NORTH SEA, N.Y. — A distraught family in North Sea is desperate for answers after their 10-month-old puppy disappeared without a trace last week — possibly stolen.
Oscar is a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, white and black with red eyebrows. weighs about 15 kg. He was last seen Tuesday, June 25, at his Roses Grove Road home, is microchipped and listed as lost and missing — and needs heart medication, his frantic owner Sharon Lynch said.
Lynch said at about 6:30 p.m., she noticed Oscar, who was in the fully fenced yard, was missing. He was only out 20 minutes when he noticed it was gone.
“We're fully fenced off, but he found a small piece,” she said. “If he was running after a squirrel, nothing would stop him.”
She and her husband and daughter would drive around until 2 a.m., calling him. Fortunately, Lynch said, he was not found injured or worse. “We thought then that maybe someone had taken him and started calling vets, shelters – notifying everyone we could.”
Teddy Henn of Long Island Lost Dog Search and Rescue, a tracker who has worked tirelessly to bring many dogs safely home, headed straight to the area with his dog Winston.
“We found that Oscar went up Old Trail Road, from Roses Grove Road, and then his scent was gone,” Lynch said. “It's possible he was picked up and taken. He could be anywhere – Riverhead, Deer Park, Setauket.”
Lynch, her husband and daughter are devastated.
“Oh, my God. It feels like we've lost a family member. It's unbelievable. It's like when you lose a person, your brain cells are fuzzy, you can't think straight. That's how it feels.”
Her family is offering a reward for Oscar's safe return, Lynch said.
Unfortunately, she said, her family has been duped twice by people who said they had an Oscar, but despite showing up where it was listed — “I sat there for two hours, my heart racing,” she said — and both were false leads. Scammers who capitalize on a person's grief, he said, “are disgusting.”
Oscar, he said, is just recovering from a broken leg, too. “If he's roughing up another dog, that's not good,” he said.
Describing her beloved pup, Lynch said: “She's never met a person she doesn't love – unfortunately, in this case. She's the friendliest animal we've ever met, and we've had a lot of dogs. She's super, super friendly, playful and affectionate all you have to do is sit down and he'll jump into your lap. And, she added, laughing, 'He's not terribly bright – but he's the cutest dumb-ass I've ever met.'
Oscar's disappearance has blown up, Lynch said. “It's complete loss and grief,” he said. “Last night I sat down to watch TV for the first time since it happened and the fact that he wasn't there to jump into my arms — it's a hole in my soul. It's awful. I knew I loved him, but he didn't know how much, the depth of it, until it wasn't there.'
Lynch said she's grateful for the outpouring of love from the community that stepped forward to help. “I had two scammers, but 573 shares on Facebook. All these wonderful people far outweigh the bad ones,” he said.
Added Barbara Frerichs, who is helping with the search: “Please, little Oscar needs our help. He's only 10 months old.”
If you see Oscar, call 631-766-7776.
