On October 5, Jessica Hendricks lost her best friend. During a camping trip at Utah’s San Rafael Swell, her dog Kona was startled by the fireworks and darted into the woods.

The Boulder resident has now spent weeks searching for his furry friend in Utah. He enlisted the help of a volunteer trapper from Salt Lake City and a professional animal tracker from Wyoming who used a drone and scent tracking dog.

This left Hendricks facing a hefty bill for his search efforts. He started a GoFundMe eight days ago — gofundme.com/f/bring-kona-home-donate-for-search-eforts As of Thursday, he had raised $3,445 of his $4,000 goal.

“Your dogs are your family,” Hendricks said. “It’s the thing I care about most in the world.”

Hendricks was issued a Kona in 2019 while serving in the Peace Corps in Tanzania.

“It showed up on a motorcycle and a cardboard box with some holes in it,” Hendricks said.

Seven months later, the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the world. Hendricks was forced to evacuate the country but refused to leave Kona. Due to the initial chaos caused by the lockdowns, most airlines stopped allowing pets to fly in the undercarriage of planes. Hendricks put Kona on the last flight to the United States where pets are still allowed.

With each passing day, the chances of finding Kona decrease as no trace of him remains. At one point a trapper was able to use his scent tracking dog to track Kona’s scent. But the trail ended when they reached a riverbed where flash floods washed away every scent.

“It’s hard to go into the third week without any symptoms,” Hendricks said.

But Hendricks still hasn’t given up hope of finding her best friend and said there are still reasons to hold out hope.

“During this process, we did not find any kill sites or see the Wonder Bread suit within range, which means it is likely still alive and has found a good place to hide from predators,” Hendricks wrote in his latest update on GoFundMe. page.

Hendricks spends most of his time searching in Utah because his job requires him to work remotely.

When Hendricks started the GoFundMe, his roommate, Floyd McCluhan, immediately donated $40 to his efforts. McCluhan and Hendricks are active outdoors, and Kona, whom McCluhan calls Mr. K, is always by their side.

“He’s always following the trails, always having a good time in Boulder and at home. He’s very calm, probably like the quietest dog you’ll ever meet in your life,” McCluhan said. “He never barks or yells or anything like that. “It’s kind of like a perfect dog model.”