Brockville dog reunited with family after 40 days lost in the wilderness

A Brockville family has been reunited with their dog after it went missing for nearly six weeks in a rural part of southeastern Ontario. 

Brady, a 5-year-old Bernese Mountain dog received a well needed grooming Friday morning after spending 40 days and 40 nights roaming the countryside. 

"Something spooked him, he burst out the screen door and off he went," said owner Dave Hallett. "(It's a) heavily wooded area so within a few minutes he was gone, vanished into the woods."

Dave and his wife Amanda were attending a wedding in Kingston, and had dropped Brady off with a family member near Sydenham, only to receive the call that no pet owner wants to hear a couple hours later. 

"We left the wedding and we hustled back to Sydenham. We scoured the woods, we were calling for him, looking all over until dark but no luck," Dave said. 

"It was just like kind of disbelief," added Amanda. "Like it really didn't hit me I think until the next day when it was like, 'OK we don't know where he is.'"

Dave and Amanda Hallett reunited with Brady the Bernese Mountain dog. (Nate Vandermeer/CTV News Ottawa)

The Halletts say Brady is timid and does get spooked easily, but has never tried to run away.

"We just thought how was he going to survive? Like he's such a baby," Amanda said. "He's so scared of leaves rustling in trees and big black garbage bags on the side of the road. The squirrels in our backyard scare him, like how is he going to make it."

To help find Brady, the couple reached out to volunteer groups in the Kingston and Belleville areas. 

They even brought in a bloodhound from Montreal to try to pick up Brady's scent, to no avail. 

Kimberlee Vastino is one volunteer who helped track Brady, and has been helping others reunite with their lost pest for a few years. 

"He just kept going southwest," Vastino said. "Typically lost dogs will travel into the wind because they are picking up scent, so the wind usually comes from west to the east so I think that's the reason he kept going southwest."

"Basically, when I'm working with an owner, I have them report the sighting to me and then I start to draft my map so we can try to get ahead of the dog," she added. "They are always looking for food, water and shelter, just like a fox."

Vastino said if lost dogs are approached, the usually run, and calling them, they do not respond. 

"That's the mentality of a lost dog," she said. 

"Brady was the hardest dog I've ever had to track and once we knew he would settle in for food, water and shelter, we knew we would be able to get him, but that took close to 40 days," Vastino said. 

While she noted dogs have been reunited that have been missing longer, the chances of finding them do go down as time wears on.

Vastino said social media also plays a big role in tracking lost dogs. 

"Because Brady was travelling so far, we needed more public awareness and the only way to do that effectively is by having his own Facebook page because then everybody is following," she said. "It's an excellent resource."

She says it is a passion for her to help in these situations, and would do it for a living if she could. 

"I love tracking them, I love investigating, talking to the communities, educating the communities, lost dog behaviour, and then the moment they are caught, it's amazing. Such a good feeling," she said, advising other dog owners to learn about lost dog behaviour so they can be prepared if it happens to them. 

Tips for Brady came in bunches, and he even crossed busy Highway 401 on his travels. It is estimated he walked across 100 kilometres, ending up in Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory around Oct. 10.

"Once he hit that Bay of Quinte, he couldn't go any farther southwest," Dave smiled. 

It was then that Quinte West Lost Paws helped set up a 4 x10 foot trap to try and lure Brady in.

"All the hamburgers and hotdogs and Cheezies we had in there as bait and finally he went in and we were able to secure him," Dave said. 

"So much relief. It is hard to describe, you know? You see him in this cage and he looks so concerned, he looks so scared," Amanda said. "Who are these humans coming after me? I'm trapped in big steel frame and so you're just so overwhelmed."

"It's sad to see him like that. He's skinny and dirty and looking scared but you're just so relieved because we get to take you home now and clean you up and take care of you again," she added. 

Dave and Amanda Hallett were reunited with Brady the Bernese Mountain dog on Oct. 12 (Submitted)

The family was reunited on Oct. 12, and after a checkup at the vet, he was found to be in good health, although he lost 23 pounds on his adventure.

"We were shocked. We thought, 'Oh, he's probably going to need medication,'" Amanda added. "He might have some illnesses, who knows what he picked up, worms, fleas and ticks."

"He was really dirty," said Dave. "He was covered in burrs. He was a little skinnier, but he was moving fine, his face was all good, no big scratches or cuts or anything so it was quite surprising how good of health he was in."

What Brady survived on remains a mystery, but the vet and lost dogs experts said dogs are smart and will scavenge. 

"They like to go into the cornfield and soybean fields, but also they will snack on roadkill or if they step on a frog or even things like mushrooms out in the forest they will find their way to get some good food," Dave said he was told. 

The Halletts consider themselves lucky that Brady was found safe, and are thankful to everyone who helped find him over the 40-day search.

"Kimberlee was amazing getting us from start to finish," Dave said. "When we were down she was still hustling and she was spreading the word and never gave up."

"As Brady moved west, the team at Quinte West Lost Paws were amazing, jumped into action right away and we really couldn't have done this without all their help."

"I would just say to any pet owners, if you've lost your dog, don't give up. Reach out to these volunteer groups," added Amanda. "You would be surprised how many exist and they all actually know each other so if you reach out to one, believe me, they are actually talking to people within probably 100 km range."

"You have this huge network at your disposal of volunteers that are donating time and resources, take advantage of that community around you."

For now, the couple says Brady will be sticking to the downtown Brockville parks for his future adventures.