One Dog Day - 2/25/12

Talk about an emotionally draining weekend...

I was hoping to write a post tonight entitled "Dog Days Ahead", but unfortunately my plans went awry.  It all began early in the week when I talked Leesa into the idea of adopting a dog from a shelter.  On Wednesday, 2/22, I went and looked at "Dawson", a collie/hound mix.  He was quite a nervous frightened looking dog, but he was beautiful.

Thursday night I decided he was the one, so I went with my two sons and picked him up at the shelter at noon on Friday.  Yes... he was nervous.  The shelter worker had to place him in my car.  About 10 minutes later he peed on the sheet I had put on the back seat.  We made it home OK otherwise.  He was nervous entering the house, but he went in.  He walked around and wouldn't sit on the dog bed I bought him, but he liked sitting on the rugs.

Dawson in the Dining Room

In the early evening, he did step into the dog bed and lay down.  He was still quite nervous and didn't know what to make of us all.  He was housebroken, and knew the commands "sit", "come" and "lie down".  He also walked well on a leash.  He was not rambunctious, but hopefully was an energetic 2-1/2 year old young dog. 

Zack with Dawson

We all slept without issue.  I heard him go up and down the stairs at 4:30 in the morning and I went outside with him in case he needed to to his business.  I then went back to sleep until 6:30. 

Dawson in the Living Room

The shelter told me he might not eat for a day or two, but I put out some food for him.  He didn't eat or drink.  A little bit later in the morning we decided to go for a short hike with him to see how he would do.

We selected Baxter Mountain, in Keene, NY for our hike.  It would be a short 1.1 mile hike from Route 9N, with 770 vertical.  We started up the trail about 10:30 in the morning.  Leesa was in front, followed by my two sons, then myself with Dawson on the leash.  When we were about 50 yards from the summit, Dawson backed away and pulled him head out of the collar.  He quickly ran off heading back down the trail.

The Trailhead sign

A second sign at the Trailhead

We quickly followed him, but his tracks veered off the trail.  I told my son to head for the car and that I would follow his tracks for awhile.  It was obvious that he was running, and he quickly headed through some thick brush that I would not be able to follow him through.

The one trail junction along this route

Discouraged, we all met back at the car.  We drove up and down Route 9N for awhile looking for him and did not see him.  We took a break and went for lunch at the Noonmark Diner in Keene.  We then went back to the trailhead and started walking back in.  Within a minute, we saw him again, but to our dismay, he bolted again and ran across Route 9N to the north side.  He then turned and ran east.  I followed his tracks for a mile or so and didn't see him again.

Discouraged once again, we headed for home as darkness approached.  I had to work at Gore Mountain today, but Leesa went back to the location today to look for him again.  She ran into the Animal Control Officer, who had seen him twice today on Route 9N (a little closer to Keene), but he ran off both times.   

Leesa left some lost dog notices in town and now there are multiple people watching for him.  Hopefully he can be reclaimed.  We're all worried about his safety in the cold, and without food.  He no longer has his collar on, but he was microchipped, so if he ends up at a shelter, we should be notified.  We'll just have to sit tight and wait.  It really stinks.  We had our dog for 24 hours.  We're still hoping he'll be found, but I don't know what the chances are. 

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Our short hike route in blue