OK, now I am upset, too

Yesterday, I let Skywalker run around the property a great deal with my puppy, Radley. Our property is 2.5 acres with a barn and several sheds about half way back and then a berm left over from when the land was part of the Mormon bean fields of Flagstaff. Although the property slopes from the National Forest a quarter mile west of us down toward our house, that berm is high enough to conceal the view of Cairns on the back half of the property.


Although I am never supposed to let Skywalker out of my view, I confess to occasionally going into the house for coffee or another brief errand. My kitchen has walls of windows on 3 sides, so it is easy to keep an eye on the dogs except when they go past that berm.

The first time I lost sight of them, I went out and called. As usual, there was a slight delay before Rad crested the berm at full speed, with Skywalker close behind. The second time, there was enough delay that I started walking out to the berm. The dogs appeared before I got too far and I thought they were just visiting the horses or exploring underneath the rabbit brush.

About 4 pm, I was silly enough to get distracted by some email when the phone rang. The neighbor behind me told me the pups were in her horse corral. Ah, that colorful language emerged again. I charged out the door, hollering their names, and just as I crested the berm, they exploded into view. The dogs, at least, were ecstatic.

I walked on to the back of the property, dogs close on my heels, to talk with my neighbor, Amy, about this incident. She was just coming back from a ride and saw the dogs but they took off and got through the fence in no time. She'd seen them on her property once before & thought they'd squeezed through the gate that allowed access between our properties. She & her husband were thoughtful and kind enough to put up extra fencing across their side of the gate to keep the dogs out. Hmm, maybe they are keeping us out, too. Whatever. Amy and I walked down to the general area where the dogs popped back onto our property and found an 18" long cut in our fence near the corner where 4 properties meet but in the fence between Amy & me. The cut was about Cairn height and someone had stepped on the bottom portion of the cut fence to bend it down.



Paul and I have walked that fence at least twice a week since Newt got out and was run over. Amy and I have walked the section between our properties several times since then also. The fence is 2" x 4" galvanized horse mesh and looking at the cut ends there was no shine to the cut portions but no rust either. And I honestly don't know enough about this type of fencing to know if either of those observations is significant. Amy and I bent the fence back into shape as much as possible and then we each gathered up rocks and wood to pile on our respective sides of the fence to make a temporary repair.

So, does someone detest my Cairns so much (Parker and Radley do bark a lot) that they would cut a hole in the fence, hoping they would get out and be killed? Such potential cruelty boggles my mind but I can't think of any other reason for such an odd cut in the fence to be there. I hope I am wrong. Fortunately, the weather was excellent today and I spent a lot of time repairing the fence and reinforcing other areas.

OK, tomorrow, back to the saga of Skywalker, not that this incident didn't impact him. I am very impressed that even though he and Rad went through the fence to visit the horses, they came back immediately when I called. And they ran joyously to me, making me feel like I was the most special person on earth.

Well, maybe a little more gushing about Skywalker! Skywalker is incredible. He really does stay off furniture, sleep through the night, only uses outside as his bathroom, etc. If he weren't so afraid of Paul, I wouldn't believe he was a puppy mill product. He'll be with us two weeks this Sunday and I am reluctant to pronounce him ready for adoption. Reluctant mainly because I want to continue to nurture him. It is so unbelievable when he follows me everywhere, nudges me if he thinks I don't know he is right behind me, and then will put his paws up on my knees when I squat down and let me totally engulf him with a hug for a very long time. I want so much to put him on the bed, have him sit by me on the couch, totally spoil him, but I am trying hard to follow the foster home rules. But, for the right home who can continue to help him work through the bad times, he IS ready. Tonight when I was snuggling him, I told him I was so sorry that his life had been so bad but now... LIFE IS GOOD!