Ollie

Yesterday afternoon Ollie just vanished. Being deaf and almost totally blind, I didn't figure she could get far. But after roaming the neighborhood for almost three hours, I found nothing.

The most likely answer to this mystery is that when the lawn guys opened the gates to mow the backyard she might have wandered out. However, they said they did not see her. One of the men went down the hillside to see if she had fallen down there, but found nothing.

It's possible she was grabbed by a coyote or bobcat that leaped over the fence. But it was broad daylight so that doesn't seem likely.

Thunderstorms rolled in this morning. I hope she found a dry place to spend the night. I've put up a "lost dog" notification on the homeowners association website and I've sent an email and picture to the county animal shelter.

I don't think she could have gone too far, so when the rain stops I'll resume the search. Hopefully someone will find her. She had just been groomed and had her bandanna around her neck. So if someone finds her they'll know she's a pet.

At age 17 we were always coming up with scenarios by which Ollie would succumb to the strains of life. But we never anticipated that one day she would just vanish.