yet, she hasn't been able to find her way home. Larry saw her last night, inside the crate on one of his decks, eating, but she ran away... a short distance... when he opened the door. She went back to the crate and food when he went back in the house. And this morning she was sitting on the same deck, and left again when he went outside. As he and his wife were going to the car, he saw her go under another deck so he thinks she's making a little home there. Maybe, if nothing startles her... if nobody chases her, she'll settle down and let herself be caught. I took a blanket... a VERY smelly, dirty blanket... over and a dirty bowl her mom and pals have been eating out of, hoping the smell of the dogs she knows will calm her. And I got a trap from the shelter. Didn't leave it because Larry wasn't home and I don't know if he knows how to set it... will take it over tomorrow. I'm not very good at not being in control. It's frustrating. And very tiring. Never having been much of a sharer of MY feelings, I'm surprised at how much it helps to be able to post about the pain and sorrow to sympathetic people. I hope this experience hasn't created a monster!