Things Work - Until The Day They Don't

I live in a rural area with horse farms and corn fields and little stands that sell eggs and tomatoes. It is not uncommon to see dogs running loose … and not uncommon to see them on the side of road dead.

My neighbor has a Jack Russell (no, it is NOT a Parson - it is one of those short legged Jacks). For years, this little guy would “visit” my house and kennel and, much to his delight, torment my Poodle kids. For years, I have collected this dog from various points on my property and carried him down to my neighbor’s home and deposited him into her arms. For years, she has told me to stop bringing him home because he always comes back on his own. For years, I have tried to explain how her Jack was the equivalent of a schoolyard bully - and my Poodles were the nerdy, weak kids - but, nothing, nada, zip, would stop my neighbor from opening up her front door and letting little Jack out at his liberty. About two months ago, however, he stopped coming around.

I must admit, I didn’t really notice that I hadn’t brought Jack home for a while or that my Poodles hadn’t set up in a barking frenzy playing his fence fighting game. Actually, I hadn’t thought about him at all … until today. You see, today was the first warm-ish day we have had in a while and Jack, on a leash and accompanied by his family, came to see me.

Jack now has three legs. Seems he was hit by a car not one, not two, but three streets over. (Remember how I said that I live in a rural area? That is over 2 miles away from home!) The car that hit him had not stopped , assuming that he was dead. A local vet tech found him, bleeding and unconscious. It took three days for the veterinary clinic to find Jack’s owners as he had no ID. (Actually, it was the County Animal Control officer who first identified Jack - seems she had brought him home as many times as I had! - and just happened to be at the clinic with her own dog!)

Jack’s owner said that she had to stop in to apologize to me. She said she hadn’t realized that Jack was such a problem “being that we lived in the country and all.” She was still in disbelief that he had gotten hit by a car because she had let him out loose for so long. I could only say to her the same thing I say to everyone when they are putting their dog at risk in any situation. You can do something stupid a million times and stupid things may work … until the day they don’t.