Friday dog blogging -- back of the milk carton edition

Have you seen this dog?
Originally uploaded by vegacura.

Poor Ch. Bohem C'est la Vie, otherwise known as Vivi.

The week had started well for Vivi, a 3-year-old who won a certificate of merit on Tuesday in the dog show, which is the equivalent of being named runner-up for best whippet, said her handler and co-owner, Paul Lepiane.

The next day, Vivi was scheduled to travel in the cargo hold of the 11:55 a.m. Delta flight from Kennedy to Los Angeles International Airport. The whippet was last seen by Ms. Walton and her sister, Jamie Walton, shortly before 10 a.m. when the airline took custody of her plastic carrier.

Around 11:30 a.m., as they sat aboard the plane, they could see baggage moving into the cargo hold and spotted Vivi's kennel. From her window seat, Jamie saw a baggage handler peering into the kennel and assumed that he was simply looking at Vivi.

But a few minutes later a flight attendant told Jil Walton that her dog was loose. Jamie Walton said her heart sank. Her sister said that she thought it would be a simple matter of coaxing Vivi back into the container. But Vivi took off and ran.

Airport workers took off after her, following in a truck that clocked Vivi's speed at 25 miles per hour. She ran for three miles, until she came to the end of runway 4L, which juts into the bay near Duck Creek Marsh.

We'll try to keep you abreast, Dear Reader, of this developing and important story.

I don't know much about Whippets, but the dog's hips remind one of how they've bred German shepherds to appear as though they're moving forward while standing still. In shepherds, that leads to all kinds of problems, especially hip dysplasia.