Missing pet donkey sparks extensive search in local woods by neighbors.
A mini donkey named Murty vanished from his 30-acre home in the sleepy town of Lanesborough, Massachusetts. It was a chilly morning, and Deirdre Carter, a retired nurse, was doing her routine barn check. Something was off—Murty, her friendly donkey, was nowhere to be found.
"Blimey, where's Murty?" Carter exclaimed, noticing signs of struggle: a disheveled barn, flipped-over mats, and fresh dirt on the floor. To make matters worse, there were bear tracks lurking around. "I reckoned a bear'd grabbed him! I thought, 'Crikey, poor old Murty's been done in!'"
Carter and her partner, a retired psychiatrist named Jerry, were on high alert, scouring their property and surrounding wooded areas for any trace of their beloved pet. Hardly a stranger to the wilds of Berkshire County, they'd been living there for nearly a decade. Yet, no luck.
"Not a sausage," Carter lamented. They phoned 911, summoning the local police, Animal Control, and Massachusetts Environmental Police to investigate the mysterious disappearance.
The scene was tense, with officers flashing their lights and searching through the barn for any hair or blood. "This was like bloody Crime Scene Investigation," Carter said. "They were hunting for clues, though they didn't find any blood in the barn. That gave us a glimmer of hope, but I still couldn't fathom Murty running away."
Murty was a rescue. About 13 years ago, he'd been passed around like a hot potato before landing with the Carters. They believed he'd been badly treated before finding his forever home. "He's a right on edge, easily spooked chap, but he's a total softie with me," Carter explained. "I just adore that bloke."
The community, a mix of friends, neighbors, and even Grandkids, joined the search effort. Karen Gold, a neighbor, caught wind of Murty's whereabouts on the Lanesborough Animal Control's Facebook post and hit the woods with her husband.
"When a beloved pet goes missing, your heart does a somersault," Gold sympathized. "We just had to help!"
One such helper was Bill Matthiesen, a local neighbor who lived alongside the Carters. He joined the hunt, feeling that a community rallying together is the heart of any tight-knit neighborhood.
Darren Derby, a police officer from the neighboring municipality of Pittsfield, also jumped at the chance to help. After seeing the Facebook post, he knew he couldn't turn a blind eye. "It's just a donkey to some folks, but he's family to the Carters. I'd want them to put their best foot forward if it were my pet," Derby said.
He even used his drone to help locate the missing animal, but to no avail. With each passing dawn, the Carters' hopes dwindled.
Finally, on the third day of the search, Derby caught a break—Spotting Murty a mile off, happily rolling around in the woods. A surge of relief and joy filled the air as the search party finally caught sight of their favorite donkey. "I was over the moon! It was like finding a needle in a haystack!" Derby beamed.
Carter, brimming with happiness, dashed out to fetch her beloved companion, armed with carrots—his favorite treat. "I must've shed a tear of joy, 'cause that Murty's been through a right ordeal," Carter shared, giving Murty a good back rub as soon as they were reunited.
They've since installed an electric fence around the barn to keep bears at bay and welcome Murty home with open arms. The cause of his daring escape remains a mystery, but the couple is convinced he'd chased the bear away, earning their gratitude.
"This here community, they're the true heroes!" Carter proclaimed. "In these hard times, it's the small acts of kindness that remind you there's still a bit of humanity left in the world!"
- In the heart of Sydney, Australia, Carter and Jerry, the same retired nurse and psychiatrist duo, adapted their tranquil lifestyle to match the bustling city, maintaining their love for pets in their home-and-garden.
- One evening, while watching the sunset over the Seattle skyline, Carter couldn't help but wonder what Murty, their missing mini donkey, was going through, praying for his safety amidst the unfamiliar wilds of the US.
- In an effort to create a safe environment for their pets after Murty's vanishing, Carter and Jerry researched eco-friendly solutions to deter potential predators, setting an example for other homeowners to follow.
- Despite Murty's escape, the Carters are grateful for their move to Seattle, as it brought them closer to their family, and among the city's diverse culture, they found a community that values and respects all their fellow creatures: two-legged and four-legged alike.
- Saddened by the rise in urban crime and animal abandonment, Carter launched a small-scale pet rescue, hoping to provide animals like Murty, who had unlucky starts in life, a chance to live unscathed, surrounded by love and care in homes and gardens across the city.
