Wednesday, August 2, 2017

Cujo Came Calling

A few weeks ago, I was sitting at the dining room table working on a jig saw puzzle. 
Are you a puzzler?
I love puzzles.


This one was fun. It was all about Colorado and I love Colorado.
It is a great way to whittle away an afternoon of retirement.
Anyway, I heard the dog door.
Our dog door makes a very distinctive swishing sound.


Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the dog run into the dining room but it wasn't a white dog like my Dixie. 
It was brown.
Oh my. I jumped up and tried to shoo her out the door. 
She wouldn't go. I grabbed her by the collar to usher her out into the garden room before Dixie realized that there was a doggie intruder. 
I managed to get her out to the garden room but couldn't get the door latched before Dixie came up to bark at "Cujo".


 I had to hold the doors closed because the left one wasn't latched.
Cujo was on one side of the glass barking.
Dixie was on the other.
I implored the brown dog to go out to the backyard but there was thunder and she was freaking out.
Dixie was able to push open the double doors leading out to the garden room. 
Cujo went running back into the house. Dixie gave chase. 
Both dogs ran over the bowls of food and water.
Now we had a slipping hazard in addition to a dog fight hazard or worse.
I didn't want to get into the middle of a dog fight. 
Cujo wanted to run and jump on the white sofa. 
You can image what Dixie thought of that. She thinks it's her sofa. 
Somehow, and for the life of me and I don't know how, I managed to get the brown dog out of the house, out of the garden room and I was finally able to lock the dog door.
I ran back through to the front of the house so I could see if anyone in the neighborhood was looking for her. 
Suddenly she was at the front door scratching and crying to get in.  


She was going crazy to get back into the house because of thunder. 
The cat had been lying on the front walk as per his usual.


He would not get out of the way. He's pretty agile for an older fellow so he could have jumped over the fence or hidden under the truck to get out of the fray. 
Nope. 
He stood his ground and was protecting his territory.


Noises like I have never heard were erupting from this cat. 
He was not having any of it. 
I managed to keep the cat from killing the dog. 
I grabbed the cat to try to throw him into the garage and got clawed in the process.
I'm happy to report that I didn't come down with cat scratch fever. 
The dog followed, trying to get into the house through the garage. 
Somehow, and for the life of me I don't know how, I manage to get the cat into the house and the dog out of the garage.
The dog would not calm down.
She had a collar but not a tag.
No one on the street appeared to be looking for her.
She ran up the street. I'd assumed to head home. I ran back into the house to see to my animals. 
I haven't run that fast since my peers called "Red Rover, Red Rover" at me in elementary school. 
Whew!
By this time, Dixie realized that there was thunder so she was hiding. 
Bill came home from work about an hour after the incident. 
I told him all about the brown dog. 
"That dog?"


That darn dog had broken through the dog door and had taken up residence in the garden room.
After dinner we went up to the animal hospital to see if she had a chip. 
She did. 
We called but there was no answer.
There was nothing to do but take her home and wait.  
We'd assumed at this point that this dog was an escape artist. 
She'd jumped over our stockade fence and had broken through our dog door.
She was a dog ninja.
We left her in the garden room when we finally went to bed that evening.
She was so upset about being alone that she kept running from the back door to the front door even though we had locked both of our gates.
She could jump as high as the French door. 
It was crazy. 
She also acted as if she could open the front door by the handle.
So even though she was sweet, she scared me with her Harry Houdini like skills. 


We both thought she would be gone the next morning because she was such an escape artist.
Nope.
There she was making herself at home on our white sofa.
Since we never heard from her owners, we decided that the animal shelter was in a better position to contact them.
We sincerely hoped that they would have better luck than we did.
Her name is Athena not Cujo. 
Poor baby. Poor owners. I bet they have a terrible time trying to keep this dog in their yard.
I have checked the animal shelter web site to see if she's ever been put up for adoption.
She hasn't so I'm pretty sure she was returned to her family only to escape next time there is a thunder storm.
I just hope she doesn't show up here again.
Poor dog.
The lesson in all this?
You might get more than your dog coming in through your dog door and make sure you update your contact information with the animal chipping company.
Have a great day!
It's a nice rainy day with some thunder...  I might need to lock up the garden room.
Katie 


5 comments :

  1. HI Katie
    What a funny afternoon. YOu had me at Colorado and realized you live in Texas! laura@notatrophywife.com

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  2. We once had a duck come in through our doggie door and making quite a mess before my son could get it out. Love the picture of Athena on your white sofa. She knows how to make herself at home.

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  3. Oh Katie -- funny in the aftermath but I can tell how insane is was at the time! I have to admit I'm laughing. She knows you have a lovely home, a dog door, a garden and comfy couch. You'd better make friends...

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  4. LOL this girl know exactly where to run for cover. You have a nice doggie door to enter and a nice couch for resting on. I hope her owners got her back and safe at home. You are a good angel to try and help her.
    xoxo
    Kris

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  5. Sandra, What an episode! I would still be recovering!

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