Monday, August 16, 2010

A Better Future

This morning, as I was walking my mother's dog, Tobey, and my dog, Buddha, I saw a dog laying behind my daughter's car in our driveway. It didn't say a word, just watched us as we went for our morning walk. I thought, "great, another stray dog! But, he IS cute!" My dogs never even noticed him; he was so quiet. I took the dogs back into the house and wondered what to do about him.

As it turned out, this dog just showed up on our driveway the night before. He came up behind my daughter and touched her hand as she was getting out of her car, scaring her. Then she saw what it was and began petting him.
Does anyone know what kind of dog he is? He's the color of a German Shepherd but his coat is very wirey and he has eyebrows and whiskers like a terrier. I was actually surprised at how big he was when he stood up- 45 to 50 pounds. I thought he was smaller than that when I saw him laying there and his cute little face. 

When my daughter got up, she immediately went outside to see if the dog was still there. Of course he was, right where she last saw him, still behind/under her car! She told me the story of how she met him in the dark and then she asked me if she could give him something to eat. I figured this stray wasn't going to leave anyway so I said okay. That's the thing about stray dogs when they adopt people, they don't run away. (I have over 50 pounds of pedigree dry dog food left over from my two German Shorthaired Pointers who died last year.) She fed him and gave him water. We talked to him and he actually left the food and came over to lick each of us. Such a sweetie! Oh, and he is a she! We looked. 

Then, I had to go to work. I called my son a few hours later to tell him about the found stray and he immediately went out to feed her. Go figure! They say never to feed strays. But who are They to tell my children good advice, huh? He was so excited about the new dog but worried too. "I wonder how she got lost?" I was very happy to learn that she was very friendly towards him too. Usually, stray dogs are very scared of men. Still, I had him look on craigslist and the newspaper classifieds for any lost dog ads. He read the ads to me and none matched.

At work, I got to talking to a coworker about the lost dog and he suggested that the dog might have a microchip that would locate the owner. She was collarless but seemed to be in good health. Such a sweetie, how could she not be loved and missed by her previous owners? 

I left work early tonight and we took her to the vet's office. They checked the dog for a microchip. There was none. I took these photos of my daughter and the dog tonight. Looking in the dog book I have, I'm thinking she's an Australian Cattle Dog mixed with something? Terrier, perhaps? German Shepherd too??


The little gray blur on her lap is her friend's dog, a Schnauzer named Einstein, who never sits still. His nickname is "furball". The stray didn't seem to mind him too much but she does growl at Buddha. Of course, Buddha isn't a real dog, anyway. He's half cat. lol. Oh, and the collar is left over from the vet trip. It's Daisy's old collar. The dog didn't want to get in the car first but readily followed us into the car. She was very well behaved at the vet's office too. Unfortunately, the receptionist is the one who checked for the chip so I didn't get any information on age, breed, spayed? pregnant??
I love the next couple of photos. Is this true love or what? 


My dilemma- how hard do we look for the owners? This dog seems to have chosen my daughter. I did drive around looking at mailboxes for lost dog ads too. And my daughter knows the local animal control officer so we can call him tomorrow to see if anyone has reported her missing. We've also pretty much decided if we can find the owners, great, but if we can't, then that's okay too.

A Better Future - song: A Better Future, artist: David Bowie, album: Heathen


18 comments:

Leah Fry said...

Something in that head reminds me of Rottweiler. What sweet, kind eyes. What are you going to name her?

jane augenstein said...

Awww, what a pretty dog! I have no idea what kind either but it sure looks like she has really bonded with your daughter! Looks like she is wanting to live with you all! ;-)

Unknown said...

Aww what a cutie. I hope he has a good home either way.

Shirley said...

I think you are doing enough to find the owners. This may be a case of a dog that got left behind accidentally when someone was travelling through; if so, they will advertise- keep checking. What a sweet face! The closest I could find is a type of Belgian Sheepdog called the Laekenois which has that kind of wiry hair, but is usually a lighter color- this could be a crossbreed. Have you named her yet?

Laura said...

What a cute dog! I would guess part rottweiler too - by the colouring... Maybe the other part is part Chewbacca? Her face totally reminds me of Chewie! lol

Good for you guys for checking as many options as possible to see if she has a home!

Dan and Betty said...

It looks like you have a dog and she's a beaut.

Dan

BrownEyed Cowgirl said...

Poor little girl certainly lucked onto the right house.;)

There are several terrier breeds that have faces and hair like that. Most people think of the terriers as small, but there are a good number of larger wirehaired breeds too.

Reddunappy said...

She is a cute dog!

I would say, some kind of terrier mix. Such a cute face.

Ed said...

Dogs choose their companions, she's a cutie..:-)

Crystal said...

Aww looks like you found a new dog, or rather, she found you.

Grey Horse Matters said...

Aw, she's so cute and obviously loves your daughter and family. If she is just lost I'm sure her family is missing her, but if she's a stray, then good luck with the new member of your family, she's a doll.

cd0103 said...

So Sweet. I love that close-up photo of your daughter and "girl". Looks like she found the right place.

Sherry Sikstrom said...

What a lovely dog

Laughing Orca Ranch said...

She's cute. Love those eyebrows!

My guess would be a Welsh Terrier mixed with something else...

http://www.thomasterriers.com/welsh.html

~Lisa

Nuzzling Muzzles said...

Very cute dog. You know, the dog I'm thinking of adopting does have a microchip in it, and several attempts have been made to contact the owner, but there's been no response. The dog was so well cared for that I have to think something happened to the owner.

allhorsestuff said...

OH! That last photo is simply precious!
Well...I hope I know the ending to this story...so now (I will go to the latest Post and find out.
KK

Unknown said...

How did I miss all this - its so exciting! We have found our share of strays, fortunately we've found their home. But you are a ways off the beaten path... I'd call three vet offices in the area. Lots of people will list their lost dog there.

2 weeks of looking is all karma requires, IMHO. :)

Achieve1dream said...

That dog is so cute! In that last one she almost looks like a cartoon character.

I know I'm commenting really late and I don't know if you still have her, but if you do please try to find her owners. I have a neighbor who lost her Dachshund and she thinks and old lady found him and is keeping him for her grandkids even though she knows he belongs to this other lady. She can't get proof though because they keep him hidden in the house. It's very, very sad. Her kids are heartbroken. So if you can do anything else to find her home please do. If you don't (or didn't) find them, then congrats on the newest addition! She's adorable. :)