There’s a white husky, lost and afraid, in the Wind River Mountains. All he wants is to find his way home, and his family wants him home so much that they're willing to throw a big bone to his rescuer in the form of a $1,000 reward.
Beo, a 7-year-old Siberian husky, was in the Bridger-Teton National Forest last week on a family vacation with his owners, Robert and Kelly Christensen.
“My family goes on an annual camping trip up the East Fork near Big Sandy,” said Alyssa Christensen, a Cheyenne resident and Robert and Kelly’s niece. “The dogs are used to being off the leash out there because they're out in the middle of nowhere, and we keep them within eyesight pretty much all the time.”
On Friday morning, Beo somehow managed to find his way across a river. The Christensens didn’t realize he was there until it was too late.
“He’s been gone since 8 a.m. Friday morning, and we haven’t been able to find him,” Alyssa said.
Beo was spotted near Lonesome Lake on Monday morning, and several people have contacted the Christensens to say they saw the husky while they were in the area. Robert Christensen spent most of Wednesday searching the area.
“Even just knowing where he is so my uncle can get to his location is so helpful,” Alyssa said. “We’re hoping for good news once he gets back into cell service.”
How?
Beo is “a family dog” who is used to roaming off-leash in this particular spot. Huskies are known for their strong personalities and stubborn individualism, but Alyssa said that description doesn’t fit Beo.
“He's been up there off the leash numerous times,” she said. “Anytime he’s gone off, he always comes back to the campsite.”
Robert and Kelly let Beo out early Friday morning to stretch his legs. He obviously found a way to cross the river but wasn’t able or willing to return to the other side, where his family was camping.
Alyssa thinks Beo was too scared to make the crossing a second time. Otherwise, he wouldn’t still be stuck in the mountains.
“I don’t think he knew how to get back,” she said. “He’s never done something like that before, and he never strays far from home.”
The Christensens feel as if they have lost one of their own, and they believe they’ve done everything possible to spread the word and get him home.
Spotted But Not Secured
On Sunday, the Christensens shared a poster of their missing husky, along with a $1,000 reward for anyone who brings him home. Alyssa has been fielding calls from Cheyenne while her aunt and uncle have continued searching around the Big Sandy Trailhead.
“We’ll raise the reward if enough time passes,” Alyssa said. “There was a point where we were talking about it, because he’s like family to us.”
Several people have called Alyssa, saying they spotted a white husky near the Big Sandy Trailhead. Some assumed Beo belonged to one of the many hikers on the Big Sandy Trail, who often let their dogs roam off-leash.
Unfortunately, nobody’s been able to get a leash on Beo, though at least one person has come close. The husky is extremely friendly but has a thing about being grabbed in the place most well-intentioned people would reach for.
“It’s not that he isn’t and hasn’t been approachable, but he’ll yank away when someone grabs his collar,” she said. “One person tried, but they didn't want the collar to come off, because then he would have no identification on him. They let him go, and he ran away again.”
Friends In High Places
There was elation Monday when someone sent the Christensens a photo of Beo wandering on a pack of snow in Texas Pass near Lonesome Lake. He appeared to be in good health.
“Our first concern was that he was injured, and that's why he hadn't come back to camp,” Alyssa said. “Now, we’re pretty sure that he had crossed the river and didn't know how to get back.”
By the time Alyssa got in touch with the people who spotted Beo, it was too dark to start a four-hour hike to Lonesome Lake. Robert set out early Wednesday morning to reach the area.
Beo hasn’t had to live off the land in Texas Pass. Other hikers hadn’t been able to rescue the husky, but they did what they could to ensure he could sustain himself until his family found him.
“People have been giving him food, and they say he looks healthy,” Alyssa said. “At least he’s been able to stay comfortable, in that way.”
Alyssa said every update has been “heartwarming.”
She’s spoken with dozens of total strangers over the last several days, who all genuinely wanted to do what they could to help or provide reassuring information about Beo and his whereabouts.
“We really appreciate everything that everybody has been doing to help us reach as many people as possible,” she said. “So many people have been communicating with us, even when they have shoddy cell service, just so we can know they’ve seen him or tried to help him.”
Robert spent most of Wednesday out of service, heading toward Beo’s last-known location. Alyssa hoped for a call with good news that evening, but if Beo hasn’t been found, they’ll exhaust every resource and make every call to ensure their husky makes it home.
“Our dogs mean the world to us,” she said.
Andrew Rossi can be reached at arossi@cowboystatedaily.com.
