A Sharpei.
I am absolutely a dog lover… animal-in-general lover… but a stray or loose dog in my yard isn’t my favorite. Mostly because Hank and Gus can’t help themselves and just go a little nutty. So I let the boys bark and bay and scare the dog off. Will came to the end of the driveway, and explained that the dog had been roaming around the yard since I had left for my walk, but wouldn’t come near him. Hm.
Well, I went to bed and thought nothing else of the dog, except hoping it found its way home. Of course I had no idea that she (and it is a she) would “move in”.
We were both able to leave work a little early on Friday, and when we arrived home, “Sharpie” was in our yard. Again. But interestingly she had run out of the bushes. Upon further inspection, she had actually made herself a little nest. Well, now this is a problem. Clearly she has some intention of staying. And Will and I are both suckers for a sad animal.
After we took the boys on their afternoon walk (which, by the way, was incredibly exacerbating and hilarious at once since Hank was having a full blown hissy fit that he had to wear his Gentle Leader.. . and he was wearing it because he saw Sharpie and lost his little doggie mind) we set up a little shelter for Sharpie near our storage shed; opened up one of our dog crates, put a couple old doggie blankets in there, and set out Tupperware containers of food and water. We also covered the crate with a tarp since rain was in the forecast. If Sharpie was going to stay, she might as well eat and be comfortable. Later that night we checked the crate… no Sharpie… but no food either.
Saturday dawned, and Sharpie was in her nest part of the morning, but spent most of the day roaming up and down our road… always going in one direction. Once she came around and was sniffing at the screened porch door, but for the most part she lays down in her little nest in the bushes. We gave her breakfast, though she ran off when she saw us approach. By the time I left for the barn she was wandering the street again, looking slightly dazed. I tossed her some treats and told her to go sit in the crate we outfitted for her. She has yet to take the advice.
Sunday morning our little friend was still around. By mid-afternoon we were worried some thunderstorms would get nasty, and Will tried to lure her with lots and lots of treats into the general vicinity of the crate… but it was a no-go. I watched this all unfold from the kitchen window (where I was making a kick-ass lemon pound cake)… she would only get within about 15 feet of Will and then back away… and even bark at him! But I watched her closely… and got a good look at her.
She’s not skin and bone, but she’s skinny and needs regular meals. She moves quite stiffly, and I think its possible she’s been shot with a pellet gun or something a few times, as evidenced by some small dark spots in her coat. We wondered about her eyesight the previous few days… and Will said it looks like one eye is possibly infected.
Ultimately Sharpie retreated to her nest in the bushes, and sat out the rain. Thankfully the storm did not turn severe… but she as breaking my heart just curled up in a ball, just feet from my house.
This morning I didn’t see her anywhere, not that I looked too hard for her. But sure enough she’s outside my window now… lounging in her pile of leaves. Will put a call in to animal control, and I certainly have mixed feelings about that. I want someone to take her somewhere where she will be dry and warm and safe from the cars that creep right up to her butt when she’s wandering around in the street. But then again… I don’t know what her fate will be once AC has her. I know they can’t all be saved. And she might be suffering so badly now that it might be in her best interest to be put down. I just wish she’d let us near her! Silly doggie! I’d take her to my vet to get a once over and go from there.
I did that with a cat once a few years back. We have had a LOT of animals just show up at our house… which is just bizarre. We’ve had two kittens (one now is named Rosie and lives with my sister and her family in Tampa, the other was reunited with its family), a Racing Pigeon (Franklin, who lives up the road a ways) and the cat Julia Gulia. Julia Gulia was a sweet girl, and was ballsy enough to come right up to our front porch and ask to be let in. She played in the vegetable garden while we worked… an absolute doll. I took her to my vet since she was so friendly, but we learned she was an older girl, and probably in kidney failure. We gave her some fluids, some B Complex and some stinky food to see how she would hold up over the weekend. Monday morning she would not budge from underneath my car… and I knew it wasn’t a good sign. I scooped her up and put her in the back of the car and brought her to my vet to be put down.
I don’t know why I cried so much that day… for a cat that didn’t belong to me… that had only been around for a week or so. And I don’t really even like cats so much because I’m horribly allergic to them. But Julia was somehow special, and I cared about her. And ultimately, I cared for her, by giving her the peace that she needed and deserved. For some cosmic reason, Julia chose our house in her final days
As for Sharpie… I just don’t know. AC says they won’t come by looking for a stray if a person is not at home/on premises. I’ll be home the next two days since my office is closed, but not all day. I don’t want her to get chased away and then not feel safe enough to return. That might be worse than the situation she is currently in. Someone suggested trying to sedate her with something in her food, but I’d have to get something from my vet… or a bunch of Benadryl. And then what would I do with her?
Oh little girl… I wish you’d tell us your story and let us help you. The longer you stay, the more I get to liking you, and the more I want to help.
***update while typing***
AC officer showed up, and off my little friend ran! AC officer asked how long she'd been around, her temperament, etc. Then asked if I'd be around for a few more hours. I told him I needed to go to the grocery store, but I'd be back afterwards. Sure enough when I got home, Sharpie was in her spot.
***NEW UPDATE***
Tuesday night, through the miracle of Bacon, we managed to get a collar and leash on Sharpie, and she is a completely different dog... she is sweet and loving and wants to be with you wherever you go. A complete 180 if I have ever seen one!
We moved the crate we had set up for her to a spot closer to the house, and she slept there for the night. This morning (Wednesday the 31st)she was all wags and wiggles when I went to bring her breakfast and take her out to potty ... which she did NOT do in her crate!! Good girl!
We also got an appointment at our vet, where she was given a once over. Dr. Z. believes her to be less than a year old since her teeth are nice and white. She weighs 30 lbs on the nose, and made friends with everyone in the office. No one believed me that she wouldn't come near us for days.
Bacon is indeed a conduit for miracles.
Sharpie's main issues are a skin infection, which was scraped for mange, etc and turned up negative, and an eye infection, which stems from an inverted eyelid, which it seems is common in Shar-pe'i's. But we have ointment to help her eye, and two weeks (!! is she staying that long?) worth of antibiotics for her skin. We didn't opt for a heartworm test at this time, since we are in contact with a Shar-pei rescue group and hope that they can help with her bigger veterinary bills.
Sharpie and The Boys were formally introduced today, and it was surprisingly a non-issue. Seeing as Hank was shaking with rage when he saw her yesterday, today was a huge improvement!
I'm not sure what we'll do with Sharpie over the next few days... I was lucky enough to have a few days off work to wrangle the situation. As sweet as this little dog is, she can't stay. Wee House is already too wee. So the race is on to find her a home or a foster! If you have ANY leads, please let me know!
A big, huge special THANK YOU! to Dr. Z and the staff at Shallowford Animal Hospital. Dr Z has been our family vet for over 20 years, and I even worked there several times. They are outstanding people and compassionate doctors, and never bat an eye when I bring a stray in for a once over.
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