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Feeling the loss all over again (Happy ending!)

Jun 30, 2008 04:21PM - 10 comments

Last week, just out of curiosity, I was looking on petfinder.com at all the border collie available adoptions in my area. I figured if I came across a profile that seemed like a possible match for me, then I'd look into it, but didn't expect much.
Well, I actually called on three of the dogs to get more info about them, but they'd all been adopted out. But it turns out that one rescue agency I called that's independently owned had a border collie/golden retriever mix and a border collie up for adoption, although the mix was tentatively promised to another family. They've probably decided to keep her.
Anyway, the lady invited me out to her place yesterday (Sunday) to see the dogs she has, and had me meet the border collie she thought I'd be interested in. Well, after meeting the dog, I knew he wouldn't be a good match for Trevor and me and Blackie.
However, it turns out she had a dog that was surrendered to her rescue on Saturday evening, another golden/collie mix, about 1½ year old. Trevor and I met with him also for about an hour.
All of us clicked. What a wonderful dog! His personality was so much like Eric's that it almost seemed like having a few moments back with Eric, only in a different body.
The lady who owns the rescue agency, which she operates out of her home, agreed that we were the family for him. She gave me the application to take home and fill out, and we agreed that she would keep him for a month because he was recoving from mange, which would be a 30 day treatment of Ivermec.
Today I bought him a blue collar and a gold bone name tag. His name is Bryce. I was going to take the collar to the rescue place this weekend and put it on him and bring Blackie to meet him (his mange is not contagious).
Within an hour after I got the collar and name tag for him, the lady from the rescue called me with bad news. She said Bryce escaped early this morning and they'd been searching for him all morning and afternoon. She said they've filed reports with all the local humane societies and they're going to put a lost ad in the paper if they don't find him by this evening.
He's not wearing a collar because he had a wound on his neck that she was treating and a collar would've kept the wound open, so she planned to put a collar on him by the weekend when it had a decent scab. He doesn't even have a microchip. Now he's gone in a rural area that's eight tenths of a mile from a major highway.
I'm absolutely devastated. I only met this dog once, but unfortunately, I immediately felt like he was "my dog." It was the first time I've really felt at peace with Eric's death, meeting Bryce.
I had the application filled out and everything. I was so excited too, that his adoption fee would be affordable for me. I really felt like this was the blessing I needed to truly be at peace with Eric's death.
And now he's gone. One day later, and he's gone. I feel like I've lost Eric all over again.
I can only pray that they find him safe and unharmed.

Comments
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by peekawho, Jun 30, 2008 04:35PM
Oh, no!  I hope they can find him.  

Many, many hugs coming your way.  

by Jaybay, Jul 02, 2008 08:42PM
Noooo!!!  I'll be praying that they'll find him soon.  Poor you, and poor Bryce.  :-(  Did the rescue person say why he was surrendered?  I wonder he's a habitual escapee?

I think that's one of the reasons our Dal was picked up by the county pound and ended up with a Dal rescue.  When we first got him, we discovered he was a door bolter.  He'd sneak up behind you and blast you in the back of the knees while he took off down the street.  Have you ever seen a Dal run?  They're FAST!  He was at the end of the street in 5 seconds without even breaking a trot.  He didn't know his name and thought playing "chase" was a great game.  Thank goodness when Hubby chased him down with the car he knew the game was over and jumped right in.  We've had to do that 3 or 4 times since we adopted him in January.  The little twit!

It took me all of 2 days to train Doc to wait at the door until he is invited out.  "Wait" is a really useful command that can actually save a dog's life.  We've stopped our older dog with that command on the rare occasion she decided to run into the street.  No more bolting the doors, no bolting out of the vehicles, no crashing out the crates.  Now if we can just get Doc to respond as readily when he's in a bullet-head mood, we'll be in business.  He's going to take a lot longer than Maggie did.  LOL!

Hope that little story distracted you a bit.  :-)

by lonewolf07, Jul 03, 2008 02:30AM
Don't know if this will help but ....  a number of years ago my Siberian husky ran away from home.  He ran for miles before running into an Italian restaurant - he knew just where to go.  They fed him and looked after him but I couldn't believe how far he ran.  Fortunately, he had his dog license and the owners called Animal Control and we got him back (along with a bag of cold meat to help with his trauma).  Our other husky did the same thing only a "neighbor" took him but he escaped.  What brought him home was leaving his food bowl outside.

I know it's not the same thing but maybe somebody has taken him in.  If he is a golden/collie mix he must be a pretty intelligent dog.  Can you put up flyers or put ads in the newspaper or is that the job of the rescue agency?

Hope you find him or he finds you.  Or maybe there is another dog who needs you more - I don't mean to take away from your pain.

wolf




by AJH84, Jul 03, 2008 09:04AM
Jaybay: Thanks for the story, it did help to lift my spirits a bit. :-)
Jaybay and Lonewolf: Bryce was surrendered to the rescue agency by a woman who had picked him up as a stray back in November. She got him neutered and vaccinated, and kept him at her home as an indoor/outdoor dog. The problem was, however, that she had three other dogs, and the city ordinance in her area is a maximum of three dogs. And Bryce made four.
On top of that, he is and extremely docile, submissive dog. Her other dogs were picking on him all the time. That's how he ended up with the puncture wound in his neck, and the reason for the woman's decision to surrender him to the rescue.


OMG...as I was typing this, the rescue lady called me! She said Bryce just showed up at her place a few minutes ago, and he's safe and as healthy looking as the day he escaped!!!
I'm in blissful disbelief!!! I'm almost in happy tears typing this!!!
I've been stressing and praying for three days, and what a coincidence that I should be writing about this to you and get that call!
Oh I'm so happy that he's safe and healthy! And neutered--at least I know while he was gone, he wasn't able to contribute to the world of stray doggies!
I suppose I'll be bringing him home this evening or tomorrow, because the rescue lady said she trusts me to give him his mange treatments, and she wants him to form a bond with me and have a home with me as soon as possible.
I'll have pictures up soon!

Anyway, I'll finish what I was typing earlier. The lady surrendered him to the rescue Sat. evening, June 28th. I went to see him on Sun. afternoon. I asked all the necessary questions about bad habits he might have, my main concern being, was he a digger/jumper/escapee. I was told that the woman who had him told the rescue lady that Bryce had never made an attempt to jump or dig under her chain link fence, nor did he have any ambition to escape. He was just content to be a house dog, mostly. She told the rescue lady that she kept her dogs in the yard all day while she was at work and then let them in the house when she got home for the evening.
So when I got the news Mon. afternoon that Bryce had escaped, both the rescue lady and myself figured he would try to "head home," which would've been a long, dangerous journey if he'd made it.
The rescue lady called the woman to let her know to keep watch for him, she filed missing reports with all the local animal shelters, she posted flyers, and she put a lost ad in the paper. I put a lost ad in my company classifieds because so many people that work at my company live where this rescue agency is located.
Then all we could do was hope, pray, and search.

I'm so relieved and so happy! I had resorted to praying that Bryce was only safe, and that if he never returned, that someone would give him the home he deserved to have. I just wanted him to be safe and not injured and dying or lying dead somewhere.
And now he's back! The rescue lady wants to give him to me as soon as possible, because she trusts me to treat his mange and she wants him to bond with my family as soon as possible for his benefit. She told me that in all the years she's run a rescue, she's never had a dog escape. I saw her place when I was there, and it's VERY secure. But I guess there's a first for everything, and Bryce happened to be her first escapee.
That's going to make me extra cautious with him when I bring him home. I know for the first week or two, I'll make sure he's secure in my house while I'm gone (since I know he's house trained) and make EXTRA effort to bond with him when I'm home. I know once he knows we're his family and his home, everything should be fine.

And he'll ALWAYS be wearing his collar! I'll get him microchipped too!

by April2, Jul 03, 2008 10:20AM
AJ, I'm so happy for you! When I first heard this story I felt so sad for you and said a prayer for Bryce, that he'd be found. God is good! He heard our prayers!
Be careful now that you know he can escape like that. I had a dog for awhile there that would bolt out the door and run and run. She just loved to run. I had just adopted her and brought her to doggie classes, etc. But I was pregnant at the time and she was just more dog than I could handle at that time. Can you see me waddling down the streets chasing this dog with my big pregnant belly? Lol. I did surrender her back to the rescue organization because I worried that once I had the baby I wouldn't be able to give her as much attention, either. She was a sweet dog but just a little too energetic and a runner. I thought she'd do better on a farm or someone with a lot of land.

I hope Bryce brings you much happiness and will be good and not run away anymore! See if you can upload a bigger picture of him soon.
I just finally figured out how to download my pets pictures on here if you want to see. :) Take care and enjoy your new doggie! (((Hugs)))
April

by peekawho, Jul 03, 2008 10:28AM
WOW!  I'm so happy for you and your family!  You'll give this dog a GREAT home!

by AJH84, Jul 03, 2008 10:40AM
Peek and April: Thank you! I'm so happy and excited to be bringing him home soon. When I was talking to the rescue lady this morning, she told me that while Bryce was missing, all she could think about was the day we came out to see him, and how he and Trevor did so well together and how he seemed so comfortable around me. She said she felt so awful when he went missing not only because she was worried about him, but that he might miss out on the home she knew would be the right place for him.

I can't wait until I can upload some better pictures! The ones I posted now are from petfinder.com, and they're so tiny you can hardly see Bryce for anything. So yeah, better pictures coming soon! :-)

by sk123, Jul 03, 2008 03:47PM
That's such great news. I'm so happy for you! Enjoy your long weekend with him...perfect bonding time.

by Jaybay, Jul 05, 2008 10:07AM
Hooray!  What a happy ending for a new beginning.  :-)

by Tuckamore, Jul 05, 2008 10:56AM
I just read your posts. What a heart warming ending to an almost tragic story. Yes, God is good. And Bless the wonderful shelters and rescue agencies across this nation who do so much for our lost, surrrended and abused animals. It won't take Bryce long to realize he has a wonderful new home and master.
ENJOY!

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