Sisters man reunited with dog

Jeff Perin and his dog, Paloma, were reunited earlier this month after a scary six-hour incident involving a suspected dognapping now being investigated by the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office. Perin owns The Fly Fisher's Place on Main Avenue, where his playful four-year-old golden retriever is seen frequently lounging outside beside the front porch or strolling the sidewalk nearby.

"Kids and people are always outside petting and playing with her so I didn't pay much attention to the two kids who had been out with her the past couple days before the disappearance," said Perin. "It wasn't until I finally went out to their house later to get Paloma back did I recognize them as the same kids."

It all started Thursday, March 10, after Perin and Paloma got back at 11:30 a.m. from an appointment and she took her usual spot on the walkway. That was the last time he saw her. Snow flurries were blasting in over the peaks that afternoon, and about 3:30 p.m. Perin checkouted to make sure she was okay outside and discovered her gone.

"I knew something had happened and immediately called Sisters Veterinary, and they got the ball rolling with the microchip company," he said. "They put out a sort of 'Doggie Amber Alert' to all the area shelters and vet clinics."

Shortly after, the Bend Animal Shelter notified Perin that a checker at Ray's Food Place had spoken with a person shopping in the store for dog food and items who claimed they had found a dog that might fit the description and were taking it home.

The alert employee at Ray's, who wishes to remain anonymous, became suspicious after the woman acted odd when questioned about her pile of canine items.

"I was just being friendly at first when the woman and her kids came through the checkout," said the employee. "I noticed they were buying over $50 of dog stuff and was making small talk about their new dog. She said she'd found a dog running on the highway and was going to keep it because her kids had been wanting one. I told her she needs to call the police and let them know you found a dog, but you could tell she wasn't going to and took all the stuff with her. After she left I called the police non-emergency number and they directed me to the Bend Animal Shelter, who had already been called by Perin."

Perin then acquired the woman's name and phone number and called her, only to be told that the found dog was a lab and not a golden retriever.

"The woman identified herself as Candace Fair, and you could tell she was caught off guard," Perin recalled. "She proceeded to tell me they found the dog running down the highway without a collar. In the background I heard one of the children correct their mother and say that the dog was a golden retriever, not a lab. I told her that was the same breed of dog I lost. She stammered and changed her story and then told me it was an Irish Setter. I insisted on coming out to look and she finally, reluctantly, agreed."

Perin called the Sheriff's Department and notified them of his intent to not wait and was going out to the Fair residence. He drove straight out to Camp Sherman with one of his employees, and upon entering the property was met at the door by Fair, who was holding Paloma back by the scruff of the neck. Her kids, the same ones Perin had seen days earlier at his store, stood behind her.

Perin identified his dog and told Fair her name was Paloma. Fair released the dog and she ran out to Perin's truck.

Deschutes County Deputy Vanderkamp took a police report from Perin and the Ray's employee, then proceeded to the Fair household to investigate.

Brenda Fair, 57, and Candace Fair, 30, of Camp Sherman were both cited in lieu of custody for Theft 1 of a companion animal, a Class C felony in Oregon, pending a court hearing on April 6 at the Deschutes County Courthouse.

Perin told The Nugget that the deputy's investigation allegedly revealed Fair and her mother lured the dog into her car Thursday afternoon, before driving to pick up her children after school ended for the day. Along the way, Paloma's collar was removed and thrown into the woods during the return trip home to Camp Sherman.

Perin is happy to have Paloma back snoozing at her customary place at his flyfishing store's doorstep.

"Thank you to Sisters Veterinary and the person at Ray's for being so helpful and observant," he said. "I have no idea what the Fairs' intentions were except that their kids liked my dog and they wanted her. I'm very grateful she's returned but still feel angry. Those six hours were some of the longest of my life. To me, it's like kidnapping. I have no children, and she's sort of my child and to have her supposedly taken right out in front of my place is incredible. It's an awful feeling."

For her part, the Ray's employee simply did as she would hope someone else would do for her.

"I'm a dog owner, and all I could think was how upset I'd be if it was my dog and no one tried to find out where it belonged. You don't just keep a stray dog without somehow first trying to find its owner."