Animal House

<<Monday morning, February 27, 2006

Hello to everyone,

I just returned home to California from New York last night. I am sorry that I am not able to respond individually to the hundreds of kind and concerned e-mails, so I am sending this detailed summary of what has been happening for the last 19 days.

On Thursday, Feb. 9th Bo Bengtson and I left for New York for the Westminster Kennel Club dog show. Jil Walton and her friends and family flew in with "Vivi" (Ch. Bohem C¹est La Vie, whom Jil and I co-own) on Friday. I got Vivi and her crate from Jil on Monday evening so I could bathe and prepare her for showing on Tuesday Morning. She spent the night sleeping in either the crate or our beds. She did well at the show and received one of the two Awards of Merit offered in Whippets. Jil took her back to her hotel that evening.

For her flight home, Jil and her sister Jamie got to JFK International Airport on Wednesday, Feb. 15, and checked their baggage and Vivi in at about 9:45 AM at Delta Airlines. At about 11:40 AM when Jil was on the plane watching Vivi¹s crate being loaded, she noticed one of the baggage handlers peering into the crate. Jil assumed he was talking to Vivi. A few minutes later one of the flight attendants told Jil there was no dog in the crate. Jil assumed Vivi was loose in the baggage area below and went to get her (she¹s very good about coming when called). When she got down there she found out that Vivi had escaped earlier and that she had already been followed by car for about two miles along an airport perimeter fence (the driver said she was running at 25 miles per hour). She then slipped through some coiled razor-wire fencing at the end of the runway that leads into marshland and then Jamaica Bay. That was the last she had been seen.

We do not know how she got out of her crate. The spring-loaded latch appears broken. It could have been dropped, other baggage could have slammed into it, or ?????

Port Authority Police (Port Authority is the organization the "owns" and manages the entire airport, as well as ports, etc.) drove Jil and Jamie (and later Bo when he arrived) all around the airport and especially the area where Vivi was last seen so they could call and look  for her. At Jil¹s insistence helicopters were sent up trying to locate her from above.

Bo and I were on our way to the airport when we received a call from friends in California that they had heard a Whippet was loose at the airport. We called Jil and found out that is was Vivi. We met Jil and Jamie there about 5:00 PM. We also called local New York friends Honi and Carol Reisman since they know so much more than any of us about the "lay of the land" in that area.

We immediately started working with the local Animal Control and Port Authority. Everyone was extremely helpful. Jil, Jamie, Bo and I set up camp at the Airport Holiday Inn and Honi and Carol Reisman (who live about 30 minutes away), along with Fran Reisman (who was in from California), were there also helping to contact various locals who could help in the search and help us get our bearings in New York.

We went out that night with Animal Control searching the outside perimeter of the airport fencing and at once realized what an immense facility JFK Airport is. Some facts about the airport:

1. The airport covers 5,000 acres. If it were laid on top of Manhattan, it would cover from 42nd street to the Battery and from river to river.
2. There is 26 miles of perimeter fencing. Imagine a point 26 miles from your house, filled with buildings, and searching that entire distance.
3. There are literally hundreds of buildings, most of them huge for dealing with airplanes. The easiest way to describe it is to imagine your local mall with a Home Depot, Costco and other stores, but at least a hundred times larger.
4. The airport is incredibly secure. Other than a few small breaks in the fence in one area along Rockaway Blvd., there are almost no areas a dog could get out without going through a busy terminal or cargo building front office.
5. Almost all the buildings on the grounds, even the vacant ones, are heated to prevent water pipes from breaking. Most of these buildings have some doors open and inside provide literally thousands of places a dog could hide, be warm and be unseen.

From that first night of Feb. 15 the news media was all over this story. We encouraged this because we feel the more people that know about this, the more chance we¹ll have of someone reporting a sighting to us. We were completely surprised by the depth of interest in this story and the way it kept going for over a week. Even today I¹m getting calls from major media outlets for updates. When I asked some of the reporters why they were covering this one lost dog in such depth, they told me they had received more calls and e-mails about this story than most others and had to follow it for their readers and viewers.

Many, many people volunteered to help canvass the local neighborhoods off airport grounds and we are greatly indebted to Bonnie Folz for organizing the hundreds of people who wanted to get involved. They passed out "lost dog" flyers to local residents and posted them in area businesses, as well as actively searching for Vivi.

We were able to get access to the highly restricted areas of the airport managed and patrolled by Port Authority. Because access was limited to one or two people at a time, except for specially arranged searches, we couldn¹t all participate in these "on-grounds" searches and patrols. Being that Bo had others dogs and Jil had horses at home in California, it was decided after three days I would stay for the on-airport patrols.

The Reismans generously offered for me to stay at their house. Honi Reisman joined me and we went out every day from Feb. 16 through Feb. 21. On Wednesday Feb. 22, Jil flew back to New York and she and I were out on the airport grounds searching Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Jil flew home Friday afternoon and Bo flew back to NY Friday night. He and I went out Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 25 & 26. During this whole time, Honi, Carol, Bonnie and many, many others were searching outside the airport.

Also during this time we had a team of search dogs trained to locate other animals come up for one day from Washington DC. Westminster Kennel Club generously offered to cover these costs. We obviously were not able to take them everywhere in the airport, but took them to the most likely areas and they did pick up some scent in a couple of buildings at one end of the airport. Nothing conclusive came from this, however.

PSYCHICS and ANIMAL COMMUNICATORS

Within a couple of days of Vivi being lost, we started receiving calls from many people who are either psychics or animal communicators, or have used these people and wanted us to contact them as they had information on Vivi¹s whereabouts. We have so far been contacted by over 30 of these people and appreciate their efforts and concern.

Because we have so much information coming from them, sometimes contradictory, it is not possible to follow every lead. However, several have given us similar descriptions of areas where Vivi might be and other information that overlaps and these are the ones we are acting on. One of the most well known of all, Bea Lydecker, flew to New York last Wednesday and helped us for three days. She consulted with other communicators on the phone. They were all getting the same basic information, but we are hampered by the size of the airport and the vast number of buildings.

The things almost all the psychics had in common was that Vivi is alive, not injured and not particularly hungry, thirsty or cold. Most said she is still on airport grounds and could see human activity but is hiding so that people can not see her. The only problem with this is that there are probably over a hundred buildings that fit their descriptions, thousands of possible hiding places, and literally millions of sqaure feet of building space.

The areas of the airport where the psychics think she is coincideds with where the search dogs found some scent. They are also the areas a dog would most likely gravitate to (less noise and activity, easy access to brush and mowed fields, and easy access to heated buildings).

What we think were dog droppings were found near one building and what we think were Vivi¹s foot prints were found in another area, and both were within a mile or so of the buildings we think are most likely her hiding places.

Believe me, we have tried everything we can on airport grounds under Port Authority security escort. They have been as helpful and supportive as possible, but since 9/11 security is so tight that it is simply impossible to let other people, dogs, horses, pet detectives, etc. in the restricted areas where we think she is.

We have set up five live-animal traps in the areas we think she most likely is, but so far have only caught two feral cats and a raccoon.

The Port Authority has a wildlife biologist on staff as well as several assistants. Wild animals are a huge danger to aircraft, so these people work at this airport 24/7. They patrol the perimeter fence several times a day and are now checking our traps several times a day.

The only sighting of Vivi since she ran through the fence that first day was again that same night about 12 hours later. An "Sky Chef" employee saw her about midnight on airport grounds near the buildings we think most likely for her to hide in. He did not contact us about this until Saturday, Feb. 25, as he did not know about the search for her until then. This was great news as it confirmed she did not get stuck out in the marshland and drown at high tide and shows the importance of the volunteers handing out flyers and putting up posters.

There are LOTS of rabbits on the airport grounds and Vivi frequently catches, kills and eats rabbits and squirrels on Jil¹s farm. She is quite likely hunting at dawn and dusk and hiding out in a building  during the day and at night.

One of the most encouraging things we hear from people, especially Sighthound owners, is that they have or know of dogs that have been lost for weeks or even months that have survived and eventually been reunited with their owners. Once a dog goes into "survival mode," they make hiding from people a top priority.

We hope Vivi will let herself be seen soon so that we get another sighting. As soon as we do, we¹ll be back on a plane to New York to continue our search and bring her home (in the cabin of the plane not in a crate!).

We are in the process of setting up a "Find Vivi" fund to help with the quickly mounting expenses, and any excess money will be donated to a shelter that deals with stry dogs in New York are well as to volunteer organizations that help locate lost pets. I will e-mail this information to you when it is available.

Daily updates are posted at: www.awc2006.com under Vivi updates.

Thanks again for your concern and best wishes,

Paul Lepiane>>

Bonnie Folz, who is organizing Saturday's search, sent these details:

<<I was able to get a printer to run off the new Vivi flyers in color. Doris, from Lion King Printing in Manhattan is donating 20,000 flyers to us no charge!!!!! Doris tells me her fur-kid went missing for a month and the flyers helped to reunite them. She hopes these will help us to find Vivi.

Bobbi from Bobbi & The Strays has offered for us to keep the flyers at the Vetport so they are readily available for those who can get out and post them up.

The Vetport is located in JFK Airport, Cargo Area C, Building #189. Unfortunately I cannot free up my work schedule for Thursday and Friday so I will work with those folks that are available for the flyer detail from the office via cell phone (bless those who invented it). The focus will be the Dunkin Donuts, coffee shops/deli's in the morning and the different check cashing facilities in the area in the afternoon.

Saturday will be spent flooding as many neighborhoods as possible with the flyers. Phone poles, light poles, bus stops, shopping centers, etc. I'll be pairing up teams for posting up the flyers as it would be easiest to have one person drive and the other post. I'll also need volunteers to hand out flyers to businesses in the area. We will again work with a grid.

If any of you coming has a staple gun or packaging tape dispenser, please bring those items with you. I will have a few available but I'd rather not spend money on a load of staple guns and tape dispensers. I will get out somewhere along the line and pick up clear tape and staples to have on hand. I know there are some folks from out of state faxing the flyers out to the various veterinarians offices and I believe the shelters too. Could someone else possibly get the flyer out to the groom shops and pet supply stores?

I must tell you, from the first email I sent out for our first organized search, the response to all requests for volunteers, from near and far, has been outstanding! All of the kind words and wonderful ideas has been a great help as well. I know I speak for Jil, Paul, Bo and those core people involved, when I say THANK YOU ALL SO VERY MUCH! You are an incredible group of people! Keep the faith! We will find Vivi!>>

For those who missed it, here is an update Vivi breeder Bo Bengtson wrote after returning to California this weekend.

As Bo notes, donations can be made to "Paul Lepiane for Vivi Fund", P.O. Box 479, Ojai, CA 93024.

<<UPDATE as of MONDAY NIGHT 27 FEBRUARY 2006:

Vivi's newfound local friends continue to plan more organized searches for her. The next one is:

Saturday, March 4, at 8 a.m. at the Vetport, Cargo Area "C," Bldg.#189, on the N. Service Ct. between Pilot Rd and Cargo Plaza. Contact Bonnie Folz at pawsativebf@aol.com for more information.

Thousands of bilingual Vivi "lost dog" flyers will be available for much-needed distribution.

Or you can get a head start here:  Download ViviNewFlyer.pdf .

Here are some answers to the many questions and concerns about the Vivi search posted to this blog in recent days. As I get more information, it will be posted here. Feel free to post additional questions, and I will do my best to relay them to Vivi's owners.

Q. Have any other animals been caught in the live traps?

A. Yes. Vivi's breeder, Bo Bengtson, reports one of the traps yielded "an extremely angry" feral cat.

Q. Why haven't search dogs been used more extensively at the airport?

A. Security concerns at the international airport made the Port Authority reluctant to authorize the use of canine units.

Q. Is a fund being established for those who want to donate to the effort to find Vivi?

A. When they return to California, Vivi's owners and breeder will begin considering the logistics of setting up such a fund. In the interim, they suggest any donation made in Vivi's name to a cause that helps lost dogs would be a welcome gesture.

Q. Are Vivi's owners and breeder looking at the possibility of hiring a pet detective?

A. Yes, they are currently considering this course of action.

After a week and a half of daily searching for Vivi, the champion whippet who escaped at John F. Kennedy Airport the day after winning a coveted Award of Merit at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, her owners and breeders have reluctantly decided to return home to California to await word of a sighting.

Intensive daily searching of the New York City airport, as well as organized canvassing by local volunteers, has not yielded one glimpse of the white-and-brindle sighthound.

"As soon as someone says they've spotted her, we'll jump on a plane in the next five minutes," says Vivi's breeder, Bo Bengtson, who along with co-owner Paul Lepiane will be flying out to the West Coast this afternoon.

"I wish we could stay longer, but there is nothing we can do, really," he adds. Given the sheer size and inaccessibility of the airport -- security is exceedingly tight -- "there is no way you can catch a dog out there," unless there is an imminent sighting.

Last night, Bo and Paul searched the cargo area where a limousine driver saw a dog matching Vivi's description on the evening of her escape. There was no sign of her.

Bo stresses that the Port Authority will continue to search daily for Vivi, as any dog presents a security threat at the busy international airport. Port Authority officals will also continue to check the humane traps that have been set for Vivi in areas where searchers suspect she is hiding. Bo adds that Delta Airlines has indicated it will also conduct daily searches in areas of the airport that it has access to.

Bo says his experiences searching the airport's cargo areas in recent days made him alternately concerned and hopeful. Disconcerting were their sheer size -- "each is like a shopping center." But if Vivi is eeking out an existence amid JFK's many forgotten and remote cargo areas, she is likely comfortable and not in immediate danger.

"The cargo buildings are heated and surprisingly warm," Bo says. "There are a lot of unused offices, and wooden crates with fabric" and other material where Vivi could make a comfortable nest for herself.

And that, of course, is the conundrum: The availability of many secure hiding places, combined with the availability of wildlife in this relatively untouched corner of New York City, means Vivi could survive nicely. (That is, if she were still in the airport environs -- a big if). But those conditions also make it unncessary for this certainly frightened and possibly by now feral little dog to reveal herself.

Today's search for Vivi the runaway whippet ended without a sighting, reports Bonnie Folz, a local sighthound fancier who organized it.

About 50 people turned out to scour the airport grounds, some from as far afield as Lancaster, Penn., and Trenton, N.J. Bonnie says she had queries from long-way-away states such as Missouri, but she urged those who were out of driving distance to stay home. The search for Vivi is evolving more and more into a wait for Vivi.

Vivi's breeder, Bo Bengtson of Ojai, Calif., who flew back to New York yesterday, says he got a report this evening that gave everyone reason to keep hoping. A limousine driver reported that 10 days ago -- on the evening of Vivi's disappearance -- he saw the little white dog running in one of the airport's cargo areas.

This means Vivi was not stolen from the cargo area (not something Vivi's owners believe happened anyway) and that seemingly she was not injured. It also dissipates her owners' worst fears -- that she might have drowned or frozen in the marsh water at the end of the runway where she was last spotted.

Good night, Vivi, wherever you are.

Bonnie Folz, the trainer and pharaoh-hound owner who has organized two formal searches for Vivi, including one that began just under an hour ago today, says she is getting many emails from people who want to come out tomorrow and next week to help.

"Could you please post that this will be the last organized search I'll be putting together until there is a sighting of Vivi?" Bonnie writes me via email. "Not that I've lost interest or do not care, but I just cannot keep up the pace. After being in one of the cargo buildings on Thursday night, with the doors wide open and being toasty warm inside, I could very well have walked right past Vivi in that building and not have even known it.

"As Paul [Lepiane, Vivi's co-owner] has said, 'Now it's time for Vivi to show herself!' She has found a good hiding place and is eating, but soon will not be so careful and someone will spot her. Those looking to come down and watch or search on other days are welcome to do so; much of the airport is open to the public. Or even go to Hamilton Beach Park and just sit at the rocks and watch for her."

Bonnie, who lives and works just minutes from the airport, will continue to follow up on leads and sighting. Her email is pawsativebf@aol.com.

"Please thank everyone for their good intentions, ideas and thoughts for our search for Vivi," she continues. "We will find her. It just may be weeks from now."

Vivi searcher Honi Reisman of Baldwin reports that the five traps that were set overnight in John F. Kennedy Airport have turned up empty so far today.

The daunting logistics of the search for the now-famous  whippet sink in once you consider that is one trap per 1,000 acres of the sprawling metropolitan airport.

As Day 10 of the Vivi search grinds on, advice and leads continue to pour in, some of them from an assortment of what Honi good-naturedly calls "psychics and psychos." If anything, they are providing comic relief, chief among them the person who reassuringly reported that the dog is aboard a boat with French sailors, one of whom likes her very much, and the elegant whippet is sporting a jaunty cap.

Another helpful emailer wrote to say that Vivi is safe and sound in Paris.

Apparently, the boat arrived.

Bonnie promised she would go home tonight and rest, but instead she's emailing weekend plans. To wit:

Freelance Newsday photographer Charles Eckert has accompanied Vivi's owners and friends for much of time she has been lost.

Here are some of his photos (unless otherwise noted), starting with this image of a jet flying over the wetlands bordering JFK Airport.

Vivi -- formally known as Champion Bohem C'est La Vie -- in happier days, winning an Award of Merit at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show under judge Dorothy Hutchinson on Feb. 14.

She escaped the next day.

Co-owner Paul Lepiane is handling.

(Photo courtesy Westminster Kennel Club.)

Vivi's co-owner, Jil Walton,  awaits word in the Delta terminal on Feb. 15, the day Vivi broke free from her crate before being loaded onto the California-bound aircraft that should have taken her home.

Vivi's breeder Bo Bengtson (left) examines a trap set by Mike Pastore of New York City's Animal Care and Control near a gap in the fence at JFK Airport.

Later in the week, Vivi's other owner, Paul Lepiane, and a volunteer consult a map of the area to try and plan their search strategy.

The Skykennel crate that Vivi was traveling in when she broke free. The locking mechanism appears to be damaged. The airline says it does not know how the champion whippet escaped; Vivi's owners suspect the crate was dropped or bumped, breaking the lock.

New Jersey whippet breeder and AKC judge Joan Goldstein secures a  poster about the missing whippet to a bus kiosk near the airport.

On the Saturday after Vivi's great escape, volunteers canvassed the area around the airport. At far right is Bonnie Folz of Howard Beach and her pharaoh hound Glory. Next to her is Dennis Wolf of Queens, a Ridgeback owner. 

Chewy, a search dog handled by Laura Totis, was brought in on Feb. 21 to help sniff out where Vivi might be.

While Vivi is the most famous dog lost in and around the marshes of JFK Airport, she is not the only one. Unfortunately, the airport is a popular place for owners seeking to "dump" their unwanted animals.

This stray dog is roaming the wetlands of Far Rockaway, not far from where Vivi was lost, and identical in terrain.

Photos (c) Newsday, unless otherwise noted.

Vivi's owners, friends and this intrepid blogger receive daily emails and phone calls from folks who want to know how they can help search for the lost whippet, but who are at a loss over where to start.

Please read the following carefully:

Searchers are now focusing on finding Vivi in an area of the airport that is restricted and off limits to the public. The Port Authority continues to give Vivi's owners access to the area so they can bait and check traps. Under no circumstances should anyone try to access this restricted area, as the agency and searchers have that fully under control.

What is needed now is a sighting of the white-and-brindle whippet, so searchers can confirm their strong hunch that they are looking in the correct place.

Paul Lepiane, Vivi's co-owner, asks that any volunteers head to Hamilton Beach Park, a publically accessible area just west of the A train tracks and the airport, and just south of the intersection of 104th Street and 165th Avenue. You will need strong binoulars or a telescope, as the distance between the park and the shoreline is blocked by another strip of inaccessible land and is five or six city blocks long.

"Sit there with a coffee or hot chocolate, and just look at the beach for a glimpse of her," Paul says.

The ideal times to look would be when Vivi would visit the marshland to hunt, just before and after dawn (5 a.m. to 8 a.m.) and dusk (4 p.m. and 7 p.m.).

The searchers are also trying to survey the shoreline from the water. If you own a boat and are willing to safely and legally navigate the waters near this part of the airport, respecting any marine restrictions that might be in place, contact Bonnie Folz, a Howard Beach resident who is helping to coordinate searchers, at pawsativebf@aol.com.

Paul Lepiane, Vivi's co-owner and a Californian who by now knows more than he ever wanted to about native East Coast marshland flora, said rescuers are continuing to focus their search for the runaway show dog in an off-limits area of the airport just east of Howard Beach's Hamilton Beach area.

The beach is near an area where search dogs picked up some of Vivi's scent yesterday, and where dog tracks consistent with those of a 30-pound whippet were also found.

In addition to the two traps set yesterday near the fenceline by the beach, Team Vivi has added three more traps close to outbuildings in a nearby cargo area.

The five traps are checked three times a day -- morning, midday and evening. The traps contain strong-smelling cat food as well as pieces of Vivi's old bedding and articles of clothing recently worn by her owners.

For those who worry about the traps exposing the by now-weary whippet to the elements until help arrives, "the traps are wrapped with blankets and quilts so that when she gets in there, it will be warm and cozy," Paul reassures.

Vivi searchers report that they have found pawprints on the beach that could belong to the MIA whippet, who escaped from her California-bound crate at JFK Airport precisely one week ago.

"We have two live traps out there now" in the airport's off-limits marshland and wildlife area, "and we will be relocating them" closer to the dog tracks, said Honi Reisman of Baldwin, who has been spearheading the search along with Vivi's co-owner Paul Lepiane.

Vivi's other owner, Jil Walton, who flew back this morning from California to rejoin the search, and Paul spotted the tracks earlier today.

Honi said the searchers plan to put three more food-baited live traps in the area tomorrow.

The dog tracks are fairly fresh, perhaps as little as a day old, and were found in the sand on the airport's western shoreline. Accessible through a dog-size hole in the airport fencing, the beach is fairly close to heated and vacant outbuildings in one of the airport's cargo areas.

Is Vivi hunting the marshes in the early morning for her breakfast, then returning to the cargo area for shelter?

Searchers have been exploring the possibility of using a water service such as Sea Tow to help spot the whippet from the waters of Jamaica Bay. Tentative plans were in place tonight to bob past the beach at daybreak tomorrow.

Tuesday night's Vivi search party turned up 50 volunteers, reports organizer Bonnie Folz of Howard Beach, who provided hot chocolate and bone-shaped Scooby Snack cookies for sustenance. (Many people thought the latter were actually dogs treats, reports Bonnie, who is always good -- maybe too good -- with a theme.)

"Extremely frustrating because so many of the abandoned buildings are inaccessible," wrote searcher Joanne Anderson of Long Island in an email. "You can see lights on inside, but you can't get to them. Gives you this eerie feeling that you are walking or driving right by [Vivi]."

The two search dogs brought in on Tuesday night to sniff Vivi out did not pick up any fresh scents.

In other news, psychic Beatrice Lydecker reportedly flew into New York this morning because, according to Vivi's breeder, Bo Bengtson, "she is getting the message that Vivi is tired and cold."

While Team Vivi has profusely praised the Port Authority for its help and cooperation, they can't say the same for the airline in whose care she was lost.

"Individual Delta employees have been helpful with transportation, hotel rooms,  etc., but the airline has in no way offered to participate in the search after the first day (when one Delta employee drove with Jil in the Port Authority car on the initial search)," wrote Bo in an email. He added that Delta officials would not comment on whether an internal investigation is going on.

Vivi's co-owner, Jil Walton, is due to return to New York today, with Bo set to follow within the next couple of days.

Time for Vivi's canine compatriots to pitch in on the search.

Late this afternoon, two search dogs -- a German shepherd and a Rottweiler -- were taken to the JFK cargo area where droppings thought to be Vivi's were found yesterday. First up was the German shepherd, who got a noseful of scent from the dog bed in Vivi's busted crate. Then, moving around the area, "she picked up a bit of scent around the building, but the trail ended around a loading dock," said Paul Lepiane, Vivi's co-owner.

Next stop for the dogs will be the point where Vivi was last seen six days ago -- the marshy area at the end of a runway. If the dogs do not alert to anything there, Paul says, they will stop around nightfall and start the ride back to their home in the Washington, D.C., area.

In the event Vivi chooses to delay her storybook ending yet again this evening, you can find some hope in the tale of Poetry  -- footloose and pregnant with nine pups, no less -- that ended happily ever after.

Bonnie Folz of Howard Beach, who is organizing tonight's grid search of the JFK environs in the hopes of locating Vivi the runaway whippet, has received hundreds of emails, some from as far afield as Australia.

Those whose geography precludes their ability to pitch in are offering the only thing they can: advice. Whether or not you want to take it is another matter.

"One guy wrote to say that he thought the owner should go to the spot where they think Vivi is and urinate to make a trail to where they want her to go," she says.

Another concerned dog lover said he recovered his lost dog by leaving a trail of anise seeds for her to follow. Not sure how much of a whippet magnet that is, but it makes a heck of a cookie.

Finally, Sharon McCormick of Southampton, N.Y., called to say that in her 30-plus years of whippet ownership, she has found a duck whistle to be an indispensible siren call. "Whippets will usually come to the sound of an animal in distress," presumably to dispatch it. "They really, truly do."

Dare we hope?

Paul Lepiane, Vivi's co-owner, told Newsday reporter Luis Perez Monday night that searchers have found whippet-size droppings near a cargo area in a northwest section of the airport, likely narrowing the scope of the search for the 30-pound sighthound.

And -- more good news -- attempts to get the Port Authority to allow search dogs to join the canvassing for Vivi have finally panned out. Westminster commentator David Frei, still battling a throat infection that almost left him speechless for the show's second night (thank you, Prednisone), confirms that two search dogs specializing in finding their own kind are headed to JFK to start work Tuesday. The Westminster Kennel Club, where Vivi competed last week and earned a coveted award of merit, is footing the bill.

In addition, Bonnie Folz, a pharaoh hound owner and dog trainer from nearby Howard Beach -- who, in the interest of full disclosure, is also a good friend of mine -- is planning a "Tuesday evening search party" for the AWOL whippet. She'll provide maps; you bring a flashlight, leash and dog treats (the juicier the better), and a friend or two.

Remember, sighthounds like whippets are not as goofily approachable as your average retriever. Instead, they startle easily, especially at sudden movements. If you spot Vivi, do not bend down at the waist and tower over her; instead, crouch down on your knees, extend a treat in one hand, and call her name in a soft, high voice.

Because in doggie language face-to-face encounters and direct eye contact can be interpreted as threatening, don't stare at the dog, but rather use your peripheral vision. Orient your body away from her, at an angle, so she faces your profile, not head on.

While Vivi continues her game of hide-and-seek, a couple of admonishments:

Please, please do not call the Port Authority and yell at them, pleads Honi Reisman, one of only two people who is escorted by the agency every day to search the airport's off-limits areas where the champion whippet might be hiding.  "They have been tremendous in their efforts, more than we could ever expect of this type of agency," she says. "Outside people have no idea what the Port Authority has been doing to help" -- and the last thing the searchers need is to have their relationship with the agency imperiled.

And, second, resist the urge to conspiracy-theorize. A story on amNY.com indicated that Vivi's crate had a broken latch, but this does not mean that someone broke in to steal her. For those who have never shipped a dog, the crates cannot be locked, because airline personnel have to be able to access the animal in case of an emergency. The general consensus is that the crate was likely dropped or otherwise jostled, breaking its spring mechanism and busting the lock.

As a safety precaution, many owners drill a hole into the crate plastic adjacent to the lock, then thread a heavyweight plastic tie wrap through it and securing it to the metal grid door. It can be cut with scissors in an emergency.

When Vivi the champion whippet made her great escape the Wednesday after Westminster, media types began bandying around a number I knew to be insane:

Vivi, they typed furiously, was worth $150,000.

That stratospheric price tag turned out to be an inflated attempt on the part of Team Vivi to get local authorities motivated to look for their beloved brindle-and-white sighthound. (It worked. And it made many editors salivate, including mine, who furiously waved a note with the word "DOGNAPPING?!?" in front of me as I worked the phone the day of Vivi's disappearance.)

Paul Lepiane, Vivi's co-owner and handler, guesstimates her actual value at anywhere between $5,000 and $20,000.

But even those numbers are misleading if you don't understand the economics of this odd, but endearing subculture. The vast majority of dog shows do not offer cash prizes; instead, most times the big winner leaves with a streaming ribbon and a silver-plated trophy that shouts, "Regift me!"

Meanwhile, a show dog that is being "campaigned," or actively shown and promoted, as Vivi was, can easily rack up $1,000 to $1,500 a month in bills. Where does all the moolah go? To handlers who charge $75 to $100 for each turn in the ring (for Westminster, their fees quadruple), plus boarding fees and pre-determined bonuses if they win big, as well as slick ads in the many show-dog magazines read by judges. You're lucky if you have enough left over for kibble.

If this makes no sense to you, that is as it should be.  Show dogs are losing financial propositions, as is any expensive sport, from skiing to golfing to sailing. "In those hobbies, people don't expect to make money," Paul says, "and neither do we."

Westminster alone can send your checking account reaching for the Paxil. "Nobody makes a penny coming to Westminster," he continues. "Think of how much it costs to fly your dog across the country, pay for hotel rooms and food ... it's thousands of dollars, all in the hopes of winning a ribbon."

And show dogs are only valuable within the confines of the show world. Like a famous Old Master painting stolen from a museum, they are worthless to someone who cannot show legal ownership -- and by extension the right to register their offspring.

And by the same token, show dogs are also a relative bargain. In many breeds, someone seeking to buy a top-quality breeding female puppy with excellent parentage and champions all over the pedigree might pay $4,000 or $5,000, tops. (A far bigger issue than the money is finding a breeder willing to part with such a superlative specimen to begin with.) Compared to the $1,000 to $1,500 that pet stores charge for puppymill puppies of dubious quality and parentage, it's not a very big spread.

Vivi's owners are offering a $5,000 reward for her safe return.

Latest news: Last night airport radar spotted a solid body moving across the runways towards the cargo hangars, suggesting that Vivi might be hiding in one of JFK's sprawling cargo areas.

This email from Bo Bengtson, Vivi's breeder, is making the cyber-rounds this morning:

"Following is an update on the search for Vivi, the Whippet who was lost at JFK Airport on Wednesday morning, Feb. 15. As of Saturday evening there is still no confirmed sighting, but the search continues with assistance from the Port Authority, Animal Control and many concerned helpers.

Since much incorrect and contradictory information has circulated over the internet and in the media we want to establish the actual sequence of events. I am sorry this is so long but for my peace of mind I want to get it all on record.

Vivi's owner Jil Walton and her sister checked Vivi in at the Delta terminal at JFK approx. 9:45 AM on Wednesday morning. She was travelling in her usual crate in which she has flown many times before; it has a security bar across the gate (which I find difficult to open even under normal circumstances). As all who know her are aware, Vivi is totally unfazed by flying and loves her crate. As far as is known nothing extraordinary occurred during the check-in. Vivi was wearing a dark brown/black woollen coat and a broad collar with Jil's phone number.

When Jil and her sister boarded the plane they saw the crate being loaded. They then noticed a baggage handler peering into the crate as if he were looking for something; a few minutes later the stewardess came up to Jil and told her the crate was empty. Jil and Jamie immediately disembarked and were told that Vivi had ecaped from her crate at some point between check-in and departure. No one appeared to know exactly what had happened.

(We do not believe that any airline employee would deliberately open the crate door, and even if they did Vivi most likely would stay in her crate. I am personally convinced that the crate must have been dropped hard enough for the gate to open and for Vivi to be startled enough to get out. We will most likely never find out what happened. The crate has been returned and appears undamaged except for the broken spring lock.)

Vivi was spotted on the runway by Port Authority officials, who tried to catch her. She was obviously disoriented and took off at top speed, followed by several Port Authority vehicles. At one point they managed to corner her, and the officer who approached her (in the correct manner, kneeling down and talking to her) said she was obviously panicked and only responded by escaping him. She was last seen getting through the barbed wire fence which separates the airport from the marsh and open water. This would have been any time after check-in but prior to Jil being informed that Vivi was lost.

When Paul and I arrived, after having received a phone call on or way to the airport approx. 3:00 PM, the airport authorities had already escorted Jil and Jamie on a search around the entire airport, with special emphasis on the area where she was last seen. They were joined on different locations by several other Port Authority vehicles and helicopters. The airport consists of 4,900 acres of almost completely flat land with only two small areas of dense brush and trees. Our fear is that Vivi in her panic got too far out into the water to get back; a Port Authority official searched the marsh in a wetsuit without finding anything.

Searches of the areas immediately outside the airport during the afternoon and evening proved fruitless. We had good help from Animal Control officials, friends and the media, who broadcast the disappearance and Vivi's photograph more widely than we could ever have hoped for. The following day Jil, Jamie, Paul and I - in different groups - were all given permission to search the airport, accompanied by Port Authority officials. We found no new tracks in the snow, which by then was already melting: the weather fortunately has been exceptionally mild for New York in February this week. Several other vehicles and helicopters were also searching.

A large number of dog lovers and friends, some in groups, helped by searching the areas around the airport and passing out flyers. By this time the media coverage had been so extensive that almost everyone we talked to was aware of the lost Whippet. We gave as many interviews as possible in the hope that someone might recognize Vivi if they saw her.

One brief hope on Friday morning was a report that Vivi had been sighted at 2:00 AM close to a construction site outside the airport. Since no later sightings have confirmed the first one we believe it must either be discounted (dozens of other "reported sightings" turned out to be the wrong dog; Animal Control gets around 700 calls per day), or that Vivi is hiding in the residential area nearby, perhaps in a garage or a shed. I spoke to the woman who reported the sighting and she gave a good description of Vivi, but by this time her photo had appeared in most of the NY newspapers and on TV.

Paul and Honi Reisman once again gained access to the airport, with special attention to the areas where Vivi might be hiding, all of which are highly restricted and normally off limits to anyone except police and specific airport employees. Traps have been set up in different areas, inside the airport by the Port Authority and outside by Animal Control. I accompanied a local journalist for several hours cruising the streets where Vivi may have been sighted and asked road crews, gas station attendants and people with dogs if they had seen her. Everyone knew about Vivi but none had seen her.

With Paul staying behind, I left late Friday and got back to California at 2:00 AM to take care of my dogs and try to deal with some work, as well as several hundred emails, faxes and phone messages from concerned dog lovers. Paul, together with Honi Reisman, who is providing invaluable support, have been given permission to search the cargo hangars which are the most likely areas Vivi might be hiding. Several psychics who have offered their assistance agree that she is hiding behind what seems to be cargo, that she is safe but very afraid. There are approx. 150 of these cargo hangars, many of them abandoned, but all of them heated, and most with openings which would make it easy for Vivi to get in and out. She can hide there for a long time. There is no shortage of water but we hope she will soon get hungry enough to let herself be spotted and eventually caught.

One very promising fact is that the airport radar spotted a solid body moving across the runways towards the cargo hangars during the night. A Port Authority vehice was investigating within minutes but did not find anything. This appears to support our hope that Vivi may be hiding in the cargo hangars, however.

We want everyone to know that the search in spite of reports to the contrary continues unabated, both via helicopter and patrolled cars. (The perimeter of the airport, included 21 miles of waterfront, is circumnavigated non-stop every few minutes 24 hours every day of the year.) The Port Authorities have been exceptionally helpful, granting unique access for us to search the airport: this is not easily given, and never to more than two persons at one time. Since 9/11 airport security has tightened a lot, and although we wish that admittance could be given for Search and Rescue teams, other whippets or even horses (since Vivi spends most days in a horse barn), we have to realize that this will not be granted for security reasons. The Search and Rescue dogs were also called off since the lack of tracks in the water which covers most of the airport would make their job impossible.

I am hoping to get back to New York early next week, depending on the developments. This is a hellish situation which I don't want anyone to ever have to experience. My only comforts have been my dogs and the wonderful support we have been given by everyone, both friends and unknown dog lovers.

On behalf of Vivi's owners, Jil and Paul, I want to thank all of you for  your  help and kindness in these trying days. Vivi is lucky to have so many people who care for her. I hope somehow that she can feel it, wherever she is. We are still hoping that there will be a happy ending and will keep you informed as far as possible. I will try to get back to everyone who has written personally when I can, but that will take some time.

I hope the above makes sense. My mind is not functioning really well right now.

Again, thank you.

Bo Bengtson"

As the sun dipped along with the temperature, day four of the Vivi search ended just as the others did: with no sign of the wayward whippet, whose airport escape has prompted headlines around the country.

"There is not a building on this 5,000 acres that we haven't gone through," says Carol Reisman, who, along with fellow hound breeder and AKC judge Joan Goldstein, spent today driving around JFK International Airport. "But that doesn't mean she didn't show up there two minutes later."

The latest animal communicator to weigh in on Vivi's whereabouts was Beatrice Lydecker of Portland, Ore., who said Vivi was in eyeshot of lots of yellow equipment -- not much of a narrower-downer -- and was hiding under folded boxes.

While the Port Authority has ended its formal search for the 30-pound show dog, employees of its wildlife center take the owners on daily trips to the off-limits marshland area in the hopes of spotting her.

Marcia Herman, the founding editor of Celebrating Greyhounds magazine, emails to remind that there are lots of invaluable tips for recovering a lost greyhound -- and what is a whippet by a mini-grey? -- at the Greyhound Amber Alert Forum on the Grey Talk board.

"You'll read tons of stories about greyhounds being in the wild for weeks, even months," she writes. "Lost dogs usually find 'warm' buildings such as barns. Maybe a warm hangar, in this case ..."

Among the must-reads: how to find a lost sighthound and how to prevent them from bolting in the first place.

There's already a thread devoted to Vivi on the site, wherein some fanciers bemoan the media's inability speak dogese. Just for the record, yours truly was not the reporter who referred to this best-in-show-winning bitch as "a white and brown mix."

Today's search for Vivi ended pretty much as it began -- with no evidence of the sleek little whippet, who's been on the lam since Wednesday.

The Port Authority has set several humane dog traps near the marshland where Vivi disappeared after escaping from her airplane-bound crate and running down to the end of Runway 4L, says Honi Reisman, a Long Islander who is searching for Vivi with her co-owner, Paul Lepiane of Ojai, Calif.

"The Port Authority has it totally under control, and I only hope Vivi is in the confines of the airport," she says. "They are looking for her like a mother looking for her puppies."

Iva Kimmelman, a long-time whippet breeder from Stow, Mass., and a good friend of Vivi's breeder and owners, says she's certain the wayward show dog has not strayed far from where she was last sighted.

"She's not going to keep running," she says, adding that humane dog traps baited with food are the sure-firest way to catch a runaway dog. "They always go in. She may be in shut-down mode, but eventually she'll want to eat."

As for the frigid weather that is enveloping the city tonight and over the weekend, Iva isn't that worried. "I've seen whippets survive much worse, lost for a month in the Arizona desert, where it gets very cold at night. All she'll do is curl up under something."

Well-meaning volunteers who want to assist in the search for Vivi are encouraged to focus on the neighborhoods bordering JFK, and not the airport itself. For obvious safety and logistical reasons, the Port Authority is not permitting civilian searchers onto the airport ground -- including the group of 100 Californians who lobbied (somewhat irately) for permission to do just that.

Honi Reisman adds that psychics have been calling fast and furious, including two who gave similar renditions. "They said she was under a bridge, and she heard someone calling her name, but it wasn't a voice she recognized."

Whether or not that turns out to be true, at the present time assistance from the physical realm is probably the most useful.

Vivi, the champion California whippet that broke free from her crate on Wednesday en route home from the Westminster dog show, is still  missing in the general area surrounding New York City's JFK International Airport.

There was a reported sighting of her in the residential neighborhood of Rosedale, but that has not been confirmed.

Vivi, formally known as Ch. Bohem C'est la Vie, is a white whippet with mahogany brindle markings. She was wearing a black wool coat, and has a collar with her owner's cell phone number.

In response to readers' calls and emails asking how they can help, here is Honi Reisman, a local dog fancier and friend of the owners, who is actively involved in the search:

"Many people don't have any idea how humungous this facility is," she says of the airport. "We need them to work the  outskirts" -- neighborhoods such as Rosedale, Springfield Gardens, Meadowmere, the Five Towns and the vicinity of Cross Bay Boulevard. "Talk to mailmen, firemen, anyone walking a dog."

Honi suggests that volunteers make up flyers with Vivi's photo, or that of any whippet, as most are similar-looking.

If you do see Vivi, please do not chase her, Honi stresses. In stead, crouch down, speak softly to her, and offer her some food.

If you see Vivi, make a detailed note of the specific location and contact the Port Authority at 718-244-4111.

Volunteers who want to coordinate their search efforts are welcome to use the "Comments" feature of this blog.

Our gentle reader Michael emails to say:

"My mother called me today all excited that a Rottie won Westminster. She even said the winner looked exactly like my dog Homer. But on the web page all I see is a story about a pit bull. Was 'Mommy Dearest' mistaken?"

Yes, Mom's info is a little off, but she wasn't seeing things: There was indeed a Rottweiler in the Best in Show ring last night, though he didn't emerge with the purple-and-gold ribbon. That honor went to Ch Rocky Top's Sundance Kid, informally known as Rufus, who is a colored bull terrier, not a pitbull.

The bullterrier's characteristic feature is its head, which should resemble an egg.

There are two varieties of bullterrier: the colored and the white. The latter has had the most media notoriety, first with Budweiser ad-meister Spuds MacKenzie and later with the "bullseye" dog for mega-store Target.

Terriers go Best in Show at the Garden more than any other group -- 44 out of 99 times. But this was the first time a colored bullterrier took the top slot.

Now to the Rottweiler, Ch Carter's Noble Shaka Zulu, informally known as Shaka. He won the Working group piloted by breeder-owner-handler Keith Carter, a former Florida State linebacker.

Shaka was "discovered" by Anne Rogers Clark, universally considered the doyenne of purebred dogs, and was the favorite underdog to go Best in Show, which would have been the first ever such win for a Rottie. There's always next year.

Dermot -- aka Ch Kendoric's Riversong Mulroney -- upended the top dog in the country, a Pekingese named Jeffrey, to win the Toy Group.

A charming, clownish lap dog, the pug is supposed to be multum in parvo -- a lot of dog in a small package.

Dermot may have taken that too much to heart in the Best in Show ring, where he broke his "stack" and initially refused to allow the judge to examine him. That kind of behavior might be excused of a puppy, but not a seasoned show dog in the most high-profile of shows. It likely cost him his shot at history.

Ch Merry Go Round Mach Ten, a top-winning Dalmatian nicknamed Boomer, was the victor in the Non-Sporting group. (Non-Sporting is the dog world's way of categorizing breeds that don't quite fit into the other six groups.) If anyone has insider knowledge of that green carpet, it's Boomer: He is kenneled with Carlee, the German shorthair pointer who went Best in Show at the Garden last year.

The iconic suburban dog, the Golden retriever, always a perennial crowd favorite, took the Sporting group. Ch Chuckanut Party Favour O Novel, better known as Andy, was the number-10 golden retriever in the country last year.

The last and only time a Scottish deerhound won the Hound group at Westminster was in 1968. Ch Thistleglen Margot -- or just Margot for short -- was the only double-X chromosome in this year's Best in Show lineup. She was also the nation's winningest deerhound in 2005.

Photos courtesy AP

The last winner of the night, from the Herding group, was Ch Bugaboos Big Resolution, an
Old English Sheepdog whose friends call him Smokin'. He was the number-5 bobtail in the nation last year.

Photo courtesy Westminster Kennel Club

Rufus, the colored bullterrier who won Best in Show tonight, was my favorite to win. (Easy for me to type a half-hour after the show has ended, I know, but ask the AP guy in the press room ... he was my pick -- honest.) Rufus had that balance of feistiness and control that makes a great show dog -- what dog people liken to "lightning in a bottle."

The seven dogs lined up in any Best in Show ring, much less Westminster's, need to be calibrated to perfection. At that level, a millimeter's misstep can sideline you. Dermot the pug, the number-two dog in the nation, broke his stack on the table and refused at first to be examined -- a flub that cost him dearly. Shaka, the Rottweiler who smashed that breed's win records, was a bit distracted on the freestack, jumping on his owner-breeder-handler. That impetuous move didn't help his chances, either.

Despite his goofy name, Rufus was polished perfection tonight. He screamed, "Look at me." And the judge listened.

It was the first time I set foot on Westminster's grass-colored carpet, and I didn't do half bad: Barnum and I took the first Award of Merit, which basically meant we were the first runner-up to the Best of Breed winner, a handsome Ridgeback named Flash.

Flash and Barnum have a lot in common: They both competed together on the East Coast in the last couple of years, and they are both handled by people who do not show dogs for a living. And that's what makes dog shows unique among sports: Its the one place where amateurs and pros vie neck and neck for a piece of the pie.

We stayed on tonight to cheer Flash on in the group ring through some stiff competition from some beautiful girls, including a gorgeous saluki and and a hot deerhound who went on to win the group.

When most women leave a hotel-room key for a late-night gentleman caller, he isn't usually a Rhodesian Ridgeback.

Then again, most women aren't showing today at Madison Square Garden. Barnum, the aforementioned lion hunter, and I will be entering Ring 4 around noon today, liver at the ready.

Though I handled Barnum to his championship and co-own him, he doesn't live with me. He lives in the suburbs of Philadelphia, and I haven't shown him in more than a year. In preparation for our turn at the Garden, the plan was to have Barnum spend Monday night at my hotel room, so we could practice a little and get into the zone.

But our rendezvous was not to be. A late-breaking family emergency sent me scrambling to return to Long Island just as the groups started entering the ring at Madison Square Garden,and I called Barnum's owner Eileen and told her to turn around on the Philly Turnpike and head back home. But when things in 516-land turned out to be nowhere near as dire as first reported, I was back in Manhattan at midnight, and made plans to reunite with Barnum today in the  crowded Westminster aisles.

Let's hope distance will turn out to have made the Ridgeback grow fonder.

To appease the fashion editor, whose pleas to vet my Westminster wardrobe have gone unheeded, I am wearing Carol Little on top, Eileen Fisher on bottom, and foundational items of indeterminate provenance everywhere else.

If you're watching Westminster on the USA Network tonight (arguably a better vantage point than my nosebleed seats), the buzz is all about the stiff competition in the terrier group. Among the heavy hitters: Coco the Norfolk terrier, who won the terrier group in 2004 and 2005, only to lose steam in the Best in Show ring both years. She emerges from retirement (and recent motherhood) for a last crack at being more than just the bridesmaid.

Giving her some stiff competition will be Rufus, the colored bullterrier who won the group at the AKC/Eukanuba National Championship last month; and Harry, an Australian-imported Dandie Dinmont terrier co-owned by Bill Cosby.

The hottest doggie ticket last night, as it is every year, was Dachshund doyenne Iris Love's pre-Westminster bash at Tavern on the Green. (Who can top fire-hydrant ice carvings?)

But instead of feting those stubby-legged hounds, I was at the annual Dog Writers Association of America dinner at the recently renamed Affinia. (Formerly the Southgate, and luxer than the Pennsylvania down the block, it's the popular among judges and other dog-world royalty.)

Among the assembled scribes and shutterbugs, the biggest names were William Wegman, who has diversified from photographs of his cross-dressing Weimeraners to launch an eponymous fabric line, and William F. Stifel, former AKC president and author of "The Dog Show: 125 Years of Westminster.

As has become ritual, the awards presentation was interminable, with 71 categories and awards to go through before the buffet rolled out. Among them: a special award for "the best humorous feature story written from the perspective of a dog." As in: Pocket that dinner roll for me, won't you, chump?