We have another dog! On October 4th we went into Mattawa to pick up my blood pressure medicine at the pharmacy and there was a lab/shepherd mix wandering about on Main Street, going from one side to the other and stopping in the middle of the street, looking for someone. People were shooing him away from them as they walked or got into their vehicles. We feared that he would get hit by a car. I put a dog biscuit in my pocket after I parked the truck but we didn't see the dog as we crossed the street to get to the pharmacy and I hoped that he had located his owner. We went in and got the medication and a newspaper (my pep talk article was published) and when we came outside there he was, wandering back and forth again, trying to get in a truck with some guy who shooed him away right in front of us. I gave him the biscuit from my pocket and a woman came forward, relieved to find us paying attention to the dog. She was quite worried about him and had been watching him wander about but couldn't take him because she lives in an apartment. She pleaded with us to take him home with us and notify the town office Monday to have him picked up. She insisted that I take a $5 bill she thrust forward to help pay for his food. What else could we do? He had no collar on but obviously had had one until recently. I got a leash out of the truck and Toad fastened it around the dog's neck. He got in the truck with us and lay down to rest. All the stress of being lost or discarded had worn him out. He rode well and was very well-behaved in the truck.
When we got home he was fine with Sadie, who was very anxious about us bringing home another dog, as you can well imagine she would be. We kept him on the leash in the house until it was obvious that he was no threat to the cats, several of whom came out to investigate this new person. He checked out the house, ate some of Sadie's food and then lay down to snooze a bit. We let him go out without a leash to pee, staying in the front yard and watching him explore a bit, and he came right back. He's made himself at home. He, Sadie and Toad went outside again (no leash on any of them) to check on the chickens and Dudley and to see how our new guy gets along with them. He got along fine with the chickens but Dudley scared him! haha We decided to name him Beauregard, calling him Beau and having a lot of regard for him (big groan, I know).
The following Monday (October 6th) I left my name and number at the municipal office in Mattawa in case someone called to report him missing, but so far no one has called or posted any ads about Beau. That Saturday, one week after we found him (or he found us), with no ad for him appearing in the weekly newspaper, I bought him a collar. He was so happy when I called him to me to put it on him that he laid his big head on my lap and then raised his paw to shake mine. It was so touching that it brought tears to my eyes.
Beau is fascinated with Dudley, who dislikes him and all other dogs, which is probably a good instinct to have for a pig. When Dudley was lying down getting his belly scratched Beau crept up and sniffed Dudley's butt, then his stomach and legs and finally his face. It was quite amusing to watch. I don't know how Beau could stand to smell Dudley's butt, as Dudley has the most foul-smelling gas that I have ever had the misfortune to experience and dog noses are so much more sensitive than those of us humans.
The fourth morning after we brought Beau home with us we heard a long siren-like noise right outside the bedroom window, a sound we had never heard here before. Toad jumped up and headed downstairs for the door and I looked out the window, not knowing what to expect. From the lower righthand corner of the window I could see Beau sitting on the end of the veranda, howling like a wolf! It was so strange! When Toad opened the front door Beau came inside and seemed to be just fine. Later that afternoon I took a cardboard roll, put one end to my mouth and called out "doo doo doo DOO doo doo!" the way I used to do when I played with my beloved Trixie long ago. Beau immediately began that same mournful howl that he had given that morning! Sadie chimed in with sharper, yelping barks. We made quite a chorus!
Beau continues to do very well here. He's met and endeared himself to both of our neighbors and plays well with Sheba, our closest neighbor dog. The only problem we have had with him is his tendency to go exploring, enticing Sadie to accompany him on what must be wonderful dog adventures but are worrisome risks to our human way of thinking. We tried leaving him and Sadie in the big pen the first time Toad and I both had to leave home and returned to find Sadie still in the pen but Beau on the veranda! He had apparently jumped onto the doghouse and then over the fence. Since then we have begun leaving both dogs in the house, Sadie loose as usual but Beau in a large dog kennel to keep him out of trouble. He has adjusted to the kennel quite easily. We have only had to leave him in it three times todate; the rest of the time he has the run of the house. The cats are intrigued with him and like to tease him a bit to get him to jump up and begin to chase them, which is why we don't dare leave him in the house unsupervised. He loves to accompany Toad and Sadie to the barn to do chores, and he loves to go for walks with us along the road. He's a good boy.
Never a dull moment...
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