Post Grad Blonde: Lost Light Brown Poodle in Northern Virginia!

Ahhhh! My heart is broken! On Sunday, I was casually enjoying the sun on my back porch - reading a magazine on our picnic table with my loyal dog, Skipper, at my feet.

Our neighborhood is very woodsy, so seeing deer, foxes, groundhogs, etc, is a daily thing.

I heard a small noise, looked up, and a giant (Ok, it seemed huge at the time!) animal was right in front of me. Let's just say I almost peed or something else my pants. Our porch is about 15 steps up, and no animal has ever come up there as long as we've lived here. When I first glanced up, I thought it was a rabid deer or some crazy animal! I realized it was a dog right away, but I was still very nervous because my small 13-year-old cocker spaniel was next to me.

I don't feel good about it, but a brief I'm going to have to fight a poodle came over me, because as many of my friends know, I love my dog Skipper more than anything, and would fight anything / anyone to protect him. :)

The poodle starred at Skipper and me, and luckily, Skipper is now deaf so he had no clue this dog was a foot away from him. I swooped Skip up and backed away slowly into the house. I LOVE dogs, but I am very careful with animals I'm not familiar with.

Long story short, the poodle kept coming up on the porch, and I eventually approached him because I wanted to read his tags. Well, he had a collar but no tags. He ended up being the sweetest not-so little guy and I properly introduced him to Skipper and they became friends. I named him Brownie. I gave him food and water and put a sign on our mailbox that said a poodle was in our backyard. I called our country club , but no one had called him - I left my information in case anyone did. For hours, he followed me everywhere, and wouldn't leave our yard.

My sister and brother-in-law came over, and we walked around asking people if they knew who he was from or anything about him / where he might be from. A lady from 2 gates over (pretty far) said he was in her yard earlier. We went to the Giant near our neighborhood and asked people there. My parents were coming home later that night from out of the country, and I knew there was NO way my dad would let the dog stay. (literally - no way in Hell).

Eventually, at 6:30, we had to call animal control :(, because different people recommended that would be the best way for his owners to find him - since he could be from a different neighborhood and the owners may not know to come to our neighborhood or to call our HOA. And the first thing people with a lost pet should do is call their county's pound.

Heart-breakingly, animal control came over and got him. He didn't have a chip, but they mentioned Standard Poodle's are not cheap, and he had a fresh haircut, so he must have owners that would be looking for him and claim him immediately. I was so sad, but my sister reminded me that we couldn't keep him with us, and otherwise he would be wandering through the night and could get hit by a car since there's lot of roads near our house that have 50 MPH speed limits.

My sister and I figured his owners, or whoever, would immediately claim him. Today she called, and the pound said no one's claimed him!!!!!!!!! I just don't understand! A. How he ended up in my yard Sunday morning B. Why someone didn't put tags on his collar or give him a chip C. Why his owners haven't claimed him or called the country club, or the Giant, or anywhere in my small town. Nothing adds up!

If anyone has advice on more I can do please let me know! I'm including pictures of him from our day together.