Friends, strangers come together for successful rescue of lost dachshund
Matt Hemingway holds Teddy soon after he was pulled from an ice-covered pond in Stonewall.
By Vickie Welborn
Click here for updates on this story
STONEWALL, Louisiana (KTBS) — A tail-wagging happy ending earlier today when a missing dachshund was found after spending the night in the woods during brutal cold temperatures.
The rescue of 3-year-old Teddy the dachshund happened because of the combined effort of friends and strangers who heard about his plight and wanted to do what they could to help.
Teddy’s heart-breaking disappearance happened early Tuesday afternoon in Stonewall when he got away from an extended family member during a visit. The fast-moving stumpy pup, unfamiliar with the neighborhood, quickly got out of sight.
After searching with no results, Teddy’s human parents, Matt and Jessica Hemingway, put out the word on social media. By this time, night was approaching, and the temperatures were rapidly falling.
“Nothing can prepare you for having to explain to your child why their dog suddenly went missing and still hasn’t come home yet,” Matt Hemingway said in his Facebook post.
Jessica Hemingway, the Bossier Chamber of Commerce vice president, was out of town working but doing all she could to contact neighbors and keep the social media posts updated.
Matt Hemingway, a senior meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Shreveport, sought input from anyone with a drone, particularly a thermal drone. Matt Hemingway at times could hear Teddy’s bark from the direction of a heavily wooded area at the DeSoto-Caddo line. But the drone was needed to zero in on his location.
He received information on several drone operators. But well into the night, Dr. Neil Henderson, a Stonewall veterinarian, was the first to offer his drone services.
At 5 a.m. today, Matt Hemingway told his followers the overnight search was unsuccessful. But he wasn’t giving up.
By this time, the post about Teddy’s disappearance had picked up steam from those concerned about his safety and was shared untold times.
Friends and strangers had converged on Richardson Road in Stonewall to help in the search.
That’s when KTBS 3’s chief meteorologist Patrick Dennis enlisted his friend, Hunter Brown, with The Antler Shed Deer Blinds. Not long after Brown put up his drone in the direction the barks were last heard, Teddy was spotted walking on a frozen beaver pond on Cypress Bayou, the waterway that serves as the line between DeSoto and Caddo parishes.
Shreveport-Bossier Advocate sports editor Roy Lang III was with the group just before noon today as they made their way through the thick brush, briars and woods to reach Teddy.
By the time they got to him, Teddy had fallen through the thin layer of ice covering the bayou. And without hesitation, Lang jumped into the chilly, ice-topped water and got his hands on the wayward pooch.
Matt Hemingway calls Brown and Lang his “forever heroes.”
“It’s just all so surreal, and I’m not sure I can ever repay all those who sprung into action at a moment’s notice to help us bring our boy home safe,” Matt Hemingway wrote.
As for Teddy, he was cold, wet and scratched up but otherwise appeared unscathed from his overnight walkabout in mid-teen temperatures. A trip to the veterinarian for a checkup was next on his agenda, however.
But not before a tearful reunion with his two-legged sister, Mollie Hemingway, 7, who screamed, “Teddy,” when her dad approached with the blanket-wrapped furbaby. Her dad admittedly shed a few tears, too.
No doubt, said Matt Hemingway, many prayers were said by those who were concerned.
He also singled out some others: “Debbie Baldwin Bell, Denise Hayes, Betsy Pickett, Michael M Berry, Patrick Dennis, Nicholas Gasper, Nikki Gasper, Shelia Malone, Jenna Waldon, Dr. Neil Henderson, DeSoto Parish Sheriff’s Office, and so many others who shared our posts. Blessed we are to have all of you in our lives!”
Teddy has two other dachshund brothers waiting at home.
Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.
