I wish I had had this book a couple, three years ago. A neighbor of mine had lost her beloved cat and we never did find it. As a pet parent of rescue cats, I relate very strongly to these tales. Losing pets and not knowing what happened to them is so difficult and heartbreaking, but sometimes it happens. I love that Susannah and her dogs Puzzle and Ace are able to help reunite missing pets with their parents. Amazing! Both animal lovers and pet parents will enjoy this book. So good.

A touching, heartbreaking and yet hopeful read that I thoroughly enjoyed. I loved this for the many animals, for the promise of hope, for the promise of a happy ending for the animals and to know that somewhere, someone is looking out for the lost.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC

A really interesting book, a perfect read for any dog lover. Your heart will be touched by all the little animals - dogs and cats and even gerbils - within these pages. The search and rescue work is really fascinating. Even taking on notes of a memoir, this book includes bits and pieces of the lives of the author and her parents and their relationships with each other. It's wonderful how the memory of Susannah's parents and of her golden Puzzle are honored. The parts about little Ace were my favorite, but overall this whole book was very good. I will see if I can find more from this author. Thank you, Netgalley, for this arc.

A fantastic read from Susannah Charleson, part memoir, part dog behaviour, it all blends in well to deliver a wonderful book on missing or lost dogs.

I, thankfully, have not been in a such a situation of having a beloved dog go missing and some of these stories were heartbreaking. Thank goodness for the tireless work of people like Susannah who help reunite people and their best friends. I really enjoyed reading about her work.

One thing I have found reading memoirs or biographies about people with dogs or who work with them is that they can focus on the authors mundane life, which is probably only interesting to friends and family (sorry to say).

This is NOT that kind of book, every story from Susannah's childhood and adult life focuses on some kind of interaction with a dog which I really appreciated, its exactly what I am looking for when I read these kind of books.

I would highly recommend to any dog lovers.

Years ago, I read and enjoyed Susannah Charleson’s book, Scent of the Missing, so when I saw she had a new book coming out I jumped at the chance to read an early reviewer’s copy. I was not disappointed. Where the Lost Dogs Go is an amazing book and, clichéd as it may sound, I could not put it down. Her writing style is eminently readable and relatable. She has the ability with her writing to make you laugh and cry without feeling like your emotions are being manipulated. There is an honesty and courageousness to her narrative that creates a connection between her and her reader.

This book has so much to recommend it, yet I find it hard to categorize. For starters, it’s a “dog book” that tells the story of the author’s dogs, most prominently new dog, Ace, whom she rescued from a shelter. Ace was found roaming around in terrible condition. He was slated for euthanasia causing Ms. Charleson to rush to the shelter to save him and begin the healing process. As his condition improves, Ace’s personality emerges and Ms. Charleson suspects that he once belonged to someone. Part of the book is about her search for Ace’s origins and original owner. She also chronicles her work trying to locate lost pets for frantic owners as well as reuniting found animals with their missing owners. The appendix even has a handy guide giving tips for locating missing pets and rescuing found animals.

The book is also a memoir. Searching for the lost and rescuing animals in need is clearly part of Ms. Charleson’s DNA. She recounts childhood memories of her parents rescuing animals. This tendency to help carries throughout her parents’ lives, and also throughout hers. This “hobby” of theirs is the glue that holds her parents’ marriage together longer than it might have lasted otherwise.

In a small way, it is also a sequel to Scent of the Missing. Puzzle, her search and rescue dog, features in this book as well. Ms. Charleson continues Puzzle’s story and chronicles how she applies relevant skills learned in their search and rescue work to finding lost pets. The relationship between Puzzle and Ace is especially sweet.

As a dog trainer, this paragraph resonated with me:

“WE UNDERESTIMATE DOGS. I say we, because I’m no less guilty of it than anyone else sometimes. A new rescue dog stretches up and grabs my toast off the kitchen counter, and the next day I push the toast back a little farther, hoping to dissuade him, rather than acknowledging straight up that the dog learned something when he got that first slice of rye bread with Parmesan, and it was a tasty something, and now he knows counter surfing comes with reward. I can push the toast all the way to the backsplash, but he’s got goals, this dog, he has tasted heaven, and he can smell the cheese. Even if he has to work a little harder, he will find a way to bag that toast. And he’ll be reinforced when he gets it, again.” P195

I shared this anecdote with my class to emphasize the importance of keeping their dogs from being rewarded by unwanted behavior. “[H]e’s got goals, this dog” – true that.

I would recommend this book very highly, especially to people who love animals.

Excellent book! I really enjoyed reading this. It was insightful and touching! I find search and rescue very interesting and loved reading about the author's work and experience in that field.
I enjoyed reading about her dogs and the dogs and cats she searched for and about her parent's role in that too.