I was working in the yard last week, when I spotted a little dog spying on me from the corner of the yard. Actually, I spotted his tail end as he turned tail and headed down the adjoining alley. Intrigued, I walked into the alley to see if I had truly seen a little dog. I had. He was trotting down the alley, and when I called to him he turned and looked hopefully at me. I was hooked.
I followed gingerly, muttering all sorts of soothing and inviting sounds (or so I thought). I caught up to him a half block down the alley, hiding in some bushes. He looked scared and he looked like he needed some help. So I tried to relax and exude 'good energy' and gain his confidence. Thank you Dog Whisperer Cesar Millan! It seemed to be working, the little puppy dog seemed to be relaxing a bit too. But I could also see that he was shaking quite a bit. Oy! I had to get him to trust me!
After twenty minutes of this trust-building and coaxing, during which he would start to come out to me and then retreat again, I decided to try a different approach. So I ran back to my house and grabbed some deli meat, calling to my girlfriend to come out with me. So we went to where he was hiding and I started again, with my girlfriend adding her warm nurturing energy to my calm protective energy. At least that is what we were trying to do.
He was having nothing to do with the food. But after a time, he let me crawl into the bushes and pet his head a bit, and I pet him more and more. Eventually, he allowed me to pick him up. So I carried him out of the bushes while petting him, and then let him down in the grass so he could feel okay with me before I carried him home. We both loved on him while he huddled between us, and after a while longer I carried him home. He had no collar, no tags, no signs indicating ownership. I started calling him Jackie.
The rest of the day would be spent introducing him to our yellow lab, Missy, and getting him to trust us more and more. He was a bit aggressive toward Missy, but we figured he was just very scared still. The next day, Sunday, would be spent calling all over town and submitting found dog reports, posting found dog signs all over the neighborhood, and posting found dog notices everywhere we could find online. I even drove him down to the nearest PetSmart Banfield Pet Hospital where they scanned him for a microchip. Nothing.
The first night was pretty rough, with a new dog sleeping in the house, and he wasn't getting along with our dog very well. But we persevered, because we would want someone to show our Missy lots of love too, if she were to get lost. God forbid. But as it would turn out, this was just the beginning of a heartbreaking story... one that still has not ended...
Thanks for coming today, now go hug your dog!
