I was on the way to the park this morning, looking forward to a quiet, productive day after my walk. I was only a short distance from my house when I came upon a little black and white dog standing in the road. He didn’t run to get out of my way. He just stood there, looking at me expectantly. I drove around him, and I could see that he was wearing one of those radio collars that people use to keep their dogs inside an invisible fence. When I looked in the rear view mirror, he was running after me as fast as his stubby legs would carry him.
I have taught myself to harden my heart against strays. There are so many of them around here there’s just no way to help them all, and the three I have are all I can handle. But this little guy was clearly a beloved pet who had wandered away from home, and he was small enough to be in danger of becoming coyote food, so how could I pass him by? I stopped and got out of the car. He ran right to me and sat down to be petted. He let me pick him up and put him in the back seat with no resistance at all. I took him home and put him in the extra pen, confident that he lived nearby and I’d find his owner before the day was out.
Well, the day’s progressing, and it’s not looking good. Giving him a closer look, I realized that, while not emaciated, he’s a little thinner than he should be. I put some kibble down for him, and he ate a little bit of it, then diligently kicked enough dirt into the bowl to cover it up. Bad sign—cosseted housedogs are usually not in the habit of burying their food. The radio collar has no ID, not even a rabies tag, and the little light that shows it’s active is off. I assume the battery is dead.
I’ve called a number of houses nearby, and no one is looking for a dog. One woman said she’d seen a dog fitting his description wandering near her house several days ago. Uh-oh. I have a growing suspicion that this little guy has been dumped or abandoned. That’s not unusual around here, especially since our overburdened animal shelter stopped taking new animals.
So now I’m going to spend the time I was planning to devote to working and cleaning my house to making FOUND DOG signs. The stray is still in the pen, hanging out with Pearl. He seems a little confused, but not terribly unhappy. That’s good. Since I am not the sort of person who can just open the gate and let him go his way, I have a feeling he’s going to be here a while.
The photo is Mr. Stray himself. If you live around these parts and would like the privilege of giving him a new identity, email me.
17 comments:
Uh oh.
Uh-oh is right. I still have some hope there's an owner who wants him back, but I'm not counting on it. He's incredibly sweet and affectionate, but I suspect not indoor pet material. He doesn't like being confined to the pen, especially not alone.
I thought I might be able to put him in with Nio, but no luck there. Mr. N. actually growled at him--very unusual behavior for him, and of course he could kill the little dude with one bite.
I'm going to alert animal control and leave notices at all the nearby vets--and then, I dunno.
I'd "lol," but it would be much better to say "ah feel your pain." I totally knew what the jig was when I saw the headline and the photo.
Good luck.
That really is an adorable photo....
He's adorable, and if nobody claims him within the week, he can be yours--I'll drive him right to your door ;-)
B says that the maufacturer of the collar could trace the serial #...
Just sayin'.
But , with that face.....
Thanks for the tip, Chaya. I should look into that. I haven't taken him to a vet yet, so there's a slight chance he even has a microchip--but I doubt it. He's an older dog and not neutered, which strikes me as inconsistent with somebody who would pay for a microchip.
I have a feeling he's far from home. He hasn't been reported missing at the local animal control.
Good luck, BG. He really is adorable. Reminds me of my little guy, Dewey, in the face. I believe folks in your area would call that sort of compact terrier/houndish mix that makes for a good general around the farm dog a Feist. I've never been terribly clear on the differences between a Feist and a Rat Terrier, which is what Dewey is.
You could always contact one of the rescue operations up here in New England. We don't have a real stray problem here, so animal loving folks from this area are constantly heading to the south - specifically Tennessee and Arkansas, for some reason - to round up truckloads of shelter dogs in danger of the needle for adoption up here. Though, if he's an older dog, I think it's less likely he'd get passage.
Hi, Jaime--Yep, I believe little dude meets the criteria for a Feist. It turns out he knows all about being a house dog. I'm still keeping him outside most of the time, but he's had a couple of visits indoors, and done just fine.
His age does make him a bad candidate for adoption, which is a shame. He'd make a great pet for an older person.
What's his name? (I have money on the fact that he has a name by now.)
Unless "little dude" counts, you lose the bet. I am restraining myself for now. Not sure how long I'll hold out...
Man, oh man, though, that little face just gets me. Little Dude is too, too cute.
Too bad you've already got three. He looks like good doggie stock - feists are loyal and athletic and affectionate, and even though they have a terrier's energy, they know how to contain it when they need to.
I'm glad I live 1,000 miles away. Otherwise, this could be dangerous.
It's looking more and more as if you might be able to come visit him at my house someday, J. He's doing pretty well with hanging out in the kitchen. He totally understand "No," which is more than I can say for some of the dogs around here. If I can convince Nio to tolerate him, he might have a home. Crazy Kobi, oddly enough, doesn't seem that concerned about him. Maybe he's too small to merit her notice.
Wow, four dogs ... We have a rule at my house: no more than two of any one pet species. That way none of them can get together and outnumber us. Now, if the dogs and cats ever decided to cease hostilities and form a syndicate, we'd be in trouble.
On a positive note, Little Dude probably doesn't eat much. Dewey sure doesn't. If I give him more than one cup of kibble per day, his neck starts to disappear.
At one time I had two indoor dogs, two indoor cats, and one feral cat I was trying to look after--I'm used to being outnumbered. The expense of another one is my biggest concern, but like you said, the little ones don't eat much. Still, if the right person wanted this little guy, I'd definitely give him up--"right person" being the operative term.
We've been seeing a lot of this sort of thing lately; stray dogs and cats who have obviously been someone's pet. I think in many of these cases, they are from families whose homes are in foreclosure. Very, very sad. But what a face Little Dude has!
Yes, this little guy definitely fell on hard times in some way. Hard to imagine someone would just dump such a sweet dog, but our local shelter quit taking animals because it was getting so many from families that are losing their homes. It's a shame all around.
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