By Kathy Chouteau
Like many of his ilk, Max the Terrier mix went for a little excursion in Richmond amid the many fireworks exploding around the recent Independence Day holiday.
His humans, Gabriela Guardado and her family, said the 10-year-old Terrier mix is terrified of fireworks and unsuspectingly escaped out the door with his cohort, Percy the Cocker Spaniel, when someone entered their Belding Woods home during a family BBQ on Independence Day.
“He runs and tries to hide if he hears fireworks,” said Guardado, who explained that Max often slips under the bed to get away from the loud noises.
Guardado and her family were so absorbed in BBQ preparations, they didn’t notice the doggie duo had fled. Then, she heard a scraping on the door and opened it to Percy, now flying solo. So started a heart wrenching four-day hunt to find her missing Max, as the fireworks across town continued.
The devoted pet-human said she got busy posting about the missing 15 lb. furball on Nextdoor, PawBoost and 24Petconnect. She also posted flyers around different neighborhoods in Richmond and searched for him for hours in her car with her two little kids in tow.
During this time, something extraordinary happened—Richmond neighbors jumped in to help Guardado by posting about Max sightings on Nextdoor and the Everybody’s Richmond California page on Facebook.
One such post by Christine Anderson on Nextdoor on Sunday, July 7 included a picture of Max in Point Richmond, so Guardado could confirm it was indeed her dog—and where he was. She immediately went searching for him in that vicinity, but sadly, was unable to find him.
The loyal pet-human returned to searching the next morning, and spotted two dogs together in the distance in Richmond’s Atchison Village, a stone’s throw away from Point Richmond. Ah-ha, it was Max! Guardado called to him, but Max was skittish and scared at first. She didn’t chase him and waited…when little Max got close enough to the car, he started smelling it, realized it was familiar and started happily wagging his tail. There was good news for all, as Max’s doggie friend turned out to also have a human.
Guardado credits neighbors as being essential to Max’s return home. They helped tremendously, she said. “If it wasn’t due to Christine’s post and picture, I wouldn’t have found him.”
So, how is the adventuresome Max doing now? Guardado said he’s doing great after getting a shower, water and food. She mentioned that she suspects someone was feeding Max as he didn’t return home hungry and seemed like another helpful neighbor perhaps had their eye on him.
Max’s human made sure to post online so her neighbors knew that he was found.
