Sweet Paws Dog Rescuer Needs Help Rescuing Her Own Dog

Cynthia Sweet, whose nonprofit organization Sweet Paws Rescue has rescued dogs for years, needs help rescuing her own dog.

The 39-year-old Essex woman is heartbroken and desperate to get her dog back. In fact, she is offering her life savings - $7,500 - as a reward for the safe return of her dog. Opie has been missing since Jan. 6.

Sweet’s beloved dog Opie, a black/brown/white Beagle/Basset mix with short legs, took off into the woods behind his house on Southern Avenue in Essex, Mass. The dog headed towards a deeply wooded area that abuts Route 128 and Route 133 between Essex and West Gloucester. He was wearing an orange reflective collar with tags, and a black collar with tags and a GPS. The batteries in the GPS are dead.

“We’re looking for anything that could help find him,” said Marissa Deschenes, a Sweet Paws Rescue volunteer. She said someone may have Opie who does not even know the dog is missing. Or someone may have taken the dog in to protect him from this harsh winter, and may not know where to find his owner. Deschenes said people can help rescue efforts by helping to spread the word.

Sweet rescued Opie four years ago from a hoarding situation and he quickly became her constant companion. He is the mascot of the organization.

She started her dog rescue efforts right after Hurricane Katrina, when she bought a one-way ticket to Louisiana to help in the rescue and recovery efforts. With the help of friends in Massachusetts, Sweet and volunteers were able to move 600 displaced shelter dogs out of the south to various rescues around the country. After weeks of going door to door to help abandoned dogs throughout New Orleans and sleeping in a tent in one of the staging areas outside of New Orleans, Sweet returned home and has not stopped rescuing dogs since.

Sweet started her non-profit, all-volunteer organization, Sweet Paws Rescue, in 2011 and has since rescued over 2,000 high-risk dogs.. The majority of these rescues have been in Massachusetts.

Over 500 people have volunteered for all facets of the search for Opie, including blanketing Cape Ann with thousands of “Find Opie” flyers. There is a “Find Opie” Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/pages/Find-Opie.

Sweet Paws Rescue volunteers are hoping people in Essex county and beyond keep their eye open for Opie, and call (617) 304-9369 with any sightings.

Colleen Kelley, helps Sweet run Sweet Paws Rescue, and she said it is important for people who think they may have spotted Opie, to take a photo and to call as soon as possible.