| ABC Dog School |
| HELP THESE DOGS |
| copyright 2009 Carole J Sulser |
| Log 2007 |
| Winter 2007 - Winter comes and it's worse than the last one. We have a forecast for bitter cold and I'm really worried about Peanut in the rabbit pen. Plastic and a board leaning against one end, are not going to hold in her body heat. I tell a friend of my concerns. She is a rescuer, too. She calls the pound. Someone must have come, because Peanut is tied under the pen with the plastic dog house. Exept she's wound around the legs of the pen and can't get to the box. sigh They seem to be playing musical dog houses over there. Now a spotted dog has the plastic house, and he's tied to a tree by the road. There's a steep bank and he can go down to the road. He gets wound around the tree and can't get to his box. I often see him sleeping on the ground. I worry about him when it's really cold. Does the stupidity never end? Chloe's box is by the road on the other side of the driveway. A section of privacy fence has been put up near her box, between it and the trailer, so the Mrs. can't see if Chloe is okay. Or if she's even there. I wonder why they put that there. Their daughter, who got married and had a baby last spring, got a puppy from someone else, that is supposed to be for the baby. Landlord wouldn't let them keep it in the trailer, so they brought it to mom and dad. He started out being tied to the front porch, which is really a deck with a roof. I don't know where he is now. Annie gets fed at various times of the day, and sometimes late at night, and maybe sometimes not at all. She barks when I'm feeding. I have provided bowls for her. I give her a snack every morning so she has a regular feeding. We never know how long she'll have to wait. I make sure she has water. They bring her a bale of straw but don't cover it, so I put plastic over it. I bring everyone in on really cold nights, including Annie. I set up a crate for her to use. She's got some age on her now. I've told the Mrs. about this, but she tells me Annie has been out all her life, like that makes it okay. Spring 2007 - The Mrs. comes over to feed Annie. She has the baby, now a year old, in a stroller. Peanut is with them. How beautiful she has become. She's the only one with long hair, like a Golden Retriever. I'm glad she gets to be free sometimes. Looks like she may be a favorite. I hope she doesn't get killed on the road. And I hope she doesn't get pregnant. Then she is gone. The story is that she followed their son as he walked into town, waited for him outside the Dollar store, followed him halfway home, then ran into the woods and was never seen again. May her spirit soar. The Mrs. thinks someone kept her for breeding because she looks like a Golden. She's a beauty, but people don't keep stray mixed breeds to raise puppies. I hope she's safe somewhere. First they roasted Peanut, then they froze her, and now they've lost her! One night when the neighbors come home, they can't drive in for dogs. The yellow dog and the brown one are loose. They keep trying to drive in and I'm afraid someone will get hit. Then the Mrs. grabs the brown one and puts him in the shed and the yellow one gets stowed in the rabbit pen. The next morning, Brown Dog is tied in the yard. April, 2007, the black cat has kittens in my garage. I've been watching the brown dog. He looks like a small version of my Grizzly, who died a year ago. They call him, Buster. I finally ask if I can have him. She turns me down. The black and tan that her daughter took when it was a puppy, is too rambunctious for the baby, and the brown dog is calm, so they want to trade dogs. I wonder what kind of life he will have there. Time passes, and he remains where he is. Summer 2007 - July, and it's hot today, in the high 90's. I come home for lunch and see Buster, who is now in the Yorkie pen, suffering in the heat. He's panting furiously. The truck bed liner that has always been on top, isn't there. His cable is really short and he can't get away from the fence. But there isn't any shade anywhere. I don't want to call her, but I'm afraid not to. I mention his need for water and shade. She says she just took water out there. Then why didn't she loosen his cable??? When I get home later, he's tied in the trees. A couple of days later, he's back in the pen and again it's in the high 90's. This time I do nothing and hope for the best. But if he has a heat stroke, maybe she'll learn something. A spotted dog is loose and comes over to the dog fence. There's a gate between the privacy fence and the yard fence, that's around three feet high. The spotted dog walks up to the gate and hops right over it without even a running start! Later he's gone, so I guess he hopped back out again. In August I take Ivy for a walk past the neighbor's; going down to the church one last time. Star is in the chain link. It has blanket or something all around it. There's a gap and I see puppies! I'm upset. Why do they let her get pregnant??? Fall 2007 - Buster Brown Dog has been moved into the trees along the edge of the the property, to the east of the Yorkie pen. He has a gnarly-looking box. There is a blue wagon beside it. I don't know what that is for. I see him sleeping on the ground in the rain, the picture of misery. The daughter's red pup, all grown up, is tied in the front yard. It's hard to tell one thing from another in that conglomeration of boxes and skids. There are skids on edge, like fences, around his box. I see him going back and forth and it looks like he goes through the skid. Now he seems to be caught and can't get to shelter or water. He barks for help, but no one comes. I take a picture of him in his distress. Annie has been having trouble getting out of her box. I see her hind leg is hurting. The floor is half gone and there is a crosspiece in the middle. I keep a lot of straw on it so she doesn't get sore. I wonder if that's what's wrong with her. I feel really bad. They should take her to the vet. Thanksgiving, and we're having a really cold night. I go out at bedtime to bring Annie into the house and she's gone! The gate is standing open. I'm in a panic. Did she get out, or did they come and get her? She was here earlier. I hope they didn't put her in that frigid tool shed. I'm really bummed. They could have left me a note! November 26, 2007 - Buster spends the whole day on top of his box in pouring rain. I call the pound and tell the humane officer that if she doesn't do something about those dogs, I'm going to have a nervous breakdown. That night after 11:00 I hear a dog yapping in the woods across the road. No one is doing anything about it. I take a flashlight, leash, and fence tool, and go down the road. I see a spotted dog down in a ravine across from the neighbor's property. He's caught in the trees. Too cold to spend the night there! I can't get to him. I go up to the trailer and tell them about it. Star gets out of the chain link pen and hardly has any cable to spare. When they come out, I point to Star and tell the Mrs. she needs to fix that first. She dumps the dog back in the pen. There is a black and tan puppy running around loose. They have an awful time getting that dog out of the ravine. Finally they bring him up the bank. I get home about midnight. The next day, Buster has a better box. Someone must have come. I'm so thankful! December 2007 - I wonder where the puppies are spending the winter. Chubby is in the Yorkie pen. I don't think the box is big enough for him. Then I see puppies in there, too! I wonder if some of them are in the rabbit pen. It's been moved to the far side of the yard and has plastic and dog food bags all over it. It's a mild day. Three puppies have escaped from the Yorkie pen. They are setting out across the back yard, heads high, curly little tails waving over their backs. They're going on a great adventure! There is one spotted one, and two brownish ones, one lighter than the other. Later, I'm in the front dog yard, and here they come, right up to the fence. They greet me, little tails wagging, so happy and courageous. I stick my fingers through the fence for licks, and wish them well. The Brown Dog is loose and in my yard. I see the Mrs. is at his box, so I can't put him in a pen. His collar is so tight I think it's imbedded in his neck. He lets me fiddle with it until I finally get it loosened up. I wonder if she'll leave it that way. I get a photo of him. I see the Mrs. in my driveway. She's calling Buster, but I don't see him. No sign of anyone when I leave for work. I come home for lunch; old clothing all over the place. I can't even get up the drive. The little rascal had some fun before he went back to prison. Good! Christmas Day - It doesn't take Buster long to come back. No one home, and I'm leaving too. I put him in Annie's pen to keep him and my belongings safe. She comes and feeds him, but doesn't take him home. We haven't spoken about why he's there. After a week, she says I can keep him! Thank God! One more safe! No sign of Annie. |
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