Bailey would run back in the canyon when approached with a slip lead.

She was last seen on Sumac Drive and Laurel Street – next to Hollywood Park. She weighs about 12 lbs., and is black and brown in color and should be wearing a purple collar with diamond studs. “Jaxon is fostering Bailey for our rescue,” said Lori Farrar from Oak Park.

Azalea Park area

“She (Bailey) was only with Jaxon for a couple of days … [and] was a puppy mill dog and is afraid of all people.” Farrar works at the Hooks Home Bound Rescue, an animal rescue group.

Jaxon, a 16-year-old teen from Azalea Park, immediately posted the information on the “lost & found” section of Nextdoor.

“… unfortunately Bailey ran from the house, as Jaxon’s mother was trying to take Bailey outside for a potty break,” said Blaze Thall, the founder of Hooks Home Bound Rescue. “We received word about multiple dogs that looked like Bailey, but [they] were not her,” Thall said.

One lead looked promising though. It was a post on March 28 by Danielle Driscoll from Azalea Park. “I saw a black and tan dog with [a] purple collar in my backyard today,” Driscoll said, “I am guessing I saw your dog. The spot she’s running to isn’t accessible by foot.”

Behind Driscoll’s house is a four-tiered backyard with the fourth tier leading into an “unnavigable canyon brush that goes down to and past my property line,” she said. The third tier has a pond, which might be the reason why Bailey came to initially visit, “because she was thirsty.”

Little by little Driscoll tried to gain Bailey’s trust, sometimes waiting by the first and second tiers. She fed her chicken and provided her with some water, but she said that Bailey would run back in the canyon when approached with a slip lead. Driscoll continued to feed Bailey but had no luck capturing her. Thall advised that people stay out of the woods (behind Driscoll’s house) because it might scare Bailey further into the canyon or Hollywood Park.

On Saturday (April 1), Thall said: “Enough is enough, and [I] attempted to set up a group of people who would eventually help us put Bailey into Danielle’s yard. My goal was to set up a minimum of 10 people around the area, as we boxed Bailey into the yard. Looking for Bailey, I have gone into that area multiple times, but the area is so thick and rugged that her rescue would end up being a slow process. As other people were watching the fence line and open area, I was going to force my way through the woods, in hopes Bailey would pop out near someone, or at the house.”

The search had to wait though. “I can’t have people on my property today, it’s my daughter and son’s birthday, and the liability surrounding that many people [coming by] is something I’m not comfortable with,” Driscoll said. In the meantime, Driscoll sent her three small dogs down in the canyon to try to draw Bailey out; it didn’t work. “[Later] she came back and ate, but at this point I think the only thing that’s going to secure her is the trap that’s coming,” she said.

Animal control could not deliver the trap on Sunday as planned, and the anticipation on the thread became more evident. The hourly updates and inquiries became more frequent; by now there were approximately 80 comments of support – and anxiousness.

“All right, AC (animal control) just called, they’re 10 minutes away!” responded Driscoll. By now the comments on the thread reached 100.

At approximately 7:45 p.m., on April 3, Driscoll posted a photo of Bailey and captioned it, “she’s caught.” On April 4, Thall received a notification that he must pick up Bailey from the Animal Control office, because Bailey is registered to him.

“Bailey was a puppy mill momma,” he said. A puppy mill “could be a profession or backyard breeder who continues to make female dogs pregnant; just to sell the puppies. The previous rescue went in and saved her (Bailey), and with the help of animal control was able to shut down the backyard breeder. At the time of the rescue Bailey was pregnant, but all puppies were ‘stillborn.’”