Buck Boy, it must have been a day for the Shorthairs to run off. Mine also went for a run by himself. We looked for and called him for a good 5 hours. We live in front of 1400 wooded acres and he was spotted a few times, but he was so spooked he wouldn't come to any of us. We could hear the choke chain rattleing his tags and watch the birds fly away but he wouldn't come to any of us. We finally gave up with no other choice 'cause it was way after dark by then. He finally came back on his own and he acted like he was mighty glad to be back! We were so glad to see him back it was hard to tell him how bad he had been. We are equally glad you found your dog. It is a very sad feeling to know he's gone.