The lost dog lottery

[pjthompson]

Sunday was pretty much a collapse in a heap, post-garage sale day, but we did have some excitement in the evening. The roommate went outside to feed the "stray" cats and found a stray dog: a mid-sized brown mutt. What was completely heartbreaking was that the dog was blind and had obviously gotten out and wandered off and didn't have a clue where she was, and she kept walking in circles, totally confused and distressed. She was well-cared for, as her coat was in great shape and she wasn't skinny. In the state she was in we didn't think she could have wandered far, but we had no idea how to find her owners.

We made her a bed in the backyard and fed her. She was too upset to settle, but not so upset she couldn't eat. And then we started putting up signs all over the place and asking anyone we encountered if they'd lost a dog or knew who owned a blind dog. We'd just about given for the night and were going to go in and hope someone saw the signs when the roommate noticed a guy trimming a tree in front of a ongoing weekend warrior rehab several houses down from us. By the grace of Artemis, he turned out to be her owner. He hadn't yet noticed that someone helping with the rehab had let the dog out (woof-woof-woof-woof-woof).

"Thank God someone found her who gave a damn," he said, greatly relieved.

Indeed, some of the people we asked up and down the street said stuff like, "Yeah, we saw that dog wandering around like it was lost and confused and we wondered about it." The roommate and I are perhaps mental when it comes to animals, but I could no more let a dog that was clearly in trouble wander like that and do nothing than I could fly. Different sensibilities for different folkesibilities, I guess.


Random quotes of the day:

"A wealthy man is one who earns one hundred dollars more a year than his wife's sister's husband."

—H. L. Mencken


"It is characteristic of people to concentrate all their fears and hatreds on a single man, preferably a foreigner. These people were in far more danger from their own generals and politicians, but that would never occur to them."

—John Maddox Roberts, The King's Gambit, SPQR I

Comments

[kmkibble75.livejournal.com]

You are a wonderful person. If the PowerBunny ever gets lost, I'd hope she'd find someone like you.

[pjthompson]

Here's a huge finger-crossing that she never gets lost. :-)

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

Me either--and good for you.

[pjthompson]

Thanks. It seems so fundamental to me, and I'm always shocked when people have some other attitude.

[buymeaclue.livejournal.com]

Thank you for taking care of that pup.

[pjthompson]

It was impossible not to. We couldn't have lived with ourselves otherwise.

[merebrillante.livejournal.com]

Bless you.

[pjthompson]

Thanks--but it seemed like the only decent thing to do. As I said to Hannah, we couldn't have lived with ourselves otherwise.

[geniusofevil.livejournal.com]

your quotes make me happy. So do your stories about caring for others.

[pjthompson]

Thank you. :*)

[frigg.livejournal.com]

You are a good person. :)

I'm always surprised how lost dogs always seem to be picked up and cared for, but at the same time at how many people watches the dog without doing anything.

Once I saw a obviously lost and distressed little Papillon in town, I tried to catch her, but she was scared witless, then after I while I bumped into the only other person trying to catch her - my ex. At least we had that in common it seems.

[pjthompson]

how many people watches the dog without doing anything.

Yes, this mystifies me, too. I think their brains must be structured differently--or maybe it's just behaviorial. I dunno.

only other person trying to catch her - my ex. At least we had that in common it seems.

That's something!

[java-fiend.livejournal.com]

Awwww... you're like the stray animal halfway house. Very cute.

And yeah... that icon is very, very disturbing.