3 Dog Adventure

Yesterday afternoon I was working at my parents house, doing computer work and bills and stuff.  My father had a massage appointment and was getting ready to leave the house.  He was going to take his two Rottweilers with him like he normally does, but since I was there he decided to leave them at home.  He put them in the house with me and drove away.

I folded some laundry and checked some email, thinking enough time had passed I let the dogs out.  Immediately I noticed them looking in the direction Steve had driven, but I told them to stay and went back inside.  I packed up my stuff and headed to my car.  And as I’m sure you’ve already guessed, the dogs were gone.

“Shoot!” I thought (edited for sensitive eyes) and headed out to look for them.  My dog, Basil, was with them so I started calling her name.  I drove out the top road, thinking they couldn’t have gotten far but didn’t find them.  So I headed back to my parents house, thinking maybe they circled around.  Nope.  So I went to the barn, not there.  Finally I drove down to my brothers house.  Not there either.  So I went back to the barn, told one of our employees to keep an eye out for them and please take care of my dog for the night if they showed up.  “No problem” she said, and I headed on my way home…knowing I was bound to find them on the road.

Every corner I drove around I expected to see them.  And no dogs.  I was almost to the end of the road and I was starting to get really worried.  If they made it all the way to the pavement, they were in trouble.  People drive fast and carelessly on that road, they could get hurt.  And they are three beautiful and sweet dogs, they might let anyone pick them up!

I was coming around the last corner before the gate and I see one of our neighbors parked.  She’s next to her truck throwing little chunks of bread at Basil trying to get her to come to her.  Basil is just jumping around, playing hard to get, and a little frightened.  I run up and grab her, thanking my neighbor.  She said she saw the other two dogs running up the road.  We both hoped in our trucks and headed after them.

They were only a couple hundred feet away from the pavement when we finally caught up to them.  They were both exhausted and rather happy to see me.  Oona, the younger of the two, immediately tried to jump in the back of my car.  She’s huge and almost didn’t make it.  Xara, our old girl, needed help getting up.

And there I was, a 70lb Doberman and two 100lb + Rottweilers squeezed into the back of my SUV.  It was quite a sight I’m sure.

I drove into town, knowing where Steve was, and loaded them into the back of his truck.  I left him a voice mail explaining what happened, which of course he didn’t get until after he saw the dogs in the back of his truck.  But now we know, Just take them with you Steve, ’cause that’s where they want to be.

Our Dogs (warning, this is a little sad)

As far back as I can remember we’ve had a dog.  The first dog I remember was a husky mix named Silver.  I vividly remember the last time I saw him.  I was about 4 or 5 years old, and I fell asleep with my head on his belly while watching cartoons.  The way I remember it, he slowly got up, grabbed an old tattered green pillow off the couch and then gently put it under my head so I wouldn’t know he was gone, before he ran out the door.  Of course in reality I must have fallen asleep with the pillow under my head already, but I prefer my memory…much more “romantic”.  Unfortunately the ending of this tale is not a happy one, when he ran out the door he went to our neighbors house. They had sheep.  They thought he was a wolf.  They shot him.

Our next dog was a Golden Retriever named Sadie.  She was the sweetest dog in the world.  She had thirty puppies in three consecutive litters.  I remember one puppy we had for quite a while.  He was pure white and grew up to be Great Dane size (we can thank the dad for that I presume).  When he was about six months old we found a home for him with the family of a friend of mine from school.

After Sadie had her final litter we got her fixed (we wanted to do it after the first litter, but she got out and knocked up again so quick we never had the chance, TWICE).  After the operation a blood clot formed and she had to have a surgery to have it removed.  Then she contracted an extremely rare disease (can’t remember what) and had to be put down.  I cried for days afterwards.  This experience is what changed my mind about becoming a vet (my dream since I was tiny).  I knew I would never be able to look a little girl in the eyes and tell her her dog is gone.

We took her body and buried it on our land.  I remember just as my mom and I finished putting the last of the dirt back and stood up, a pair of doves swooped out of the trees, low over Sadies’ grave and then flew up and away.  I am not a religious person, but I know Sadie is in doggy heaven.

We didn’t have a dog for a while after Sadie.

Then we got Shiva.  Our first Rottweiler.  And we’ve never looked back.  Rottweilers have a bad reputation.  And like any large dog, if they are raised in a violent environment, are treated poorly or abused, or taught to be aggressive, then they can cause a lot of damage.  But if a Rottweiler is put in a loving home, treated like one of the family and given tons of attention, they are the most loyal, loving, intelligent, and wonderful dog you’ll ever have (In my opinion).  They are really smart, and Shiva for one, wouldn’t hurt a fly.  If anything, she might accidentally knock you over as she leans (typical trait) into you for more pets.

Our first rottweiler, Shiva.

When Shiva was getting older, we got our next Rottweiler, Xara.  We thought having a puppy around would give Shiva a little more life (and we figured she could teach the puppy a thing or two).  Shiva was with us for about another year, before she went into the woods and never came back.  We are all angry with her for that.  We never got to say good bye.  But we know she loved us and we miss her.

Xara

Xara is fine now, but when she was little she had problems with her hips.  Her hindquarters didn’t develop fully until she was about 4 years old.  She looked like a little puppy with a huge head.  She had arthritis and we gave her pills for her joints and for pain.  After a little while, my dad started bringing her to the Ranch every day, she would run around with other dogs when they were there, and she loved it.  Her hind end finally caught up with the rest of her, and now her joints only bother her when it’s really cold, or she’s been working really hard.  She’s a little spoiled, but smart as a whip and sweet as can be.

Steve had been thinking/dreaming about getting another puppy for a while.  And just after Thanksgiving, they finally did.  Now we have little Oona too.

Oona, the puppy.

She was the pick of her litter.  She is brave, smart, and a little troublemaker.  She gets into everything.  She’ll be laying on the floor, chewing on a toy and then suddenly, with a little flop of her head, she’s chewing on a chair leg instead.  You have to watch her Every Single Second.  If she isn’t in your direct sight, she IS doing something she’s not supposed to.  But she is a very quick learner, and all she wants in the world is to make us happy.  Xara was a little skeptical at first (“What in the world is this thing” I’m sure is what she was thinking), but now they get along great.  Oona pushes the limits, and Xara has to puts her in her place from time to time, but over all they get along.  I think once Oona grows up the two of them will be a force to be reckoned with.

Of course, now Xara and Oona are really my parents dogs.  Currently I have cats.  Whom I love.  But next spring I plan on getting my own puppy…*sigh*

Deer Story

Our first rottweiler, Shiva.

Back in May 2002, when we first purchased our properties and the land was new to us, we took walks to understand the “lay” of our land. One particular 40 acre section on my son’s land was covered in a delightful patchwork of small meadow and oak woods. This meant constantly changing dapple-light and sudden late spring sun, followed by dense oak shade, as we walked along the cow trails from meadow to meadow. The wood was really just on its best behavior – the grass was still green and stood up like little wires around the lushly mossed oaks; the wild flowers, actually a little shy, were sprinkled here and there and then gone.

Now, my rottweiler, Shiva, was with me. She was always keen and alert for these walks. She loved being up close and following my son. Suddenly her head darted to the side and into a grassy clump my son had just past. I heard a squeal. Her head came up. She gave the very young fawn in her mouth one swift shake and it fell quiet, drooping limply out either side of her jaws. She looked at me briefly, tossed her head high and pranced off into the woods with her prize.

And, if this isn’t strange enough, two weeks later, hidden in the very same clump of grass, Shiva caught another fawn, in exactly the same manner.

Steve

Further Reading:

A Little About Rottweilers

A Little About Meadows