Raider has been missing from the Sand Point neighborhood in Seattle since May 15.

This morning when I returned home after walking my dogs, I had a voice mail. A recorded message informed me that my neighbor, Crystalyn, had lost her dog Raider. The shy, black Labrador Retriever wearing a blue collar with tags had wandered off on May 15. The message provided a number to contact if I had information and directed me to FindToto.org to learn more.

Sadly, I haven’t seen Raider but I visited FindToto.com because it sounded pretty ingenious. And it is. If your dog goes missing, you go online, provide information about the dog’s disappearance, a physical description, a photo, if you have it, and payment. The service sends out recorded phone alerts to residents in the area where your dog disappeared. (BTW, FindToto.org is where you search out specific missing dog information; FindToto.com is where you learn about and sign up for service.) Find Toto director of public relations Colleen Busch told the Yuma Sun that the company can make 5,000 calls in 45 minutes. You can’t create, print out and post fliers that quickly. Of course, it ain’t cheap. Calling 250 neighbors can run $85; calls to 5,000 neighbors runs $495. Still it’s hard to argue with success stories.