Lost!

Today Rich had a follow up doctor's appointment. We took Kobs with us, so we could just head out to Pt. Isabel afterwards.

We got there, pretty early...around 1115am. He was really patient. Rich took him off his leash near the front of the park and he wandered around the area while I was at the cafe buying us our mochas.

Then we were off. It was a normal pattern of walking along the entry path while he gets acquainted with the other doggies, sniffing their booties. Then, he goes down the first ramp we come across to check out the other dogs swimming against the waves, as he debates jumping in. As always, he turns back around and heads back up the ramp.

Then we take the right turn and head toward the bridge at the back of the park. Usually, he runs ahead but always looks back to make sure we're not too far off. I saw that he was ahead of us, running around with another yellow lab that had the exact same blue collar as him.

While he was ahead of us, we came across a 4 month old yellow lab puppy and I couldn't help but stop and talk to his owners. Kobi was 12 weeks when we got him and the puppy reminded me of him so much.

Then, we headed off to catch up with Kobs. I couldn't see him ahead of us but Rich said he was probably in the water already. In the distance, I saw the yellow lab that looked like him and another yellow lab.

Dang that Kobi....he followed the other dog and they were already crossing the bridge. I called out to him and he just kept on going. Then when they crossed the bridge, I yelled out to him and he looked around but couldn't figure out where my voice was coming from. So, I gave Rich my mocha and ran to catch up while he stayed on the other side.

But when I got to the other side, he was nowhere in sight. So, I ran everywhere....then I spotted him. I ran as fast as I could to catch up....and when I did...it wasn't him. It was the dog that looked like him. His owners said that Kobi was playing with their dog on the other side but never crossed the bridge with them.

Then panic set in. I ran everywhere and couldn't find him. I went to the beach we normally go to and the people said they were there for 20 minutes and didn't see him. I walked along the water's edge searching and searching....no luck. I was desperate. I was anxious but I didn't cry.

Rich continued to search on the other side of the bridge. The whole time, I keep calling out Kobi's name and stop people along the way. I was grateful that everyone was helpful. They offered to keep an eye out for him and that they would bring him to Mudpuppy's if they found him.

Then, from across the water, I see Rich running as fast as he could to the front of the park. My first thought is they found him and he got hit by a car. In the background, I heard a siren and I almost lost it.

But I kept my composure and continued to call Kobi's name. Then a woman across the water asked me if I lost my dog. I said yes, and she said that she thought they found a golden retriever in the front of the park. She asked what his name was and I said Kobi...she said yes, that's him.

Oh my god! Relief....but I couldn't be sure since she said golden retriever vs. a labrador retriever. I just had to see it for myself. The problem was, Rich and I couldn't communicate with each other. Rich forgot his cellphone at home and mine was in the car. I ran to the other side and after 10 minutes, here comes Rich towards me with Kobi on a leash.

Here's our theory of what happened. Kobi was probably swimming but we saw a yellow lab way ahead that we thought was him. So, we walked right past him and kept on going. When he didn't see us, he came up from the water and didn't see us anywhere. So, he went to the parking lot and tried to wait for us there.

A mother and daughter, that Rich came across while searching for him, came back and found Rich. They told him that there was a yellow lab at the front of the park just sitting there and barking whenever anyone tried to get close to him. So, that's when Rich took off running. As soon as Rich got to the parking area, he called Kobi's name and he spotted Rich. He said Kobi came running and Rich has never seen him as happy as he was when they found each other.

He was gone for 45 minutes and it was one of the longest 45 minutes of my life. It wasn't until we were home for a few hours and I was watching him play, that I started to cry.

I felt like such a shitty mom. I lost my doggy! It was all my fault for stopping to look at that puppy. I will never take my eyes off of him again! Sorry Kobi Wobi!