Big Dog Ranch Rescue said Wednesday that Omelette, a former laboratory beagle, died after escaping through a fence in Boynton Beach on Sunday evening and being found Tuesday morning in a nearby canal.

The rescue said staff were notified at around 6 p.m. and quickly began searching across social media, Nextdoor and missing pet platforms, while a team was also dispatched to comb the area. Still, Omelette was not recovered in time, and the rescue believes he likely fell victim to an alligator.

The death has now changed how the rescue handles adoptions. Big Dog Ranch Rescue said no dog will leave its care until staff confirms a GPS collar is fully installed, activated and working on the adopter's phone. The move follows a case in which Omelette's adopter had been given a Fi GPS tracking collar and instructions, but the tracking system had not been activated before the escape.

The loss lands at a sensitive moment for the Loxahatchee-based rescue, which is helping lead an effort to save and rehome about 1,500 beagles from a Wisconsin research breeding facility. In recent weeks, it also helped secure the release of another 135 beagles from the same facility, and dozens have already been transported to the rescue's campus for medical care and placement into homes.

Big Dog Ranch Rescue said its team was devastated, and the policy shift is meant to make sure every dog leaves with a collar that is not just handed over, but already active and ready to track. For Omelette, that safeguard came too late; for the next beagle to leave the rescue, it now has to be in place before the door opens.