Yesterday, New Year’s Eve, I decided to take Molly for a walk.
We had not gotten very far when this little guy wandered up, smelling Molly, and keeping pace with us…
I stopped, unsure if I should continue walking. I noticed that he didn’t have a collar on…
I talked to a neighbor who lives across the street, and he’d first noticed the dog the day before, and he’d allowed the dog to stay on his porch that first night. However, the dog was wary of my neighbor and wouldn’t go near him.
Apparently he felt differently about me.
I decided to continue my walk, hoping that someone in the neighborhood would see us as we passed by and recognize him. I felt a little like the Pied Piper.
This sweet puppy stayed with us the entire way.
I made my way back down my street and saw a different neighbor, whose itsy bitsy dogs had gotten out of her house and started running toward the stray…barking the entire way.
The stray, almost certainly a pit bull, acted like he was scared of the smaller dogs and ran from them with his tail between his legs.
I wondered what I should do, figuring that the Mr. would have my hide if I brought him home. The Mr. came out of the house, and we chatted, finally agreeing to feed him and allow him to sleep in the garage for the night.
Meanwhile, I called Animal Control, but the officers who pick up strays were off for the weekend. I had hoped that by getting the dog to my local animal shelter, he could be scanned for a microchip.
It was obvious that this dog was very well trained. Surely he had an owner who had chipped him.
The guy at Animal Control suggested that I call Pet Smart, which has a scanner.
I called, but the vet who has his office there (and, thus, has the scanner) had already left for the day.
Hence, we were stuck for the weekend.
We fed the little guy. He was starving and gobbled down the food quickly.
We fixed a pallet for him in the garage, and he quickly settled in…
What a sweet little guy.
My guess is that he’s about three months old…he still has a lot of puppy in him.
I let him into my backyard a few times to potty before I headed to bed.
I didn’t get up until 9:30 this morning and quickly went to check on him, figuring I’d find an accident or two.
No such thing.
He eagerly did his business in my backyard.
We decided to introduce him to Aubie and Pele, and surprisingly, Aubie took to him quickly. She’s not much on other dogs. He adored her.
Throughout the entire time, I waited for the Mr. to be grumpy.
He did good…real good…even suggesting that I give the dog a bath so he could stay in but not smell up the house.
I did, and he stayed in…
Then, I took him outside and began to inspect him. He’d been scratching…a lot.
I noticed fleas.
Ugh.
Back out to the garage he went while I looked up the recipe for a homemade flea shampoo.
I found one, tried it, and checked him. He still had a few live fleas.
Poor thing.
We kept him in the garage. I do not want a flea infestation in the house, nor do I want my other dogs to get fleas.
Throughout the afternoon, we went outside to visit the little guy.
The Mr. appears smitten.
The dog has tiger stripes…his coloring is very unique.
Then, we found a tick on him.
Sigh.
We looked for more, but we didn’t see any. Still, we’re not the experts, and we’re very leery of getting a tick infestation. Super Sis went through that two summers ago, and it was awful.
So, the little guy is back in the garage.
I feel badly for him, but at least the garage is warm, and he’s been fed.
I’d love to keep him, but with three furry babies in the house already, I just can’t do it. Plus, I think that the pup needs medicine. The fleas probably gave him an infection of some sort. That’s how Molly started her life with us. Veterinary bills are not in our budget, unfortunately.
Until then, he’ll be loved and prayed for. I’d like him to wind up either with his original owners or in another loving home.
Filed under: Pets | Tagged: dogs, strays | 5 Comments »
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