Find Sookie: Beloved dog goes missing in Arlington

ARLINGTON, Va. - A Virginia family is asking for help finding their beloved dog, who went missing earlier this month while in the care of a pet sitter. Solange Bone tells FOX 5 that Sookie, a 7-year-old longhaired Dachshund mix, went missing on Thursday, August 17, and the family has been searching for her nonstop ever since.

Sookie got away from her pet sitter's house in Arlington on Thursday, August 17. She was spotted heading northbound on George Mason Drive near 17th Street North, and eventually she crossed Lee Highway and Edison Street. She ended up at N. Dickerson Street and N. 25th Street, in the Yorktown neighborhood. There, at around 1 pm, she was cornered by two good Samaritans.

The family says one of those good Samaritans went into her house to get a leash, and when she came back, there was a third person holding Sookie-- and that man left with the dog. The good Samaritan eventually saw the family's message and contacted them. The family says she told them the man who left with Sookie was a Hispanic man who was about 5'6" or 5'7" tall, with a medium build, in his late 50s or early 60s. He had salt-and-pepper gray hair, was wearing thick, black-rimmed glasses and had no discernable accent. His car was an older model brown or gray Toyota Corolla or Camery with four doors, and all of the windows were down.

Sookie was not wearing a collar when she went missing, so whomever has her would not know she belongs to someone.

The Bone family has posted hundreds of fliers all around the area. They've even hired a dog tracker and placed ads on Facebook and Google, and posted on all local listservs. They also filed a police report and lost dogs report with every shelter around-- but so far, no Sookie.

The family says they just want to alert the person who has her that there is a large reward being offered for her safe return. Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to contact the Bone family.

Solange Bone says both of their daughters have birthdays this weekend, and all they want is for Sookie to be home. The family says they won't stop looking until this four-legged member of their family is found.

"I do not want to scare away whoever picked up Sookie. We just want to alert him and anyone else that a very large reward is available for her safe return. Or maybe receive tip as to her whereabouts with a very generous award if it leads to her return," Solange Bone told FOX 5.

Anyone with information on Sookie's whereabouts is asked to call 949-606-2598.