From a New York Times best-selling author, an important and heartfelt exploration into the world of lost dogs and the power of reunion One in six dogs go missing at some point in their lives, leaving bereft owners to search high and low, hang missing posters, check shelters, and hope for good news. But amid these grim statistics, countless happy endings are forged. Tails wag again. Best friends … Tails wag again. Best friends are reunited.
In Where the Lost Dogs Go, Susannah Charleson, author of Scent of the Missing and a trusted chronicler of the human/animal bond, dives headlong into the world of missing dogs. The mission to reunite lost pets with their families starts with Susannah’s own shelter rescue, Ace, a plucky Maltese mix with a mysterious past who narrowly survived months wandering lost. While Susannah formally studies animal behavior, lost-pet search tactics, social media strategies, and the psychology of loss, Ace also steps up for training. Cheerful and resourceful, Ace has revealed a nose for the scent of lost pets, and together they help neighbors and strangers in their searching.
In Where the Lost Dogs Go, readers take to the streets beside Susannah to bring home a host of missing pets. Along the way, Susannah finds a part of herself also lost. And when unexpected heartbreak shatters her own sense of direction, it is Ace–the shelter dog that started it all–who leads Susannah home. Inquisitive, instructive, heartrending, and hopeful, Where the Lost Dogs Go pays tribute to the missing dogs–and to the found–and to the restless space in between.
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I have known lost people who could not have found themselves without the love of a dog. Our love for them and their love for us animates Where the Lost Dogs Go, a beautifully written and deeply felt memoir that I read with delight.
The cover of Susannah Charleson’s new book “Where the Lost Dogs Go” says it is a story of love, search, and the power of reunion. What’s left out is that this is also a story of resilience.
It’s about the resilience of the lost animals who must survive in difficult and sometimes hostile environments. If they are granted a miracle and land a new home, they must now adapt to the foreign rhythms of a new family. The example of Ace in the story showed he continued to feel the loss of his first family, even while finding his place in his new home.
The flip side of resilience in the canine-human bond are the pet owners who must manage the alternating feelings of uncertainty and dread. Pet owners must dig deep and muster the stamina to continue searching while bombarded by the daily demands of life.
The book is also about the resilience of the author, who suffered three substantial losses while she wrote this book. Despite the pain of these losses, she continued to put one foot in front of the other, searching for the lost and generously helping the unfortunate.
Susannah Charleson pours her heart into the pages as she describes stories from her childhood that explain why she is so drawn to helping animals. She offers detailed insight into how to search for a lost pet while she tells us the story of Ace, a Maltese-Poodle cross. When we first meet Ace, he’s someone’s lost dog who wound up in a shelter in desperate shape. Under the author’s care, he gets his health and spirit back, and he eventually trains to find other missing pets as a MAR (Missing Animal Response) dog.
The story is beautifully written with great storytelling and moments of gentle humor. I would highly recommend to anyone who loves animals.
A beautifully written non-fiction from Susannah Charleson. With that title, you might think this would be a sad book, but it is about finding lost dogs, not losing them. This will warm your heart, and inspire you at the same time. Highly recommended.
Susannah Charleson’s memoirs about how she grew up rescuing animals and uniting lost pets with their owners is a GREAT read. I loved how she rescued (from death row) a dog that was in terrible shape and ultimately trained him to find lost pets. She is spreading the message of “MAR” – Missing Animal Response and the need for these services in all communities, something that is also my passion. If you love animals, you will love this book!
Must read for all pet owners…
A riveting book from Susannah Charleson, whose exquisite writing is an inspiration to us all, and whose courage and stamina knows no bounds. Dog lovers won’t be able to put it down, and readers of great writing will be grateful that they picked it up.