New Orleans community hopes to find rescue dog with a knack for escaping in time for Thanksgiving

New Orleans — A scraggly white Terrier named Scrim has captivated the hearts of many in New Orleans hoping to help him back to a safer, easier life in the Big Easy. 

Scrim, already twice rescued this year, doesn’t seem to know what’s good for him. His knack for escaping helping hands and his catch-me-if-you-can elusiveness has led the doggo to go viral. 

Michelle Cheramie, with Zeus’ Rescues, first saved Scrim from a life on the streets earlier this year — but in April, he broke loose. 

For months following his spring escape, Cheramie and many New Orleans neighbors searched for Scrim relentlessly to no avail. Hundreds of people commented and posted on social media with photos of his whereabouts and words of encouragement for the people trying to help the lost dog. 

“He was shot twice during those six months that he was on the street, so yeah, humans are pretty scary to him,” Cheramie said.

It had seemed as though Scrim was more tricky to track down than Bigfoot, but finally in October, Scrim was found. 

Once again, he found himself with a roof over his head. He received medical treatment for his wounds and he was even recognized by the New Orleans City Council. 

But his life inside didn’t last long. 

“We were just trying to teach him that human hands are actually good, and not all human hands hit you, and not all human feet kick you, and it took us the first couple of months that we had to convince him of that, and he had finally come around,” Cheramie said. “He’s just in that flight mode again where humans are scary.”

On Nov. 13, he jumped 13 feet out of a second-story screened window in Cheramie’s home. 

“He actually broke out of the screen,” according to Cheramie, who said Scrim also managed to squeeze through a small gap in her front yard fence to complete his escape.  

Now Cheramie’s back to searching the city streets, and dozens of people have called in to report Scrim sightings. This map has been tracking Scrim’s movements over the last 11 days. 

Cheramie drives the streets daily in her rescue van in search of Scrim. 

“Everything we need to rescue Scrim when we get a sighting,” Cheramie said. “I have a dart rifle, we have net guns… it shoots out and it encapsulates him, and then we can jump on him.”

Cheramie has also been placing cameras in different locations where Scrim has been spotted. 

One night, a camera captured him chowing down on some food left out for him, so Cheramie is comforted knowing he’s still alive and well. 

Now she’s hoping to get Scrim home permanently — ideally just in time for a proper Thanksgiving feast. 

“I’m pretty sure he’s cold wherever he is,” Cheramie said. “He’s smart enough that he probably is under a house somewhere and getting some heat that way, but no one knows for sure at this point.”