I don't in live in that county of VA, but our weather, and land isn't much different. The most disturbing thing to me, and the part that made me not want to closely follow this thread is lack of footprints! I have those rubber boots, and they leave a pattern. We've had so much snow, and rain that everything is one huge muddy mess. But that should show excellent foot prints as well!!
Dogs...I love dogs. But dogs are like people and can be wrong. No matter how well trained a dog is, it can still have an 'off' day. When the area around the home is being searched, it would be difficult for a dog to say when the tracks were left, if they were heading north or south, east or west. They can pick up a scent, and show the sent stopped. But you're also relying on the handler reading the dog's responses. I'm not discounting their abilities, I'm only saying we've seen the dogs/handlers be wrong in many cases. Sometimes a person found feet from where the dogs were looking, and the dogs didn't alert. We've seen cases were different dogs received different information....so then which dog do you believe?
If Noah typically played in the yard, and typically waited on the bus at a particular place, the scent would be heavy in that area, and I would expect a dog to pick up on that. Ever watch a beagle rabbit hunt? Ever heard of 'cold tracking'? Most beagles LOVE to hunt. Some will only pick rabbit scents, and others will pick up any wildlife scent. A cold tracking beagle is frustrating to a hunter, because the track might be days or weeks old, and yet that beagle is bound and deteremined that it's hot on the heels of a rabbit!
Pokomon, yup huge again. Two nephews asked for those for Christmas. My son is over 20 now, and still had a huge box of them. Divided them among those kids and you never seen such happiness. Cards their friends didn't have. Never understood that game myself, but bought plenty of the cards over the years.
Anyone know if Noah had a dog? Sometimes a kid will follow them off, or go to let the dog out and it takes off, and they try to catch it.
As everyone here, the longer this goes with no signs of Noah, the more worried we get. Trackers should be finding something of his at this point. Discarded clothing, footprints, something.