You Are a Dog: Scout » from the Adoptable Pets photo pool

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Scout » from the Adoptable Pets photo pool

Saturday, July 15, 2006 Terry

barkybunch's description at flickr (if there is one) » Scout is a dog I met on a recent work trip to San Antonio, Texas. I went to a restaurant near my hotel for dinner and saw a stray dog hanging around in the parking lot. I asked the restaurant employee about him and he said the dog had been hanging around for several days.

So I got some turkey and dog biscuts from the employees and went out to see if the dog would come up to me. He came farily close (within 10 feet) but then when I handed him the food he backed away. So I put the food down and went back inside the restaurant. He gobbled up the food but was still too scared to approach me. At this point I was upset because I didn't want to leave him in the parking lot but didn't know what else to do.
So I went back to my hotel and started making lots of phone calls and sending emails to every rescue group I could find in San Antoinio. I got responses from several wonderful people and an email from a rescue group telling me they would take him if I could catch him and bring him to them.
So every night when I was done teaching the class I went over to the parking lot to hang out with Scout, I'd sit near him and talk to him for hours trying to get him to trust me. He would sit near me and sleep but if I got too close he'd get up and move. He would follow me if I walked around the parking lot and chase my car when I left but he wouldn't get in the car if I stopped and tried to catch him.
One night while I was sitting with Scout an employee at a nearby business came out and told me that a white van drove up the Saturday before Memorial Day and pushed the dog out then drove away. He'd been hanging out in the lot for a week (probably waiting for the awful people who dumped him to come back). I can't believe the awful things people do to thier pets, the vet thinks Scout is 8 or 9 years old so he probably lived with this people all his life then got dumped, sometimes I really really hate people.
So after 4 nights of this I was getting really nervous because i had to fly back home the next day. The whole week had been very stressful mostly because I'm a worrier, every night when I would leave Scout I'd worry that something would happen to him and he wouldn't be there the next day. So each day when I pulled up and saw his sweet face I'd be relieved and at the same time stressed wondering if I'd be able to catch him that night. Luckily I was able to catch him my last night in town, it was a huge huge relief, even though some wonderful people had offered to keep an eye on him and set out a trap to try and catch him. Once I got the leash on him he walked nicely to the car and jumped in (with a little prodding from me). So now he is at a wonderful rescue group in Texas called the Animal Defense League. They are a no-kill group and will keep him until he finds his forever home. There were lots of wonderful people in Texas who responded to my email and phone calls offering to help, it is nice to know that there are lots of people out there who care what happens to a stray dog and are not willing to ignore the situation. I will be forever grateful for the help and support I received and for the wonderful rescue group who was willing to take him in and give him a second chance.
The whole experience has give me a new appreciation for people who work hard to save unwanted dogs and cats every day. They are amazing people and true angels.
He is a really great dog and If I didn't already have 4 dogs I would have somehow figured out how to get him from Texas back home to Washington.

Terry says »

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