Marin residents are rallying around a lost labradoodle.
Teddy, a 4-year-old golden labradoodle from Eugene, Oregon, went missing March 28 from a home the family rented on Auburn Street in San Rafael. Since then, search for the lost dog has resulted in a massive outpouring of community support.
“I don’t know anyone in San Rafael. I just expected people would let us know if they’ve seen him,” said Rebekah Whittaker, Teddy’s owner. “What I did not expect is for people to drop everything and say, we’re going to look every day with you.”
Whittaker said she, her husband and their two kids were on a road trip to see the redwoods and San Francisco, and to visit a family member in the area over spring break. The San Rafael rental features two French doors she thinks Teddy escaped through while the family was at dinner.
“When we got back, my son noticed the front gate was open, and those French doors were open,” Whittaker said. “We immediately started panicking.”
Whittaker quickly posted on Nextdoor. Within a few moments, someone linked her to another post about a dog running around a nearby store. The sightings, and community members offering their help to find him, only snowballed from there.
“We’ve been making jokes that Teddy is the most looked-for dog out there,” said Amber Steuernol, a resident helping in the search. “I have a dog myself. I can’t imagine going through that. I love dogs. If it was my dog I would hope people would do the right thing.”
Whittaker has put up around 1,000 flyers, but the extent of community support has gone far beyond keeping an eye out for the short and stocky, 50-pound tan dog. Locals looking for Teddy include liaisons with homeless campers, Spanish-speaking volunteers who went door-to-door in the Canal neighborhood, business owners, a Boy Scout who patrols for Teddy and mail carriers who have been keeping an eye out and sharing information with each other, Whittaker said.
Steuernol lives near the home from which Teddy disappeared, and has been helping look for him every day. She keeps ‘scent traps’ — items with smells Teddy may recognize — and food outside her home in case he comes back to the area.
“It is incredible how many people can be brought together by dogs, or animals in general,” Steuernol said.
A team of core volunteers from around Marin have been helping Whittaker search for Teddy, especially as she shuttles back and forth on weekends from Eugene to continue the search. A shared note between volunteers keeps track of possible sightings.
Teddy has potentially been spotted at various stores, parks and areas in San Rafael, San Anselmo and Larkspur. The last recorded sighting was on Saturday on a walking trail behind Bon Air Center in Greenbrae. A few include a detail that hits home: a tan dog watching kids play basketball.
“It’s interesting because at our house in Oregon, there’s a couple kids who play basketball every day in their driveway and Teddy always watches them,” Whittaker said.
Though the sightings have not been confirmed with photos, many remain hopeful. Several volunteers are following up on every lead but are fighting against time.
“It’s like you’re 20 minutes behind every time he’s spotted,” Steuernol said. “The word of the community is what’s going to get him home.”
The search has even taken to the air. Whittaker initially hired Justin Kwong from San Francisco Drone Service to follow up on a few possible leads near the San Rafael home and the nearby Target store. While the thermal drone searches came up empty, Kwong has continued to volunteer his time. He said it’s been amazing to see how far the search has spread.
“A lady driving around asked if I had seen a dog, and she had no idea I was out looking for Teddy which was kind of hilarious,” Kwong said. “I think the best bet is to focus on the areas where there are sightings. If I get a window of time I will definitely be donating my time. We really want Teddy to get home.”
San Rafael resident Carmen Velazques learned about Teddy when she saw Whittaker hanging a flyer. Since then, she has passed out flyers and gone door to door, asking people to check their cameras and to spread the word. Velazques said everyone she tells about Teddy asks how they can help, with people from Ross, Kentfield and Fairfax searching in some way.
“I’ve never seen a community just rally to find a lost dog,” Velazques said. “It’s heightened the sense of community spirit. Helping to find Teddy had brought our community together. The community is united in a heartwarming search and has come together with love and determination to find our lost dog, Teddy, and all the lost pets.”
Belvedere resident Christina Bryan said when her sister sent her a social media video — a TikTok that Whittaker posted about Teddy has reached nearly 40,000 viewers — she knew she had to help. She donated sponsored social media posts to get the word out, is searching fields with tennis balls in hand — Teddy’s favorite — and just bought trail cameras to put up.
“We’re trying to make sure we just cover everything, doing everything we can do, and then also putting out awareness,” Bryan said. “I think that because we are so pro-dogs here and people take really great care of their dogs, I think it hits people emotionally. They are looking at their own dog and you just can’t imagine. I was looking at our own dog Bear and I couldn’t imagine.”
Fairfax resident Lynn McDermott learned about Teddy through a Nextdoor post, and immediately jumped in her car to look for him. She said she thinks about Teddy every day and tells everyone she knows about the missing labradoodle.
“I’m just praying that this dog gets back to them,” McDermott said. “We all need to be rooting for this little dog. He is just a treasure to this family and we want him home.”
Teddy entered Whittaker’s life — despite her being terrified of dogs – during the COVID-19 pandemic, after her kids begged for a dog. Shortly after, Whittaker’s mother went into hospice care, and her brother died of cancer.
“He’s just been with me, by my side, and just a comfort to my kids who were really close to their grandma and uncle, and he’s just such a big part of our family,” Whittaker said. “We’ll do anything to find him.”
McDermott said the community support for the visiting family has been touching. She couldn’t imagine losing an animal while on vacation, where the ability to search for them is limited. Some volunteers have offered Whittaker a place to stay while she’s in town looking for Teddy.
“It’s just so heartwarming how many people have stepped up,” McDermott said. “I’m really impressed with humanity when I think about what’s happening here.”
Whittaker and volunteers continue to search for Teddy with no intention of slowing down. Whittaker said putting a flyer in a car window would help get the word out. Having a slip leash and treats may help catch him, and if he is spotted it is recommended to calmly sit down and wait — while Teddy typically loves people, scared dogs may be skittish, Whittaker said. Teddy is microchipped, though his blue collar may have slipped off.
“I just can’t tell you how incredibly generous people have been to help look for Teddy every single day,” Whittaker said. “I’m going to look every day.”
