Hundreds of Okotokians recently banded together in a weeklong search for a missing dog.
The dog in question was Raven, a year-and-a-half old black lab mix who was taken in by Moe Dog Rescue Mission after having been found wandering in the cold in Saskatchewan.
She got loose while on an adoption trial in Okotoks on March 1.
According to co-owner of the dog rescue operation, Sam Burnett, it came as quite a surprise.
"She is one of our mom dogs that came to us with a litter of six puppies. Then we ended up having two more strays we found, around four weeks old, that were the same age as her puppies, so she took those on as well. She's just a kind lovely dog."
Once she was loose, says Burnett, she was lightning fast.
"The problem is, once a dog gets out there and becomes fearful, afraid that they're out, trying to call them over or coax them over just doesn't work. On Sunday, myself, the co-owner Katie, and Raven's foster all got within feet of her and she wouldn't come to any one of us, she was just too scared, too panicked, and she just kept on running."
Moe Dog Rescue Mission shared the situation on their Facebook page, asking locals to keep an eye out for Raven, and Okotokians did just that.
The next several saw numerous posts from community members sharing pictures and information on Raven sightings.
"One of the huge reasons why I love Okotoks so much is the community, and did the community ever come together," says Burnett. "If it wasn't for everybody working together, we would have had no idea where to set up traps, no idea what her routes were, or where she was going. Everything we accomplished was based entirely upon members of the community texting, calling, posting every single time someone saw her."
By Burnett's estimate, the amount of people helping out numbered in the hundreds.
"We had two groups chats going of active volunteers who were out there every day. That was probably about 150 people between the two chats. If you include everyone who called, texted, and posted, literally hundreds. Probably upwards of 500 people. It was a genuine community effort."
They enlisted the help of K9 Recovery Service, and were able to map out a route that Raven had been travelling, thanks to information from the community.
Exactly one week after Raven first got out, she was found safe in a trap.
She was taken straight to Southern Alberta Veterinary Emergency (SAVE) in Okotoks.
"SAVE kept her overnight. She had some impacted fecal matter, some bones in her belly from eating, probably, dead animal carcasses. She was dehydrated and a little sore, so they kept her overnight and monitored her fluids, gave her medication to combat things like giardia that can come from eating dead carcasses or drinking spoiled water. We got her back the next day and she was right back to her old self. She walked right into co-owner Katie's house like she owned the place, like she had never been missing, It was pretty funny to see."
Moe Dog Rescue Mission has since posted a few updates showing Raven happy at home, and they've extended thanks for everyone involved in tracking her down.