Lindsay Cochran did not think anything bad would happen when she parked her car at The Summit on Thursday, kept it locked and running while she ran inside a store to pick up an online order.

Inside the car was Birdie, a 2-year-old Cavapoo who is inseparable to Cochran and is her best friend.

“I can’t even put her in a crate to sleep,” said Cochran, 38, a paralegal from Cahaba Heights. “She has to sleep with me. That’s why it’s very upsetting. That’s why if she’s with someone else, she’s miserable. She’s skittish around strangers and other dogs. She wants to be where I am at all times.”

Birdie has been missing since Cochran returned to her car to see the passenger side window down, and the dog missing. She estimates she was away from her vehicle for about 10 minutes. Cochran is now undertaking a relentless effort to reunite with Birdie that she hopes ends with a New Year’s miracle.

One of two things happened, Cochran told AL.com on Saturday: Either Birdie got scared and was able to roll down the window and ran away, or someone was able to get inside the car and take her.

The Summit does not have surveillance cameras within the parking lot, making it difficult to for security to review what might have occurred.

“I don’t know what scenario happened,” Cochran said.

She is pushing hard to find out. Birdie is microchipped, and Cochran hopes her dog is taken to a local veterinarian and identified. About 30 veterinarians in the Birmingham region have been alerted about Birdie’s missing status. An Amber Alert was also issued to all the veterinarians in Birmingham.

Meanwhile, Cochran has scoured The Summit and its surrounding areas for Birdie. On Thursday, she stayed within the shopping center for about three hours after contacting the mall’s security and informing them that her dog was missing.

“She’s one of those dogs that has to have her eyes on you the whole time,” Cochran said. “I could see her at (the front door) of the store. But I cannot see her taking off and wandering aimlessly.”

Cochran has returned to the shopping center multiple times. She was back at it on Friday while it was raining, hoping a scared Birdie would come running back to her owner.

Some of the merchants at the shopping center have posters of Birdie in their windows, and Cochran said the mall has embraced her efforts.

“It really does remind you there are good people,” she said. “Everyone is so kind. Security and complete strangers are looking for her.”

So far, though, the search is coming up empty.

Cochran added, “I think if someone has her, you would take her to the vet to see if she has been chipped. I’ve rescued dogs before and the first thing I did was track down the owner. I would have thought that if that was the case, someone would have taken her to the vet early Friday morning. That’s why I’m confused about what has happened.”

Cochran is hoping social media will break the mystery. But since Thursday, there have only been false alarms.

“Someone contacted me last night and said (Birdie) was on a trading website but no one was trying to sell this dog,” said Cochran. “(The dog in reference) was from December 21. And it was a Yorkie.”

Cochran said another person contacted her claiming they also had Birdie. Cochran went out and met with the caller with hopes of an emotional reunion.

“It was a different dog,” said Cochran. “That dog is now reunited with their owner. But it wasn’t Birdie.”

Cochran started up a Facebook page, “Bring Back Birdie” on Saturday, and over 370 people are following it. She is offering a hefty award of $2,500 for anyone who has information that leads to Birdie’s safe return.

Cochran hopes that someone will have crucial information and will come forward soon.

“It’s a powerful vehicle if it can get to the right person,” Cochran said about her Facebook page.