We always had dogs, but not for long...since we had 11 children in the family, my Mom would tire of dogs quickly, even though I always fed them and never complained as I cleaned our yard of dog droppings. I, of course, was heartbroken each and every time they would "get rid" of a dog, which would sometimes happen while we were in school or late at night. They would have found a home for the dog, and never even discussed it with any of the kids. It was devastating to me.

I had been married for almost seven years to a very cruel and abusive man, and eventually got my divorce...I had two young sons to raise, and I made my way back to college. I did not complete that education, and had another son, by yet another abusive man. Upon ending that relationship, I avoided men for 3 years, as I needed to work on my self esteem, and learn that I did not NEED a man in my life to be happy...I had 3 wonderful sons and my dogs and cats to keep me busy and content.

I moved to a very small town, and shortly thereafter, met my boyfriend George... a good and kind man. We had been together for about 2 years when I got back in touch with my former stepchildren. It was through my ex-husband's daughter that I heard of a Dalmatian who needed a home. I called her breeder and found out that this 5 ½ month old female had been sold to a man who only had her for a few days, and now this dog was incredibly fearful of people. I work well with abused animals, as I have an understanding of their trauma.... I have had many dogs in my life, and currently have seven dogs and 11 cats, and numerous other animals: a ferret, a rainbow lorikeet (who liked to ride on Dulcie's back---not a long ride, but they did seem to like each other), chickens, many other birds...most of whom were formerly abused and neglected. (It is actually very difficult to count my dogs, as I have seven here with me, and the eighth, Dulcie, is not here but ... out there somewhere. I feel I cannot leave her out of the total number.)

Her breeder agreed after extensive conversations over the phone to allow me to buy her...I agreed to spay her, as she was not show quality, and I would have had her spayed no matter what. We drove one October night to a town between the two of us, and there in a parking lot I first laid eyes on this sweet and shaking-with-fear spotted pup. My heart went out to her, and I coaxed her to me, and held her close to my heart...She was mine.

We brought her home, and she adapted quite well. She loved me and George, and my youngest son, but did not want to have anything to do with anyone else. I did not force her to allow petting or touching. I thought she could take her time in learning that others would not hurt her. She loved my other dogs and all of the cats. It was quite comical to see her learn who and what cats were...my son's big black cat, Happy Cat, seemed to fall in love with her at first sight, and Dulcie did not quite know what to do with this funny animal rubbing against her, purring away. Happy Cat was in love, indeed. (Dulcie was spayed at 8 months-all my dogs and cats are spayed and neutered.)

Dulcie was named for her sweetness (Dulce is "sweet" in Spanish), and for the dulcimer, which is my favorite musical instrument... an instrument used in bluegrass and mountain music. (I can't play one, but have always loved and wanted one.) And "sweet" describes her perfectly. Dulcie was the most polite dog I have ever known. "Gentle" only touches lightly on a description of her demeanor.

Each and every morning, when I would get up, she would give me a hug. She would stand on her hind legs, and, keeping all her weight on her hind legs, would ever so gently place her paws on me and stretch her nose up to greet me. She would also hug my son this way. She would always follow me up or down the stairs, never rushing or being pushy about it. She would sit behind and between George and I on the couch, and would hug us with her head, first on one of our shoulders, then the other, then back to the first. So sweet, so gentle, so patient and loving....this is my Dulcie.

It took her two years before she would allow my teenaged sons to pet her. I remember her sitting in front of my oldest son, looking up at him. I told him to give her a pet, as she was asking him to. He said, "She won't let me, she's afraid of me!" I told him again to pet her, she wanted him to...So he reached down and pet her. He was surprised, as it was the first time she would allow it. But, she had made up her mind it was time. (This extreme wariness is why I know Dulcie will not bond to another person or family.)

Grizzly, my huge Pomeranian, was Dulcie's best friend...he and Aloyisius, who is a cat that Dulcie adopted and mothered as a kitten. I would call Dulcie to bed, and as she curled up at the foot of my bed, Aloysius would follow and curl up with her, between her and Grizzly. Every night, without fail-this was our routine.

My boyfriend, George, is not really a dog person. He does not understand dogs, nor does he have the loyalty, protectiveness, and devotion that I have. He would let the dogs out to pee, and before our yard was fenced, would try to get them to cross the road to the timbered land across the street to "do their business"...I would let my dogs out, stay with them, and try to get them to stay in the yard and not go near the road....not knowing he was doing the opposite. He had let Dulcie out, along with Grizzly and PeeWee, my youngest son's terrier mix. He was over on the side of the house, sorting through some loose hay, when he heard some small dogs raising a ruckus. He did not even realize that it was my dogs, frantically barking for help...so he did not respond immediately. He simply did not recognize the frenzied barking as belonging to our dogs. When he finally got around to the front of the house, nothing was there.

In the meantime, I did not know they were even out. I had taken my rainbow lorikeet out of his cage, and had carried the cage to the bathroom, where I was busy cleaning it, and with a noisy bird on my shoulder, and running water, I heard nothing. Upon finishing, I let the two little dogs in, and they came running in like some monster was after them. All of my dogs were in the living room, and all had a strange look about them...it is hard to describe..a look, a feel...worried and scared. Then George came in, and said Dulcie was still outside....I went out and called her, and I already had a feeling of dread or worry-which I had picked up from the other dogs...as I heard his story of the frantic barking, and as I called for Dulcie to no avail, this horrible feeling overtook me....I felt as though someone had punched me in the stomach..my blood turned to ice...panic gripped my heart. I knew she had been stolen, and in broad daylight.

I let the dogs out, and they all ran to a spot across the road from our mailbox...sniffing one spot on the ground. I knew that was the spot where her feet left the ground. There in the gravel was a small pile of dog poop...and to the other side was an impenetrable thicket of bushes. I carefully examined the area for skid marks, blood, hairs of any kind, broken branches or twigs, any sign of injury or struggle....there was nothing. I am quite positive that my other dogs would have followed a different scent, had Dulcie been snatched by any kind of wild animal, such as a bear or cougar...there would have been an indication that something had happened.

I immediately went to the police station, and told the receptionist that my dog had been stolen. She wrote the information, but did not seem all that interested. Upon returning home, I called the Kittitas County Communications system (KitCom-sheriffs, police etc.) and made another report. I was told an officer would be by, and he did come over, and took the information, but would not announce it over the police radio..One of the very first in a long string of people not really caring that my adopted furchild had been snatched.

I then began calling animal shelters and everyone I could think of with the information on my stolen dog. I wrote down phone numbers and addresses, and put together a flyer with pictures of her-showing the heart shaped spot on her shoulder. I ran up over $500 in phone bills just in the first few weeks trying to get addresses of shelters. Voice mail was endless and very frustrating...I would call several times at some shelters just trying to get a real person who could give me the address. I also bought a few of the major newspapers from around the state and called breeders and anyone selling Dalmatian puppies or trying to find homes for adults..pleading for help. I got more addresses, and sent out flyers to everyone. I bought a notebook specifically for Dulcie-just for my contacts in this search.

The first night she was gone, I wept all night..heartbroken sobs...George slept through it all. The next day, he was singing and laughing and joking. He does not feel grief, and needless to say, our relationship has been strained to the limits in the past 8 ½ months. I have prayed for forgiveness for him and have not been successful. The closest I can come to forgiving him is that I know he is not a dog person, and he would not have allowed it to happen if he had only known better.

I continually post flyers. One clerk at a nearby grocery store calls every time there is a Dalmatian out in the parking lot in a car, and I fly over there and find the person, and hand a flyer to them, and ask for their help. I also tell them to watch their dog carefully, that if Dulcie could be stolen, as afraid of people as she is, anyone's dog can be stolen. I used to give flyers out to just Dalmatian owners, and now give them to anyone with a dog, and I ask people if they are dog lovers if they do not have a dog with them.  People may think I am nuts, but all that matters to me is finding my girl.

I have posted flyers everywhere-pet shops, grocery stores, libraries, post offices (in the lobby and in areas where employees can see them), at mini marts, gas stations, coffee shops, bookstores, anywhere and everywhere people go. I have given flyers to meter readers, the cable TV man, gas and oil and UPS delivery people. The biggest problem is that people do not leave them up. Many people have also posted in various locations across the state, but after a week or so, most people and businesses take them down. Yes, even with people who know me...support is hard to come by.

To date, I have had over 1400 flyers printed and sent out. They are all over the state of Washington, and all over the United States and Canada. Besides sending flyers to Dalmatian breeders, I have sent them to those in Dalmatian clubs, and they have made copies and handed them out at meetings. I have sent them to Dalmatian rescue people, pet shops, groomers and trainers. I have sent them to as many veterinarians as possible. I was given the AMVA directory from 1996 by one vet in Ellensburg, which lists all of the vets in the US. In 1996, there were 1572 vets listed in the state of Washington. I could not possibly get flyers to each and every one of them, so I choose at least one from each town, sent the flyer and a letter asking for help, and asked if it were possible to share the flyer with other vets in their area.

My son helped me set up a web page on our computer with Dulcie's story and pictures. Up to this point, I did not have much use for the computer, and looked at is as a waste of time. I began searches on it for places to post lost pets, and posted Dulcie's theft and description everywhere I could.

A woman who breeds and shows Dalmatians saw Dulcie's page and my plea for help, and posted Dulcie's URL on a couple of dog-related Bulletin Boards on the net. I began to get letters by email from some of these people on the boards. I ended up at both bulletin boards, and have found many wonderful, caring, and supportive folks there. These people are wonderful true friends... they understand why it is I cannot give up searching for my stolen furchild. They remain forever in my heart as the truest of friends. They share a love and devotion for their dogs and other pets that no one here in the "real world" seems to understand...people "here" tell me to give up, that my dog is gone and I will never see her again. The people I have come to love and respect on the dog bulletin boards have given me untold amounts of strength and encouragement, and continue to do so. Many of these people have web pages for their dogs, and many people have placed links to Dulcie's story on their pages.

I have emails from people all over the world-all saved in my files. Invariably, the people are crying as they write letters of condolence and support and encouragement to me. Some of their own stories which they have graciously shared with me have made me cry. The love and caring from other dog lovers is overwhelming!! Many of my new found friends have requested and posted her flyer in their area...and every Dalmatian seen is carefully scrutinized for a heart-shaped spot on the left shoulder, and that solid left ear. I truly believe Dulcie is America's Most Wanted Dalmatian-perhaps she is even the World's Most Wanted Dalmatian. Yet, the right person has not seen Dulcie's pictures, her web site, her flyers, nor has he or she heard of my heartbreak.

I know Dulcie is alive and I know she is waiting for me to find her. I have tried repeatedly to get her story in the newspapers or on the TV news. I have emailed Oprah, Richard Simmons (who sent me good wishes and prayers for her return), Dateline NBC, Turning Point, and as many news magazine shows as I could. No one seems to think her story is newsworthy. She is, after all, "just" a dog..

I have contacted a few animal communicators and psychics. One "psychic" told me Dulcie was "happy now", she was running and she was an "only" dog and had always wanted to be an only dog. Hmmm...not MY dog. Another told me that she had been shot and killed, because she was trying to lunge and bite at this couple who supposedly both stole her. Again, not MY dog..I feel a very strong attachment to her, and I talk to her all the time, and tell her she is not to growl or bite no matter what. She is not a biter, not even a fear biter. I know my dog..she may hate being touched but she would not bite. Others have told me she is dead...that the "circle is complete" and she is "at peace." I don't believe this. If Dulcie was dead, she would find a way to let me know...she would not allow me to continue the search needlessly, and she would tell me she was dead before she would tell some complete stranger!!

A well known Animal Communicator by the name of Beatrice Lydecker has told me that Dulcie is alive and does know that I am looking for her. She says that Dulcie is no longer with the person who stole her, and that the new person does not know she had been stolen. She is tied up in a junk filled yard. Nothing much is being done with her, though she is being fed. She cannot tell me where Dulcie is, as she can only relate what animals know...what they see and feel. Dulcie cannot tell her the location, as Dulcie does not know. A friend on the Bulletin Board has discovered she also has this gift, and much of what she picks up from Dulcie is exactly what Bea has told me. I, too, pick up some of Dulcie's thoughts and feelings, and much of what both women have told me I have also felt directly from Dulcie...so I know we are all on the right track. But WHERE is she?

I would like to tell everyone to always watch their dog..do not leave them even in your yard unobserved. I have heard of many dogs stolen from vehicles and their own yards..My eyes have been opened to the atrocities of research facilities and puppy mills, many of which will use stolen dogs. My heart goes out to the thousands of over-produced Dalmatians, so many needing foster homes and permanent homes. I have gathered so much information on Dals in need of homes, so much on the need to spay and neuter Dalmatians (and all dogs and cats), so much on the requirements and health issues of Dalmatians. People also need to microchip and/or tattoo their dogs.

It is funny how you get what you pray for...you have to be so careful. I am not working outside the home, due to Fibro Myalgia which developed after a car accident. I prayed for a job I could do from home, and it had to be dog/animal related. Then, Dulcie was stolen, and I now have my job---first and foremost to bring her home, but to also help Dalmatians, other dogs, and people who love dogs...all strictly volunteer, sometimes very wearying, but a life long job I am deeply committed to.

I tell people, I ask people, please

-Look For Her Heart-

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