The Lurking Place of E. Rochelle Potter
"I Don't Go Looking For Trouble..."
Trouble usually finds me! Sorry for using another Harry Potter reference but, “Sometimes, I-just-can’t-help-my-self!” (A million house points to you if you can name that reference because that last phrase didn’t come from Hogwarts!)
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Anyway, the reason I bring up the line about trouble finding me here in Mischief Managed, is because while these pages are meant to be snippets of interests and events I specifically seek out, sometimes mischief really does find me. Case in point: the dog in this photograph. (Isn’t he cute?)
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I was driving down the back roads of the rural communities that surround the little burg I live in earlier this week when I came around a bend and nearly hit this little guy! He was trotting straight up the middle of the road and I slammed on my brakes, praying I stopped before impact. Thankfully collision was averted and I sat in my car for a moment watching him continue to gallivant around in the road. I beeped my horn to no avail. He seemed oblivious and not in the least inclined to leave the road. I scooted my car forward a bit and really honked at him—still nothing. Seriously afraid of just leaving him lest someone else happen along and he did get hit, (it was a blind turn that brought me upon him to begin with) I put my car in park and stepped out.
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Now, my intent was to corral this pooch and get him out of the road. I didn’t want to frighten him though. I stuck out my hand and started talking soothingly to him figuring if he came close enough I could at least lead him to safer ground. He sort of pranced in a half circle but wouldn’t come any close than about eight feet away from me. Another car was coming up from behind mine and I started with the happy voice.
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“C’mere, boy! Come on, it’s okay!” still with my hand out, trying to draw him nearer. He continues in his half circle around me…and jumps right into my car through the open driver-side door! I looked around, bewildered for a moment, unable to believe that just happened. NOW what do I do? The driver of the other car was looking a bit impatient from where they’d stopped behind me so I just shrugged and said out loud, “I guess we’re going for a ride!”
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My little hitchhiker sniffed and jumped all around my car the entire way. He was super friendly and looked rather old judging from the amount of gray hair around his snout. No collar unfortunately or any visible way of identifying his owner. I pulled into the driveway of my friend’s house and doggy decides it’s time to sit in my lap. I couldn’t exactly open my door because I didn’t want him to run off so I called to my daughter to get a leash from inside.
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Keeping the poor guy was out of the question. I couldn’t even bring him inside my friend’s house because she has six dogs of her own, nor could I bring him to my house because my own dog is not exactly the most social of creatures. Besides, he looked like someone cared for him. He wasn’t underfed and a shaved spot on his shoulder indicated the possibility of recent vet treatment. I was so relieved that the local police department had the number for the dog warden and that it was the man’s personal cell phone! He called me back within twenty minutes of my distressed message explaining why I couldn’t keep Fido overnight, even if I wanted to.
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Half an hour later the dog warden arrived. I explained the whole story of how I acquired this little stowaway. He didn’t seem to be micro-chipped either but by some coincidence the dog warden said his secretary lives on the road where I found him and might be able to help identify him.
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I hope the saga of my short-term companion ended well. The sunny-side-up part of me believes he has a loving owner out there looking for him and they will be re-united, or at the very least that someone will take him in. He clearly had some kind of medical issues. There was a sizeable lump in his throat and the darker side of my mind fears some callous owner just turned him loose because they didn’t want or could no longer afford the bills for his medical care.
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Every pet deserves love to the end of their days and a comfortable place to find their eternal sleep. Microchips, or if you don’t want to be invasive, ID tags with your phone number or licensing with your local town hall make returning a lost pet to its owner so much easier. My dog has an ID tag and I pay the paltry $8 a year for a license. My cat has an ID tag and I don’t even allow her out of the house but what if she got loose? If you love your dogs and cats and want them home with you, it’s best to not let them wander alone. But if you do, at least make sure someone can figure out where they belong if they become lost!
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