| ABC Dog School |
| HELP THESE DOGS |
| Log page 14 - May 2009 |
| copyright 2009 Carole J Sulser |
| May 21, 2009 - Chloe is back at her own box. I wonder what that was all about. May 22, 2009 - Bubblegum is loose with Tippy Tail. May 23 or 24, 2009 - There must be a dog loose. I hear the Mrs. calling and calling, doing the lubba-lubba-lubba thing. May 28, 2009 - Thursday evening, around 7:15, I'm feeding my dogs when I hear a horrendous uproar. I see a neighbor walking by on the road. A few minutes later he goes by again on his way home. I wave at him. I finish my chores and go upstairs to take a look at the consequences of all that excitement. The yellow male is out of his pen and in Brownie's. He doesn't have quite enough tether, so his front feet are up on a board or something. Red Pup is out, too, with cable wrapped all around him, around a back leg, and through his mouth. Star's box has a plywood barricade on top, leaning against the board she goes under when she jumps up onto the box. She's managed to get over the top of it. Nobody home, of course. Star climbs over the plywood and drops into her pen. Quite a drop! Brownie and Red Pup are on the edge of a conflict. Looks like RP got the cable out of his mouth. Yellow male is still stuck and at risk of being attacked by Brownie, unless Brownie and RP get tangled up. He's getting desperate, trying to climb over the fence without success. After an hour of this, I break down and call the sheriff's department. I talk to a woman who says she'll call Chris Sturtz and have her call me. I tell her that Chris doesn't want to talk to me, but she says she's calling her anyway. I don't get a return call. A little later, yellow male gets loose, and takes off across the yard, no collar, no tether. Star has been on her roof for quite awhile. Made an attempt to get over the plywood, gave up. Finally makes the big drop into the pen. It's dark now, and I haven't heard any indication that the owners have returned. Lots of racket when I go to bed. About midnight it gets particularly intense; sounds like fighting. I see two light-colored dogs run across the yard toward the motor home. At one point I yell at them to shut up. That goes over big. At another point, when it sounds like they're killing each other, I give a quick blast on the boat horn. There's about 1 1/2 seconds of total silence, and then pandemonium. I think about making another phone call, but put my pillow over my head instead, and finally fall asleep. May 29, 2009 - The yellow male is back in the same predicument he was in last night, over the fence without enough tether. These people never learn. Red Pup is on top of his "box"; jumps out over the fence and swings in his collar. Not enough cable, so he scrambles back over the fence. His must be lower than the other ones. I go down to the far front yard to get a photo of yellow male. Can't see him as well from there because of the boards on the front of the pen. Red Pup is back out, but has a little more cable. Tip comes charging through my iris' and up to the fence, barking at me and Snoopdog and Liver, who are with me. The neighbors' car is by the trailer and the porch light is on. They must have come home last night, but I didn't see any lights at that time. I wonder if the Mrs. was chasing the yellow male when I tapped the boat horn. May 30, 2009 - The Mrs. is puttering around the pens; her husband is in the yard. He walks over to the shed for a few minutes. Then the Mrs. walks away from the shed carrying a large plastic bag. Something dead or just trash? I go to Coshocton, meet Sandi Guinther. When I get back, Red Pup is out of his pen with a shortage of cable. While I'm unloading car, there is pandemonium. There's someone on the road. He's there a long time. Hard to see through the trees. Red Pup is on his box, so I won't get the photo I wanted. I go out to the far front dog yard and see the neighbor on the road, who walked by Thursday night. He's kneeling down and four pups are going up to him. One is red; RPM has got loose. Looks like Grey Girl is among them, too. I get my camera and drive down the road. No sign of the neighbor or the pups, except Tippy, who is across the road in that neighbor's yard. Maybe that's how he walked back to his house on the cross road. I get a couple of photos of the mess next door and come back home. Red Pup can't get off his box unless he goes over the fence. Another ruckus! The walking neighbor is back, playing with the pups again. A little later, more racket, and I see a couple walking by; looks like the neighbor's son and girfriend maybe. The ruckus continues and I see the walking man is there, for the third time, playing with the pups. Curious. I wish he'd dognap them! Things get dicey now. I see Brownie standing over Grey Girl, who is lying down, cowering under him. She gets away. Then RPM comes charging over, and Brownie climbs over his head in a dominant position. RPM gets away. Yellow male pokes his head through a hole in the fence panel with the X-shaped wood on it. Not so easy to get it back out again. Around four PM, I see Star with her cable wrapped around the board she usually goes under when jumping on or off the box. She wants back in the pen, where I'm assuming she still has puppies, but she's stuck. I hope she doesn't hang herself. No shade, no water. I go down to the yard with my camera, and hear the Mrs. talking. Her older daughter is with her. She gets Star loose; puts the barracade back up. Minutes later, Star has jumped on the box and knocked the barracade back down. RPM runs up to Brownie and they're about to mix it when I hear the Mrs. yell at them. She chases RPM around the back of the pens, yelling at him, like that will teach him a lesson. A few minutes earlier, I saw Brownie mount Brother. I thought sure that was a male! The Mrs. walks around with a bag of food and a can, tossing food at everyone. One of the spotted dogs makes her mad. I see the daughter walk away from the motor home, and then the Mrs. goes over to it. I hear a door slam as she leaves. Maybe animals in there, or maybe she keeps the food in there. She takes food to the shed. I keep checking to see if she's getting Red Pup loose from his predicument, but he's still there. She has dumped food on his box, and after eating, he wants to poop. Can't get down, so over the fence he goes. He tries to circle, but swings in his collar. He manages to do his business, and then climbs back onto the box. I don't see anyone get watered, but I'm not watching every minute. She takes a beverage cup of water to the shed though. Shortly after that, they get into the car and leave. Red Pup is lying on the box in the sun. No water. I don't know where Grey Girl is. There's drama over there all evening, with RPM running loose. He's dragging about five feet of something that looks like crime scene tape. RPM, Chloe, Tip, and Bro have a little group frivolity, and then Chloe and Tip move away, leaving Bro to fend off an amorous RPM. RPM is humping him, but he's lying down, so that isn't working too well. Later, I go away for a couple of hours. I hate leaving Red Pup with no one to rescue him, but I can't see what's going on after dark anyway. I get home around eleven, and the Mrs. is doing the lubba-lubba-lubba. I wonder who's missing. May 31, 2009 - I wake up early. Check RP. He's still on the box. The Mrs. is walking around doing the lubba-lubba-lubba thing. Maybe it's RPM. I don't see him. Now I hear hammering. The plywood "barrier" has been returned to Star's pen and she climbs over it. A friend arrives and tells me there are two dogs by my driveway. A long-haired brown one is pooping there. The other went into my building. I go out, but don't see them. June 1, 2009 - Red Pup still stranded on the box. Must be getting water somehow. Holly Downing calls. She's with the Friends of the Animal Shelter. I tell her about the mess next door and about my website. She says she'll look at it. June 2, 2009 - Holly brings me a rescue dog to work with so it can be re-homed. Later, I take the dog for a walk, and Tippy Tail comes down the road barking at us. At 4-H, a woman who breeds dogs tells me an interesting story. About three weeks ago, the humane officer and former warden were inspecting her kennel. During this inspection, one of the women suggested the breeder let her take some of the purebred puppies to the pound so they can sell them for $40 a head. (Surely they were joking?) The breeder asked them why they didn't get some of these dogs that live next door to me. They knew who she was talking about. One of them said, "Oh, that woman raises mixed breeds. No one wants those!" When the lack of shelter was brought up, the women laughed about my concern for the dogs and said, "That woman takes care of her dogs, and buys tags for all of them!" I can't verify the truth or accuracy of this account. But I can believe the humane officer would have this kind of attitude. June 3, 2009 - Raining. Red Pup still stranded on his nonshelter. June 4, 2009 - I get home about 7 PM. Red Pup is still on the nonshelter. A little later, the Mrs. is lingering around the pens. Then she goes over to RP and fiddles with his tether; stands around for quite awhile. Seems to be pondering. I've left my back door open so my dogs can go in and out. Pretty soon I hear "lubba lubba lubba" and my dogs barking in the back yard. When I get there, I see Red Pup, Tippy, and the Mrs. in my back yard. I grab the hose and spray my dogs to get them off the fence. RP heads for home, the Mrs. right behind him, and Tippy trailing behind. I look out the bedroom patio door and the Mrs. is still doing the lubba. Then she spends considerable time messing with his cable and fence. Later I see she's caught him and is taking him to the pen. She takes a long time working on his tether, and then hoists him over the fence. His hind leg gets caught in the fence; she gets it loose and dumps him onto the trash can by the box, and he scrambles up onto the box. Immediately he tries to climb out of the pen. The Mrs. stops him and fiddles with the fence for quite awhile. RP waits until she walks away and tries to get out again. The fence is floppy. She sees him and tries to convince him to behave. Then she walks away, and out he goes. In a flash he's back in again. How does he do it? At some point I see him actually in the box. June 5, 2009 - RP stranded on the box again. Neighbors home. I take rescue dog, Leah, for a walk, west, then east past the neighbors'. Tip runs out and barks at us. RP has about one foot of tether. I go out of town, and when I get back, RP is still on the box. I see Puppy Mama in the shed. She's up on something, looking out over the "gate." June 6, 2009 - Saturday. RP still on the box. Neighbors home. They're actually doing something about the grass! It's 2-3 feet high. The whole family seems to be there, walking back and forth past the Red Pup, and no one getting him off that box! No water. No shade. No place to do his business. I walk Leah past the neighbors'. The Mr. is using a weedeater. (First time this year!) The rest of them seem to be in the RV. Tippy, Bro, and Grey Girl all come out to harrass us. I yell and poke my walking stick at them. All the dogs barking like crazy; RP threatening to go over the fence. No one seems to notice. |