Thursday, December 16, 2010

Escaped!


We live not far from the most dangerous highway in the state. Because we're only five hundred feet from Meridian, we don't let our dogs loose, even on our property. Willful Delilah and exuberant Sugar cannot be trusted to come when called when there are so many exciting things to see and chase. That Makes that street a really big concern for us here.

Delilah and Sugar are either on leash or chained nearby wherever we're working outside. This way both dogs are right there close and keeping up on all the action without threat of getting distracted and working their way towards the deadly highway.

Even with all our precautions sometimes sh*t just happens and one or both dogs escape. Bouncing off the door has become great sport for both since they've learned that sometimes if they hit it just right, they are sprung from the house and free to roam at will.

Needless to say, such escapades cause a near heart attack for me. I have visions of a beloved dog splattered all over that highway. This dog just happened to be well mannered and always came when called but somehow he found himself victim of that road. I can only imagine what might happen to Delilah or Sugar.

Of course, neither dog can understand the dangers of that street. They think our frantic attempts to catch them are quite the game. Luckily we have not often had this occurrence but when we have, Sugar is really the worst dog to catch.

While the playful boxer has only escaped a few times, she has made a run for it on those occasions. Mostly she likes to visit the farm down the road which thankfully is the opposite direction than the deadly road.

A couple of months ago Delilah and Sugar got Lindsay tangled up in their leashes and Sugar managed an escape. By the time Lindsay got back to her feet, Sugar was gone, headed off towards Meridian. Luckily for us, she stopped to visit the new puppy at the corner and was captured by the mail lady before ever getting to the deadly road.

Today, at feeding time while Dave and Lindsay were putting on their layers of clothes getting ready to head to the barn, Sugar tested the back door. The draft blowing through the house was our first hint that she was gone. Everyone panicked as we realized Sugar had made her escape because it was rush hour. The most dangerous time of the day on Meridian.

When we burst into the back yard, Sugar was spotted running her famous circles in the back pasture. Running for the sake of running is big sport to Sugar. She glanced at Dave and Lindsay as they called her..........but she just kept on running..........around.........and around...............and around.

When Dave got close tp Sugar the sassy boxer snorted a bit before deciding it was a good time to stop. Then she came right up to Dave like getting caught was her idea.

This is a FIRST, I can tell you. The pooch has never been "caught" so easily. Her even white markings were covered in mud and she panted like a cougar had been chasing her. Sugar was content to be back on the leash and I could begin to breathe and get my blood pressure back where it belonged. All I can say is it's a good thing we've been brushing up on her "come" cue all week.

10 comments:

  1. I'm glad to hear nothing bad came of her great escape but some muddy paws and face. And look at that innocent face, how could you even think she would be a bad little girl and not come when called! She's adorable. Still I'm happy she's safe and sound tonight.

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  2. So glad a catastrophe was diverted. She's a really cute dog by the way.

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  3. My husband is the only one who can whistle and the dogs will actually come to him. He's confident about taking them outside off leash, but I wouldn't dare. They make a sport out of ignoring me.

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  4. We had a couple of runaway dogs today, too, and we also have a busy road about a mile away. It's scarey!

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  5. I was reading that with my heart in my throat.

    *eyes close briefly*

    I'm glad she came back to Dave.

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  6. I try to teach my dogs "come and sit" as early as possible, though sometimes I think they develop a hearing impairmnet .Win is pretty good ,but Skeeter,if we have been practicing is awsome sometimes he is trying so hard he sits before he actually gets stopped ,sort of skids up to me on his tush.
    Glad yours is OK , she is a pretty dog, and looks like a sweetie

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  7. How could you ever be too mad at that adorable face? I'm such a sucker for a pushed in face.

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  8. Whew! It's always scary when dogs run off to "play". I'm glad she was caught so easily.

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  9. Thank goodness! keep practicing with her to get her to come on demand, it takes work but is so important.

    that's my greatest fear too, my parents have a beagle, and if he ever gets out, he puts his nose to the ground and is oblivious to anything that's going on around him, including cars

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  10. Gotta love that Boxer-need to run! She is a cutie! When Charley was little, I would put him on a lunge line and leg him run around me, when I called him back I always had a delicious bit of warm cooked chicken in hand. That has worked pretty well, but he is a Boxer and sometimes he tunes me out if there are distractions (like at the dog park).

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