Dog Rescue Goes Haywire

A Life of Luxury AND Prestige!

My little Coco is spoiled. She’s also VERY well socialized and knows everyone in our subdivision. She carries on every single day with a huge smile. She wakes up every single morning absolutely THRILLED to be alive because she knows that she will be fed, she’ll be walked numerous times during the day and she is certain that she will have clean water in her dish throughout the day. Coco knows that she will dig through her box of toys, many times through the day, and that her biggest decison of the day will be between her squeaky yellow duck or her chewy purple ball. Coco knows that she’ll end every day fast asleep in our bed…dreaming of terrorizing our cat JuJu and of her BFF Argos who has recently moved right around the corner.

I saw him on Jackson Rd

Today I left the office around 5:30. When I traveled down Jackson Rd (one of the busiest in Ann Arbor) I saw swerving cars ahead of me and a whole lot of break- lights. I could barely make it out, but it looked like a poor dog darting in and out of traffic. I immediately thought of Coco and pulled over to grab that poor pooch. Once I had his collar, I pulled him into my car. I grabbed my phone and called my most trusted animal experts, my pals at The Westarbor Animal Clinic. Sher answered the phone and encouraged me to bring the dog by the clinic, as hopefully he was chipped.

With the Best Intentions

I flew down Jackson Rd with this unknown animal in my back seat. He seemed relieved and was very well behaved. He was panting heavily, as he had just survived a horrifying ordeal in the middle of Jackson Rd. He was super handsome – he was a long haired brindle pit mix with a very loving soul. He had a collar on, but there were no tags identifying who he was. I just knew one thing – IF IT WERE MY COCO, I’D WANT SOMEONE TO PULL HER OUT OF THE ROAD AND TAKE CARE OF HER!

Fingers Gently Crossed

So I pulled into the drive way at Westarbor. I didn’t have a leash, so Sher got me one immediately. They scanned the dog and found that he was registered with the Humane Society. After a number of phone calls, they found the name, address and phone number of the owner. I watched the Vet Tech call several times. After leaving a message, she looked up and said “Well, the owner hung up on me twice, so I had to leave a message. Not good.” I waited as they went to talk to the owner of the Vet Office. While I awaited their return, another dog came in for an appointment.

Scary Shit

When the owner and his adorable little Collie walked in, I immediately felt this stranger by my side begin to stir. I knew right away that I could not control him, he was a tank. I told the owner that this dog was not mine and that I pulled him off Jackson Rd. I held him as tight as I could, but he began to get aggressive and I just could not control him. Before I knew it, the dog slipped out of my hands and attacked that little Collie. I was screeching and asking for help. It happened SO FAST! The tech came in and pulled that pit mix off the collie and advised the owner to get his Collie out of the room. I give that tech A LOT of kudos. She had her shit under control and she took down my companion very quickly and threw him in the back…he had a large pin all to himself, so he was just fine.

Cool Down

Luckily, no one was hurt. I was shaking and BAWLING, when I ran outside to apologize to the owner of that collie. I felt very much responsible for this dog that I had NO control over. The owner of the collie was actually quite fine with all of it, he said that his dog was okay, there were no signs of ripped skin. What was amazing – the reaction of the staff at Westarbor. No one blamed the dog that I rescued; they reassured me that he was obviously not well socialized and that he had a neglectful owner. I thought that was so insightful and absolutely right on. Although I’m still totally freaked out, I know that poor little pooch was out on Jackson Rd for one reason – a SHITTY OWNER who has abandoned his dog. This poor pooch is aggressive and untrained. It’s not the dogs fault, it’s a direct reflection on the owner. I’m glad that they have the owner’s information via the chip. He’s going to have a lot of answering to do tomorrow, once they contact him.

Any dog can be aggressive!

I hate to even bring up this dogs breed, because any dog can be aggressive. When I picked him up I knew that he had a sweet soul and that he was, in his heart of hearts – A GOOD DOG. But because he had a neglectful owner, this experience turned out very differently. He was frightened and aggressive. I blame that owner and I hope that he (the owner) is held responsible! I have no idea how long this dog was running around without food and water and shelter. I don't know what on earth he could have been going through. I don't know what experiences he had that led to this awful aggressive behavior. This level of fear comes from a very sad place. He must have been abused, neglected and possibly starved. My Coco is a very loving and predictable dog because she comes from a loving and secure home. This poor dog that I found on Jackson Rd obviously has had a far different experience and I will pray for him, because the road that he takes now will be even more unstable. I hope that he finds some level of rehabilitation. I hope that he finds a warm bed to crawl into. A routine of feedings and walks...uuuugh. I am thinking of that stranger right now, I hope for all of the best.