Lucky Dog, The One That Got Away

by MARY HAIGHT on DancingDogBlog.com originally published  SEPTEMBER 1, 2012

I was watching the stray dog wranglers do their work, capture and cage them. I thought each one was a lucky dog who would feel so much better after being checked and treated for any obvious problems, all part of the Amazon CARES spay/neuter program. 

There was one little dog who wasn’t taking his capture well. He watched how the lid on the cage had to be opened and just how far as each new animal was added. He saw his moment and jumped up to meet the gloved hand of one of the handlers. Undeterred, the little dog jumped and bit, jumped and bit, jumped and bit, relentless in his effort until the offending hand moved enough for him to leap to “safety”. “No cages for me, I’m free” he seemed to say as we saw his backside scampering down the lane… 

From the other side of the cage, a little brown and black terrier type “got away” in a very different sense. One of the vets, Jackie Imai decided she would take this quiet little dog back to California once she was well and the summer heat passed. The dog with no name had no idea she would be winning the doggy lotto the day that net came down and swooped her up =) 

This lucky dog got a flea treatment, prednisone, was fixed and is recovering well. She got a new basket lined with a towel and took to her new place with the vet as if she knew it was her destiny. She looked to Jackie for everything – she was her provider, her “person”. 

There was no convenient pet store for a collar and leash, so the dog had to be free to have a little walk and relieve herself. She always came back when Jackie called. She stayed overnight in the hotel and was quiet and unobtrusive there and in the boat going to Nauta, as if she did not want to jinx her good luck. 

I’ve seen a lot of dogs who knew they had been saved and were thankful, but it had been awhile since I had seen such a strong, fast bond form…a particularly wonderful memory of this jungle trip with Amazon CARES.