Little Lost Dog Comes Home to Menifee -- the Long Way

Jackie Van Sant, 12, of Menifee hugs family pet Brownie Bear, a lost dog that was taken all the way to Canada to a rescue society before being returned to his rightful owner. Photos courtesy of Riverside County Animal Services

Brownie Bear, a 7-year-old male Pomerian belonging to a Menifee family, joined the long list of dogs that go missing from their homes here, only to be returned to their happy owners. This story, however, is a bit different.

Brownie Bear's trip home covered about 2,700 miles and spanned two countries.

On Aug. 22, the dog wandered away from its home in the Menifee Lakes community, one day before Brian Van Sant (left) and his family were scheduled to leave for an ocean cruise vacation to Hawaii. Deciding to honor a commitment to other family members and follow through with their vacation plans to be with an ailing relative, the Van Sants passed fliers around town and hoped someone would find and care for Brownie Bear until they returned.

The story, as detailed in a news release from Riverside County Animal Services, takes some unusual twists and turns from there.

A few days later, a construction worker saw one of the fliers at a site where he was working on Newport Road and was sure he had seen the dog in the area sometime earlier. He called Van Sant, who called the San Jacinto Valley Animal Shelter, where local strays are taken. He was told that indeed, a Pomerian matching that description had been picked up by Animal Friends of the Valleys and taken there.

One problem: Brownie Bear was not microchipped and some time had elapsed. By the time Van Sant called, the hold period at the shelter had expired. The Pomeranian they were now sure was Brownie Bear had been shipped to Vancouver, B.C., with other rescued pets from Southern California, by the Big And Small Rescue Society, based in Canada.

Van Sant pleaded with Candy Weil, an employee at the San Jacinto shelter, to see if there was any way the dog could be returned. And today, Brownie Bear was reunited with his family back in San Jacinto for the short trip home to Menifee.

As his daughter Jackie cuddled with Brownie Bear, Brian Van Sant told employees of the animal shelter that the dog had been a family pet since birth. He will now be microchipped, he said, and was relieved that even though he took the long way around, Brownie Bear came home.

Animal services employee Brittany Fonseca watches as Jackie Van Sant plays with Brownie Bear.