10-06-2025
Newly adopted dog vanished for a month in NH. Then heartbroken family got a call
A newly adopted dog went missing for a month – then she was spotted in a bush, a New Hampshire shelter said.
Harper had just been adopted before she 'bolted' when the car door opened at her new home, according to a June 8 Facebook post by the Granite State Dog Recovery.
She came back the same day but left again and didn't return for 32 days, staff members at the Hooksett-based shelter said.
Over the course of her month-long time 'on the run,' she had been seen six times but crew had 'zero luck' in capturing her, staff said.
After two weeks of no calls, a family told Nottingham Animal Control that a dog had been seen – it was a 'real time sighting' of Harper, staff said.
She was seen laying in a bush behind their home but the area didn't allow for a trap to be placed, officials said.
Harper's family was out of state so a team member used a liquid smoke rag and Vienna sausages to hopefully lure Harper out, officials said.
As soon as Harper smelled the liquid smoke, she 'lifted her head,' officials said.
After a few pieces of sausage were thrown, Harper slowly came out of the bushes, 'quilled' and 'exhausted,' before eventually eating from the crew member's hand, officials said.
She was limping and full of ticks and although she lost a few pounds, she still weighed in at 58 pounds, the crew said.
Her owners were reunited with her after returning from Massachusetts, and they drove her to an emergency vet where she began her recovery before being scheduled to head home as of June 8, the crew said.
Nottingham is about a 30-mile drive southeast from Concord.
