Come along with FAAS for a behind-the-scenes look at this incredible rescue
For about a week, a medium-sized brown-and-white stray dog had been on the run in Alameda, evading capture.
“Every time someone so much as glanced at her, she bolted,” says Alameda Animal Control Officer (ACO) Emily Crum.
Officer Crum and ACO Alaina Onesko had come heartbreakingly close to catching her multiple times, only to watch her slip away at the last second. They tried hard every day, doing whatever they could, including tracking her moves to see if they could find a good place to set a trap.
They had a hard time sleeping, knowing that the scared girl was still out there, alone and frightened. The torrential storms last week only deepened their concern.
A community comes together
Last weekend Officer Crum asked Amanda McNair, animal care director at Friends of the Alameda Animal Shelter (FAAS), if she’d be willing to help track down the dog in a neighborhood where she’d been seen. Officer Crum couldn’t fit the giant net in her truck, so she requested Amanda follow her in the van. FAAS volunteer Ileath Bridges went along to help.
Here’s a blow-by-blow account from Amanda about what happened next as the community joined together to save this frightened dog.
“A man walking his dog stopped me and said he had just seen the dog. We continued to drive around. Then suddenly Emily said over radio she was spotted crossing Main and entering the base. Emily told us to head to an area where she had been seen a few times.
“I went down a dilapidated dead-end road, and saw a little brown head pop up in the middle of a field. We coordinated and got into place around the field. By this time, a car with a man and woman who had been tracking her showed up to help. A guy on an electric bike and some other folks saw us and joined.
“I got out with the net and approached; she bolted towards Emily and got out through one of the many holes in the chain link fence.
“Now we had a posse. We continued to drive around the housing at the base, double parking, U-turning, emergency flashers on. Then back over to the Bayport neighborhood.
“By this time, we were spread out and she was in the middle. I saw her coming down Stargell Avenue, jumped out the van and tried to head her off. She went back into the neighborhood, where four or five people were running out every which way trying to corner her so we could get hands on her.
“She went over to Ralph Appazzato, running down the sidewalk across main street, almost got hit, and then continued all the way to Waterfront Park. We had eyes on her and followed her. She ran behind Bladium, with Ileath on the road and Emily and I pursuing on foot down the park.
“By this point she was still running, but you could see she was getting tired. She had a slight limp. But on she went.”
An escape of last resort
Then, in a plot twist no one could foresee, the dog ran straight for the water at Seaplane Lagoon and started swimming away toward San Francisco Bay.
“For 20 agonizing minutes, we stood on the shore, watching her swim,” says Officer Crum. “The current was strong, and every second felt like an eternity. We could do nothing but wait and hope she kept her head above water.”
Everyone spread out along the waterfront, watching in anguish as the dog swam out to the middle. She doubled back, swimming past the Saildrones. They were hoping she would come to shore along the park.
“You could see the top of her head and the splash of water from her tail,” says Amanda. “She looked like she was sinking. It was terrible to watch. People had gathered. A man on a bike, a young couple, and a man and woman who had been following us around in a Tesla.”
Miraculously, the frightened dog made it onto the rocks, exhausted but alive. To the relief of everyone, she climbed up on the rock wall near Urban Cellars. But her rescuers knew the danger for this dog was far from over.
If they tried to get her from land, she would head back out to the water. They couldn’t risk it. At this point they had been following her for more than two hours and she was exhausted.
“If she got back in the water, we didn’t think she would survive,” says Amanda.
They rescuers needed access to the water. Through Amanda’s mother, they were able to quickly access three kayaks.
Amanda and two others launched the kayaks into the lagoon. The plan was to hedge the dog in and create a barricade. If she went back in the water, they would herd her toward shore, or worst case, grab her and haul her up on the kayaks.
The dog was visibly nervous and shaking. Officer Crum positioned herself on land above her. When the kayaks were in position in the water, Officer Crum descended slowly down the slippery rocks.
She was able to loop the snare around her neck, and finally, after a week of near-misses, they had her. Officer Crum put another lead on the dog for her safety, and then lifted her by her harness and slowly, carefully, carried her up the rocks.
The dog was cold, wet, and completely exhausted—but she was safe.
“We loaded her into the truck, and as the adrenaline faded, there were high-fives, hugs, and even a few tears,” says Officer Crum. “We had all been through something together, and the relief was overwhelming.
“That night, for the first time in a week, we slept knowing she was warm, fed, and finally at peace,” Officer Crum says. “I bet she slept pretty well, too.”
A new name, a new life
When the dog got to the shelter, she ate a bowl of food and drank a lot of water. The pads of her paws were raw and red from all her days on the run. Otherwise, she seemed to be in surprisingly good shape. In the days that have passed since then, the dog became FAAS’s and got a new name befitting of her sojourn in the “sea”—Ariel.
Everyone who meets five-year-old Ariel loves her. She’s a very sweet, affectionate dog who walks well on leash and knows basic commands. She’s still timid, but with love and stability, FAAS staff thinks she’ll gain confidence.
“She’s shown us just how sweet she truly is, soaking up cuddles, resting her tired body, healing her raw paws, and proving that, despite everything, her spirit is unbroken,” says Officer Crum.
FAAS CEO John L. Lipp said Ariel’s rescue is a testament to how beautifully Alamedans, animal control, and FAAS work together to help animals in need.
“It took a village, literally, to rescue Ariel,” he says. “I’m so proud and grateful to be part of this amazing community that cares so much. We can’t wait until she has a forever home to give her the love and stability she so deserves.”
If you think you might like to foster or adopt this special girl, please call FAAS at 510-337-8565 or fill out an adoption application online.
For this and other stories from FAAS, check out their blog, Tails of the Island.
