By Lauren R. Harrison
Chicago Tribune
CHICAGO — A Chicago police dog named Bear should be given a new moniker: Houdini, his handler said.
The German shepherd has been missing since Wednesday night after he was spooked by thunder and climbed a fence near the officer’s Southwest Side home, Canine Unit Officer Rick King said.
Bear has always been afraid of thunder, but he’s not afraid of gunfire, King said. He took the dog out into the backyard of his home in the 3800 block of West 109th Street about 10:30 p.m. during a break in Wednesday night’s thunderstorms so Bear could relieve himself, he said.
Then, as Bear started eating, thunder startled him. He suddenly headed for the corner where a neighbor’s 5-foot wooden fence met King’s fence and climbed it, King said.
“He stopped eating and just took off,” possibly headed east, said King, a 22-year veteran of the canine unit. “Whether he thinks he’s running away from the thunder or going to find it and kill it, I don’t know.”
Bear was last seen at 103rd Street and Lawndale Avenue on the St. Xavier University campus, according to an off-duty detective who spotted him running shortly after 10:30 p.m., King said.
Since the dog left, King has been searching on the Southwest Side and suburbs, including Alsip, Evergreen Park and Oak Lawn. He only had two hours of sleep by Thursday morning when he began searching for the dog again at 8 a.m.
About five canine unit officers were still looking for Bear in the Mt. Greenwood area Thursday afternoon, King said.
Some of King’s past canine-unit dogs have also been afraid of fireworks, he said.
“I’ve had previous canine dogs that wouldn’t flinch at gunfire but hated fireworks. They distinguish a difference,” he said.
Being unaware of a sound’s source probably “freaks them out,” King said. “If they know the source, they’re fine with it.”
Whenever a thunderstorm arises, the dog, which was raised on a farm in Germany, behaves differently, he said. “He’s antsy, paces, chews on things; it’s like he wants to get out [of the house],” said King, who first saw the dog when he was a year old.
Bear “is a family pet,” who happily plays with King’s fiance’s collie and “likes to be everybody’s friend,” King said, which is unusual for “alpha male” canine dogs. “Kids come up, and then he’ll lick them or let them pet him,” King said.
King remained hopeful that Bear -- a black-and-tan 2 ½ -year-old who weighs about 74 pounds -- was in good condition and just couldn’t track himself back home because of the bad weather.
“He’s probably running around looking for dogs to play with, driving his daddy crazy,” King said. Bear has an identification computer chip implanted on the back of his neck, King said.
His advice for people who spot the playful German shepherd: “Feed him some cheese or something, and he would love it. And call the police, and we’ll be there fast.”
Anyone who finds Bear should call the Chicago Police Canine Unit at 312-746-7180, King said.
Copyright 2009 Chicago Tribune