Kim Vastino and Heather Patterson helped capture a wayward dog on Old Wilton Road north of Odessa, Ont.
But despite best efforts, the dog wasn’t caught until the Ontario Provincial Police brought another dog that was also found wandering alone earlier in the day according to Patterson.
“Kim Vastino and the OPP officer went in with dog number one, dog number two came immediately out and they managed to secure that dog,” Patterson said.
Patterson and Vastino say in all, three dogs were caught Sunday: one on Old Wilton Road, another on Simmons Road and a third on Creekford Road. All three dogs appear to be the same breed, recently had litters and had no dog tags to identify them, according to Kim Vastino.
“Typically you don’t see that many dogs abandoned at the same time. Usually it’s just a dog wandered away from their owner,” Vastino said.
And while there is no official confirmation that the dogs were abandoned, the worries of the two women aren’t without merit. Gord Hunter of the Kingston Humane Society says the issue of abandoned animals has become so problematic that they’ve actually posted a sign at the front entrance of the shelter, asking people not to leave or abandon their animals here.
“I don’t know where it’s coming from. I do know that we’ve experienced it directly here, several groups of animals, including most recently a group of mastiffs that were abandoned near division street and the 401,” Hunter said.
Hunter says abandoned animals is a growing issue and difficult for the humane society when it comes to caring for the animals.
“When they come to us we have no idea what their history is,” Hunter said.
A mystery that, at least for now, surrounds the three dogs found wandering alone on Sunday.