As a pet sitter, I often encounter new dogs to care for. I have yet to encounter a situation I can’t deal with, but this weekend’s cunning canine came close. What follows is my “tail” of woe.
Murray (name changed to protect the not-so-innocent) has had a rough start, and this is his sixth (or seventh) owner in his short year of life. His new owner is a lovely woman who cares very much about making sure he’s happy. The problem is, he’s still very skittish, and I had only met him the day before. The owner did warn me that his collar was too big. However, after a successful afternoon walk in which he practically bounded back inside, I thought we were doing well.
Until the last walk of the day arrived. He refused to come into the house. Not wanting to pull him or make him unnecessarily nervous, I sat down to wait him out. After 20 minutes or so, I thought I would stand up and stretch my legs. This was exactly the moment he decided to back up and put his head down. The instant he realized he was free of me, he gave me a look that said “ha ha” and took off. (Those of you who think I might be anthropomorphizing didn’t see this dog’s face …)
Thus began a long night of attempting to cajole the crafty canine back inside. At first, I just followed him down the road, out onto the rocks (we were beside the sea – perhaps my only saving grace because he could only go so far) and back onto the property.
I tried tactics such as leaving the door open (you might remember that the temperature was down to 16 degrees at this point), leaving a trail of treats, and putting the dog bed in the doorway. None of these worked. At approximately 11 p.m., I called Lincoln County Communications to ask for the help of an animal control officer. At approximately 12:15 a.m., William Snowman arrived to assist. We tried for an hour and a half to lure the wayward pup into the house, to no avail. I sent him away, as I didn’t wish to have him freeze to death and thus be unable to help other animals that may have actually wanted rescuing.
I had reached exhaustion at this point, so I put his dog bed on the porch and attempted to sleep. Every hour I would get up, see him sleeping on his bed, open the door, and watch as he bounded away from me, still with that impish “ha ha” look in his eyes.
In the morning, I called his owner’s friend and neighbor, and asked her to bring her dog over to attempt to entice Murray back into the house. Presumably the promise of a playmate would be more interesting than a strange woman who seemed intent on capturing him.
It worked. I also learned a new strategy when dealing with a loose collar and a devious dog. And I discovered that no matter how much I think I know about dogs, there’s always something new to learn. I am happy to report that he is now back with his owner, and she has invited me back for another weekend. And she promises to buy him a halter, much to my relief.
(Sarah Caton owns All Paws Pet Sitting in Alna.)
