Dutch sits on his favorite chair. (Photo courtesy of Art Wharton)
Dutch is back home, resting comfortably in his favorite chair.
Ending a weeklong emotional ordeal that included an outpouring of support from the community, the 5-month-old German shepherd puppy was finally caught in Ocean City using the help of a trapping company.
Dutch had gotten away from his owners, Art and Jaime Wharton, in the Merion Park neighborhood when they were visiting family in Ocean City on July 29. He was last seen heading toward the marsh around Bartram Lane and Waterview Boulevard.
The Whartons, of Glassboro, then launched what became a weeklong search for the dog. They enlisted the help of the nonprofit group Chasing Tails Trap & Rescue to catch him.
“I’m undoubtedly excited and overjoyed. I was shaking when it happened,” Art Wharton said of when Dutch was finally trapped.
What the Whartons never imagined was the help and support they received from the local community in their efforts to find Dutch. Many of the local people the Whartons didn’t even know until then.
“None of this could have happened without the community,” Art Wharton said. “Minutes after it happened, we had people helping all over. People looked for him and when we asked them not to because we had the professionals from the trap and rescue, they didn’t.”
The search of the marshlands around Bartram Lane and Waterview Boulevard involved countless hours. Art Wharton even ventured into the marshlands wearing a HAZMAT suit.
It came down to waiting for Dutch to emerge from the reeds to snack near the trap and eventually in it. Around 1:15 a.m. on Tuesday, Dutch gave in to bacon and liverwurst set inside the large enclosure to tempt him.
The laser-activated door in the enclosure slammed shut and the Whartons got their dog back.
Art Wharton said it was all about patience and a whole lot of love and support from the community and the experts from Chasing Tails Trap & Rescue.
“Yesterday, we decided to switch from a crate to a larger enclosure. He would lean into the crate, but not walk into it,” Wharton said in an interview. “Chasing Tails Rescue came over in the afternoon. We assembled the new enclosure with the help of some neighbors. Eventually, at 1:15 a.m. Tuesday morning he went far enough back. He tripped the door and it slammed shut.”
The Whartons are two middle school teachers in Mullica Hill. They never expected their summer vacation with family in Ocean City to turn into a search for their new puppy that they had adopted just five weeks earlier.
Dutch was adopted by the Whartons on June 27. He was a rescue from Texas found with his mom and litter mates under an abandoned home.
When Art Wharton went to grab Dutch’s leash to take him out of the car on July 29 in Ocean City, the dog took off. Wharton took to social media. He posted detailed information about what to do to help them find Dutch. He also posted what not to do to avoid scaring him off.
The community came out for Dutch. They searched the area with the Whartons. They helped provide support. They even provided items needed to set up the enclosure. The owner of OCNJ Drone flew over the marsh multiple times.
“None of this could have happened without the community,” Art Wharton said. “Minutes after it happened, we had people helping all over. People looked for him and when we asked them not to because we had the professionals from the trap and rescue, they didn’t.”
He thanked “all of the residents of Bartram and Waterview for looking out for Dutch and for allowing the professionals to do their jobs.”
Wharton said the Humane Society of Ocean City and the Ocean City Police Department were also very helpful and supportive during the ordeal.
“I want to thank everyone for their support and their prayers – they worked,” he said. “There are a lot of people I want to thank for making this possible, but none more than Chasing Tails Trap & Rescue. Pam and Robin (of Chasing Tails) were beyond supportive. They stayed up all night watching the cameras. They went above and beyond. They're the ones responsible for saving my dog. They're angels, in my eyes.”
Art Wharton hasn’t slept much over the past week.
“I think I will have to reset my sleep pattern now,” he said, laughing. “I’m exhausted.”
But first, he has to take Dutch to the veterinarian for a checkup just to make sure all is good.
“He has no ticks or fleas. We just want to make sure he didn’t eat anything that he shouldn’t have. He is a little skinnier,” Wharton said. “But he got a bath and he is clean. He didn’t like the bath, but he didn’t dislike it. He is already back to being my dog. But maybe, he is a little more my dog now.”
Dutch spent a week in the marsh area near Bartram Lane and Waterview Boulevard.
