Published: July 22, 2008 11:44 pm      

Errol’s family still has hope he’ll be found

The search for Errol, an Irish Wolfhound lost since July 4, is still on and hopes are still high that he will be found after seeking the opinion of an animal behaviorist.

Errol and his owner, Destiny Burge, were in a one-vehicle car crash while passing through Meridian en route from Alabama to her home in Arkansas.

Errol ran from the scene of the crash, on Interstate 20-59, near Exit 154. A couple of sightings were reported since then in the Carmel Baptist Church area on Highway 19 South.

This Friday will mark three weeks since Burge's family, friends, and volunteers here in Meridian and from other states have been looking for Errol, a retired 4-year-old showdog.

Donna Hinkle, Burge's mother, said her daughter is in Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock, Ark., fighting an infection that developed in her wounds from the wreck. She says some skin grafts and physical therapy may follow.

"It's been five days since anyone has reported seeing him and that worries all of us," Hinkle said at the beginning of this week, but her hopes were lifted some Tuesday morning after she spoke with Dan Estep, an animal behaviorist in Colorado, who told her Errol's evasiveness is normal after a traumatic experience.

"He said it's not unusual to go five days or a week without a sighting. If a dog doesn't want to be seen they are kind of like a coyote. They won't be seen," Hinkle said.

The first Errol sighting after the Fourth of July was on July 9. The last reported sighting was July 14. When Errol left the scene of the accident he was wearing an orange collar. He stands about 35 inches tall at the shoulder and weighed 145 pounds at the time of the crash.

Anyone sighting Errol can still call the phone numbers previously published, who can reach local rescuers: Donna Hinkle at (870) 703-3118; Jonette Jones at (807) 703-2598; or Amber Holmes at (501) 626-9247.