Missing Dog, Little Bear, Home Safe After 2 Weeks

QUOGUE, NY — A Quogue woman's desperate search for her beloved dog, Little Bear, missing for two weeks from her Ocean Avenue home, ended happily: Little Bear was found Monday night, she said.

According to Pi Gardiner, heavy rain on the day Little Bear went missing knocked out the power from her electric fence. "She must have seen a bunny rabbit and run off," she said.

But after weeks of searching, Little Bear came home safe, and healthy, she told Patch.

"I am over the moon!" Gardiner said. "My dearest Little Bear is home — and safe! And healthy, fed. Someone clearly had her."

Gardiner said she believes all the posters and "many, many words of mouth, made her a rock star."

On Monday, Little Bear appeared at the house, and Gardiner said she believes someone may have brought her back to Quogue and left her, and then, the pup "made it home."

But it couldn't have happened without the care and concern of a huge-hearted community, she said.

"The community far and wide made Little Bear famous — a star — the Taylor Swift of lost dogs," she said.

Little Bear means everything to her and her family, Gardiner said, adding that she was "heartbroken," when her dog went missing.

Even her two other rescues were despondent over Little Bear's disappearance, she said. "They knew something was wrong," she said.

Little Bear is a bundle of affection, she said. "She's my littlest bear. She's the queen. This dog is just the sweetest, most adorable thing," she said. "She's so friendly. Everyone she meets, she flops on her back for belly rubs."

Gardiner and many others searched the area, putting up flyers and praying for the dog — with whom she shares a lifetime bond — to come home safely.

Teddy Henn of Long Island Lost Dog Search & Rescue also spent days searching.

For Gardiner, the hours were endless without her constant companion.

"When you look into a dog's eyes, they're old souls," she said. "They just know you. They have such kindness. Little Bear has been with me for 11 years — there's just something special about a rescue."