Finding his way back

By Judie Amyot, September 12th, 2012

He felt something was wrong. He wasn't where he needed to be, that place where he felt safe. Billie, a three-year-old Collie mix, had spent a few weeks at the Animatch adoption centre and now found himself with a total stranger in a strange place. He and his new guardian had only been together for a couple of days and had not yet formed that special bond that would keep him by the man's side.
The man chose to bring Billie to work with him not realizing that this was an even stranger environment to his new canine companion. When someone left the back door open, Billie, known to be a runner, was compelled to give in to his instincts and the panic that had overwhelmed him. He bolted and was gone.
Possessing a canine GPS system that man can only try to understand, Billie's mission began. He was driven to seek out that familiar building where he felt safe and secure, the place with all the dogs near the train tracks. He needed to find his way back home to the Animatch centre. 
One would need a map in order to appreciate how Billie's journey west was not a random, hodgepodge route. As if being guided by some supernatural guidance system involving scent and sound, Billie dashed across dangerous intersections and highways with a determination that kept him going in intense 40C heat.
The relentless search had begun for him as his new guardian and many Animatch volunteers set out to catch a glimpse of him and bring him to safety. He was spotted near Côte de Liesse Blvd. but, running scared, he could not be caught.
Darkness fell and some volunteers went home while others, with the help of Public Security, continued the search. He was spotted near the Dorval Via train station but disappeared again. All of the areas where he was seen were near facilities where dogs can be found — a veterinarian clinic and a canine training centre.
No one knows where he spent the night but the light of day provided a sighting of him on Cardinal St. near the Trudeau airport — at yet another dog training facility. He had found some fellow canines but knew this still wasn't the right place.
Searchers proceeded west spotting him here and there but could not catch him. At least they had a trail and a westerly direction to follow as Billie continued to head home. Finally, and giddy with relief, Billie's new guardian was able to locate him on Donegani Ave. in Pointe-Claire, sitting still and exhausted, wrapped in the arms of a compassionate eight-year-old girl.
Severely dehydrated, his paws injured and sore, Billie was reclaimed by his new guardian who could never have anticipated the wild adventure that would ensue as a result of simply adopting a dog. But the lesson learned here was to never impose too much on your new canine companion until he settles in to his new lodgings and that special bond is formed. He needs to feel safe and secure again having just gone through the shock of abandonment, time at the pound, a rescue centre and now into your home — another strange, new place he doesn't know. 
There is nothing simple about the canine instinct that drove Billie to seek out familiar turf. We've all read stories of animals crossing entire continents to return home and wonder what guidance system propelled them to continue until they reached their goal. In May 2011, a friend's cat decided to take an extended vacation that lasted an entire year before it showed up at her back door this past May, several pounds lighter but none the worse for wear. It had obviously found accommodations somewhere and had been declawed but still knew its way home after all that time.
As we humans travel around, fearful of getting lost, we have become increasingly dependent on highly sophisticated GPS satellite systems while the cat down the street is out for a jaunt without a care in the world.
Next time you get lost, ask him for directions; he’ll likely know the way.
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