High-tailin’ Husky from Texas offers love, a mystery to solve

Retired police officers caring for dog missing since 2007

Vicki Schramm gets a kiss from Blue, a Husky she is caring for in her Toledo home after it wound up in Toledo from Texas. Blue ran away in 2007 and her owner would like the Schramms to keep the dog.

THE BLADE/LORI KING
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Vicki Schramm gets a kiss from Blue, a Husky she is caring for in her Toledo home after it wound up in Toledo from Texas. Blue ran away in 2007 and her owner would like the Schramms to keep the dog.

She’s a runaway. A run, run, run, run, runaway.

On the lam from Texas since 2007, found in Toledo a few days ago, the boot-scootin’ babe is in “custody” of two retired Toledo police officers. And for reasons obvious, no charges — escape, crossing state lines, petty theft (this runaway can steal your heart with a tail wag) — will be filed.

The case remains open. An unsolved mystery.

Just how did this dog from Laredo, Texas, end up wandering the streets of downtown Toledo — six years and roughly 1,135 miles after it went missing?

She’s a runner, no question. On Monday afternoon, Blue plowed under a backyard fence in South Toledo, where she is now living, and off she trotted. She was cornered at a nearby market, where customers blocked her exit with grocery carts as Jay Schramm, a retired Toledo police officer, caught up to the pooch.

With a curled, feather-duster tail and those please-love-me eyes, Blue didn’t get much of a scolding, but a promise to reinforce the fence. And the repair has been made, Mr. Schramm’s wife, Vicki Schramm, said Tuesday.

On a recent Sunday afternoon, the friendly dog was seen hanging around outside the Main Library in downtown Toledo. A concerned citizen asked people: Anyone missing a dog? Is this your dog? Unable to find an owner, the citizen took the dog to the nearby police station where, because of her history as a dog rescuer, Mrs. Schramm was called. She agreed to take in the dog and to try to find its owner.

Vicki Schramm would like to solve the mystery of how the husky Blue got from Texas to Toledo. 'If Blue could only talk,' she said.

Turned out, the dog had a microchip, listing the owner in Texas.

A veterinarian called the owner, Brenda Castro Hernandez, and put her in touch with Mrs. Schramm. Both women, when they first talked to each other, shed a few tears as the story unfolded about a 6-month-old Husky who one day ran away from home and never came back.

Since 2007, Mrs. Hernandez has wondered: Is Blue dead or alive? Was Blue forced into dog-fighting rings? Had someone picked up Blue and made a run for the border?

“I’m just glad to know Blue is alive,” said Mrs. Hernandez, who has become Blue’s friend through Facebook, checking out photos, such as a couple days ago after grooming enhanced this girl dog’s good looks. A veterinarian’s report shows the dog is in good health.

“She’s been cared for and loved,” Mr. Schramm said.

“If Blue could only talk,” Mrs. Schramm mused as her husband tussled with Blue on a nearby couch.

How the dog got to downtown Toledo is a key question. It’s a significant distance from there to here — through Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky, and into northwest Ohio — even for a dedicated dasher. The retired police officers highly doubt the Husky trotted to Toledo.

It’s a case they would like to solve.

Meantime, the Schramms learned Tuesday Mrs. Hernandez would like the Toledo couple to keep the dog, if that would be okay with them. When contacted by The Blade with the news, Mrs. Schramm hesitated not even slightly. “Yes, yes, definitely,” she said.

And, this indeed would be perfectly legal, said Julie Lyle, Lucas County dog warden. And then the ifs and buts. ... Blue has been living somewhere with someone since 2007.

The dog hasn’t been on its own that long, Ms. Lyle said. If the caretaker bought a license for Blue, the license takes priority over the microchip.

And it is highly possible the dog could have been living at a home in a neighboring county. Some dogs that run off, such as a Labrador, will go a mile or so and stop. Huskies? They easily will go 30 miles, she said.

Blue's legal owner could be out of town or in a hospital, Ms. Lyle said, noting people who find stray dogs should take steps to give the owners a good chance to get their pets back.

Mrs. Schramm said she did just that, such as putting out calls and using Facebook, and there were no responses.

Mrs. Hernandez would like to take Blue back, but cannot afford delivery costs. Besides, she said, her life has changed over the years: marriage, children, etc. And because Blue needs close supervision, Mrs. Hernandez wants the Schramms to keep the dog.

Blue had a habit of darting and dashing, Mrs. Hernandez recalled. Neighbors would call and say, “Your dog’s at my house,” or “I saw your dog in my neighborhood.”

She thanks the kind people who have taken care of Blue. “I am happy with all the owners, the second, the third, the fourth, the fifth, the sixth,” she said, figuring Blue has been on the run, from place to place, for years. “She’s a Husky. They pull sleds. Running is what they do. It’s in their blood.”

Someday perhaps, a reunion, providing the dog stays with the Schramms. Mrs. Hernandez has relatives in Columbus and when she comes to Ohio, she would like to visit with Blue at the Schramms’ home. “That would be awesome,” Mrs. Schramm said.

Mrs. Hernandez wants, one more time, to wrap her arms around the neck of this free-spirit Husky. Purchased at 6 weeks old, and the runt of the litter, she named it Blue.

Lucky the Husky would have been a good choice as well.

If you are Blue's licensed owner or know who the dog may belong to, call the Lucas County Dog Warden's office at 419-213-2800.

Contact Janet Romaker at: jromaker@theblade.com or 419-724-6006.