So you’re always prepared to save an innocent dog should the situation arise. I got a nice little hill workout this morning chasing an adorable, collar-less, and owner-less whippet around South Yarra. Aaron and I had just ordered “brekky” (breakfast) at my favorite, Darling Coffee, when we saw a whippet stroll by on the street. People walk their dogs without leashes all the time over here, but usually they’re a few paces ahead or behind their dogs. In this case, there was nobody around, so I popped out of the café to investigate.
By the time I had a handle on what was happening, the dog had made her move and was back on the run. I grabbed a piece of mandel brot from the counter and ran down the street in her direction. She was blocks ahead of me. I lost sight of her quickly so I relied on the people on the street to point me in her direction. Luckily, there was always someone on the corner to tell me which way she’d headed. She took me up a nice hill and I just kept thinking, “Not fair, four legs!” I saw a BMW convertible heading straight for her and waved my hands as wildly as I could to alert him of the dog approaching his grill. Fortunately, he saw her and when I finally made it to him he instructed me to hop in his car to help me get to her faster. Another corner. And another perfectly placed city worker to direct us.
We caught sight of the dog as she turned into a building’s parking garage. Perfect. I asked the driver to block off the entryway with his car and I hopped out and sat down in the driveway and waited for her to approach. She wanted to dodge me, and was keeping her distance. The mandel was no help either. I guess she wasn’t trained by Arlene and Hezi. Shame, that would have made things a lot easier. When I approached her, she didn’t jump away, but she was completely frightened. I reached out to pet her and she accepted. I closed in a bit more and grabbed her when I could. She didn’t try to escape. The driver hopped out of his car and slipped his orange necktie around the dog’s neck. Awesome!
I held her in my arms until she was back at my place. I returned the wonderful driver’s tie and he continued on his way to work. I blocked off my bedroom and bathroom so she was confined to the living room/kitchen area. I unplugged all the accessible wires (I’ve heard of puppies chewing their way thru wire and electrocuting themselves and I wasn’t taking any chances.) I left her a bowl of water, grabbed Aaron’s luggage, and ran back to Darling Coffee. At this point, Aaron had 15 minutes to make his train to catch his flight home. When I arrived back at the shop, Aaron was nowhere to be found. The other patrons told me he’d gone looking for me. Great…
I knew he’d return so I didn’t want to venture too far. I did my best Hezi impression and howeled, “AAAARON!!!” I was pretty impressed with the booming call that came from my chest. He appeared 30 seconds later. I could hear him before I could see him, so I kept howling. Astigmatism is a bitch!
I said goodbye to Aaron at the station and we both agreed it was a perfect morning to cap off an amazing trip. I returned to the coffee shop to finish the brekky I’d ordered. I thought the dog might be more comfortable if she had some time to get acquainted to my apartment without anyone there. It was so pleasant knowing a sweet doggie was back at my place. The more I thought about it though, the more I had to go be with her! I wolfed down the poached eggs (yes, I’m eating yolks these days!) and ran home.
She was so frightened when I walked in the door. She hadn’t touched her water and was just standing there, staring at me and shaking. I turned on some relaxing music in hopes that it would calm her. Then I sat down on the carpet and waited for her to relax. It didn’t take long before she stretched herself across the carpet. She let me approach her and I sat by her, stroking her little face and telling her she was going to be ok.
At that point, I started to get very emotional. Uncontrollably so. And she looked to me like I was the one in need of help. It was so strange. I thought it would pass, but it didn’t. Not until the city animal management lady arrived. Before animal management walked in, I was certain I was going to foster her. I figured she’d been on her own for days judging by the still healing cuts on her back legs, and that her owners weren’t looking for her. I don’t know why, but I had the feeling she was going to be mine, and I’d figure out the rest later. I tried to take pictures of her, but I had a hard time focusing the camera as tears continued to blur my vision. You’d think it would be a happy situation for me, but it was very heavy. I’m not sure I completely understand it. She gave me a couple of kisses in the hour we spent together on the floor. It was all I needed.
The animal management lady called me about two hours after she picked up the dog. She said they managed to reach the owners who were new to the area (as she suspected) and they were on their way to pick her up. She said it was a happy ending because the dog didn’t have to spend any time in the pound. The part that gets me is that the owners didn’t even know the dog was missing. I have a lot of questions, but I guess I just need to focus on the fact that this precious little dog got reunited with her home.
My trip last week with Aaron in New Zealand was incredible. I’ll fill you in through pictures for the most part. I took 1400 pictures in 6 days, and it’s going to take me just as long to get them organized. I’ll keep most of the stories connected to the photos, which makes sense, as my main feeling about New Zealand is that it’s the most naturally beautiful place I’ve ever seen. That knocks Sicily down to #2.
NewZe Pics to follow in the coming days.
