On my way to the mailbox, which is 3 houses away from mine, I spotted the friendly pitbull that is tethered in the front yard of the house near the mail box. I said hi to him and petted him and proceeded to check the mail. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted another dog. She, a cream-colored mixed breed, came to the pitbull and they sniffed each other and seemed to recognize one another. I was curious and wondered if she was a stray so I observed her for a few minutes while trying to make up my mind about what to do.
I noticed immediately that she wore a collar without tags. I swear to God that is something that really baffles me. Why bother to put a collar on your pet if you can't be bothered to put an identification tag on it? I mean, seriously, what's the fucking point???? GAHHH!! That completely pissed me off. It was déjà vu again, what with that evening we spent with Honey a month ago. Same thing with her, a collar yet no tags.
Anyway, I tried coaxing her over to me and she came easily enough but then ran across the street and began lapping up water that was in in the gutter. I followed her and managed to get a hold of her collar and gently led her into my garage. Unfortunately, I had left my garage door open and had locked my car (with the door remote within). The way I parked left barely enough room for both of us to maneuver over to the manual switch. When I got there, I let go of her collar but the noise of the garage door closing spooked her and she ran out. During all this, I was on the phone with Mark and voicing my frustration at the whole situation. When she left the garage, I contemplated, for a brief moment, just letting go of everything and settling in for a relaxing evening. My conscience wouldn't let me and I made up my mind to find her.
The dogs were outside but Otto was still in the house. I grabbed some cookies and a spare leash and proceeded out through the garage. I found her, easily enough. She was back with the pitbull yet, once she saw me, she came over. She stopped in the neighbor's yard and I offered her a cookie, which she took gracefully enough. I hooked the leash to her collar and led her back to my house, closing the gargage door once again.
Otto was a bit scared but the dogs outside were going crazy. I decided not to let them back in for the time being because I didn't want them to overwhelm her nor have her attack them. I let her roam around the house as Otto and I followed her. She seemed friendly enough but too skinny, in my book. Otto seemed very interested in her backside and I think she was in heat. I called Mark to let him know we had another guest and he suggested I take her for a walk, that evening, to see if she would lead me back to her house. I said that I would, if he went with me. Thankfully, he was already on his way home so I did what I could to make our new friend comfortable. I gave her some more cookies, fresh water, and took a few photos of her. She was really striking, in my opinion. I loved her two different colored eyes (one was an icy blue, the other a dark toffee).
a striking beauty, to say the least ^_^
The weather was a bit chilly and I was feeling bad that my three other doggies were still outside and I didn't want to make them wait there til Mark got home so I let them in. It was mayhem until I calmed them down and they were actually decent to the poor stray dog. When Mark arrived, he called me and I led her, through the huddle of four curious doggies, out the front door. We walked down half the block when she stopped in the middle of the road. A SUV pulled up to a house and we thought that maybe they were her humans. We waited until they got out and Mark asked if they were missing a dog. The mother replied that no, she wasn't theirs but she'd been over the day checking out their dog. I thought to myself, she's been running around for two days? And without identification? I could feel myself getting angrier at the stupid people who let her get loose. So irresponsible.
Anyway, one house down, several more to go. I suggested we call it a night and Mark remarked that there was always the no-kill shelter to drop her off at. I was incredulous, to say the least. It was nearly 7:30 pm as it was. No shelter would be open. So, Mark conceded and said she could stay but I had to take her first thing the next morning. I wasn't looking forward to having another stray dog stay the night but I knew it wasn't her fault she was lost and it would be cruel to let her back out. So, we began to head back to our house when the pitbull spotted us and got excited at seeing her. His guardian came out, after the pitbull kept barking, and we asked if he had seen the dog before. He said he had and that the people across the street brought her over to play with his dog. I looked across the street and had noted that some young guy had been hanging out in the front as we walked by earlier. He must've seen us with her but didn't recognize his own dog? I don't know.
We thanked our neighbor and went across the street and asked the kid if this was his dog. He acknowledged that, yes, she was. I felt relief but this wave of anger began to take over. It started bubbling out when he said that "it is always getting out of the yard." I looked at him and replied, "It? It is a she, ok. She is not an it." He looked sheepish but I was on a roll. I remarked on how I found her wandering and that I noted she had a collar but that there were no tags on it. I pointed out that, if he could put a collar on her, perhaps he should pick some tags, as well. He came up with some excuses such as "I know I need to do that but....." Dude, no excuses. If you have an outdoor dog, two things are non-negotiables (in my book) and they are to spay/neuter your pet and put some fucking identification on them. End of story. Jeez.
I realized that I was being a tad bitchy but I can't stand irresponsible people. The kid remarked, at one point, that he didn't know why she kept getting out and I said that it was because she was, more than likely, in heat. And, before I got on my soapbox about spaying and neutering, I decided to end the whole situation. I admitted to the kid that I had no interest in lecturing him but I have four dogs and I can't stand idly by when I see stray dogs wander around without tags. I feel compelled to say something. I mean, really, she could have fallen in to any number of dangerous situations (hit by car, attacked by another animal, taken to the pound, sold to a lab, tortured by another person etc). I think about those things when it comes to my four, all the time. I do not trust anyone as some people are extremely cruel.
As we went back to our house, I felt less relieved and more worried after returning her to her "guardian". I was very agitated once we got home. Mark said he was proud that I didn't lose my temper and that you "have to pick your battles and this one wasn't going to get us anywhere". Also, he said that not everyone treats their pets the way we do and that I just have to accept that. I asked him what's the point then? Why have a pet if you can't fucking take care of it? I hate people who do that to pets. If you're going to have a pet, do the right thing. At the very least, give them lots of love, proper nutrition, exercise, regular veterinary care, adequate shelter, and a collar with identification tags. That's it. If you can't do any of those, don't get a pet. It's that simple.
Pets don't ask for you to bring them home but, if you do, it's your obligation to care for them for the rest of their lives. None of this "I had to take them to the pound because they were too aggressive/too meek/we had to move/insert any other paltry excuse here" or "Dogs are meant to stay outside and cats should be allowed to wander at night". Hell no. Totally unacceptable, imo.
Okay, this rant over. I'm tired but I can't sleep. I am so thankful that I can take care of my dogs the way they deserve. They don't ask for much but I would do anything in the world for them.
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