Whoa Nellie

An old, geriatric Akita mix is standing in the middle of the road.

I tell her this is a very bad idea, to which she replies by trotting further down the middle of the road. She is heedless to the danger around her.

Mina decides this is a Very Good Moment to spew forth a volley of insults to the dog, who curiously stares at us and then decides this vehicle is a source of ridiculous things, like Pit Bulls.

I follow her down the road. She turns back and walks up to my car. Hey, I coo softly. Want to go for a ride? Oh wait. I mean, want to go for a walk to wherever you live? Because I'm sorry, but my dogs fail at helping other dogs. Ignore the barking Pit Bull and snarling Mexi-mutt.

She does. Me too, though. I continue slowly. She keeps looking and trotting back and then forward.

I notice her name tag - Nellie.

Nellie! I say this in an upbeat voice. Pausing, Nellie looks at me expectantly. Um, come! Ha, tail in my face and a dog further up the road.

I stand for a few seconds trying to figure out what to do, when Nellie comes back around the corner staring at me.

Ah, a summons. I hop back into the car with my screaming she-demons and follow Nellie.

She takes me to her home.

When I get out of the car, her tail starts wagging. See? You CAN follow directions!! I go up to the door and knock. Nellie barks to let the people inside know that this isn't a solicitor but a Very Important Dog Person.

No one answers. We are both chagrined.

I find the open gate she had wandered out of and point it out to her. Oh, she says and goes in.

And that is that.

I will be doing a little welfare check on her over the next few days, because it is simply sinful to leave an arthritic, old dog named Nellie alone in the yard with a ramshackle gate as her only barrier to the outside world.

When I get back in the car, Mina is mournful. Her source of ire has disappeared. Celeste is whining.

You are the worst dog-catching assistants, I tell them. Sternly, too. Mina has it in her to look a little shameful. Celeste is still not sure why we were all upset in the first place.

Nellie barks to say goodbye, maybe thanks.

Dogs in the News

In the News

The Brew City Bully Club hopes to eliminate dog fighting in Milwaukee in 10 years. Best of luck.

Did he get mauled or didn't he? Los Angeles citizens heralded a firefighter who hoisted a drowning dog to safety as hero. While rescuing the wayward pup, he was bitten. Depending on which article you read, the guy nearly lost his arm or got bitten on the thumb once. I'll assume it was something in between. You can see the video here. It's clear the dog bites the man several times, hopefully all that extra padding significantly reduced the severity of the wounds. Good job to the firefighter for holding on despite the large, biting dog.

I'm baffled as to why these two dogs need to be killed because their guardians/owners allowed them to run loose in their unfenced backyard and they invariably attacked and killed some goats, sheep and a wild deer. In a responsible home, this type of occurrence would be far less likely to occur because the dogs would not be running loose.

South Carolina Lt. Governor has something to say about poverty and stray animals - Call Animal Control, We've Got Poverty Again

Off Leash Wars

There's an in-depth article in SF Weekly covering the battle over off-leash "rights" in San Francisco.

Dogs should have off-leash time, safely.

People should be able to walk without fear of being jumped on or even touched nicely by loose dogs.

I've seen the following scene repeated way too many times. It's embarrassing for all of us who love dogs, want them to have safe off leash time, but who also respect the fears and concerns of other people to read these incidents:

Not all live with it happily. As Troup walked across a grassy hillside, a pair of small, off-leash dogs rushed up to the leashed Chino, causing him to startle and yank his owner off-balance. The dogs' master, a tall man in plaid shorts, glared at Troup through a pair of shades, a cigarette dangling from his lips.
"This is actually an on-leash area up here," Troup said.
"I'm aware of that," the man replied. "Fuck you."

Thoughts?