When he was first rescued, he had been "running" for who knows how long, and he was so exhausted he just collapsed in the driveway of the boss' home. Rufus, a golden retriever/chow mix, looked like a male lion with a gorgeous plumed tail. When we took the job, we were warned that if he ever got loose he would run and not return.
I use the food drive and teach a "kennel" command to give the dogs structure and let them know that their kennels are a safe, comfortable, and food friendly place to be. Rufus spent a couple of years with us and this command was a part of his daily life.
He got adopted by a great family, and they were told that he would need plenty of exercise and in view of the change in environment, to be sure they had him on a leash or in the back yard till he was sure where "home" was. About two weeks after they adopted him, they opened the front door, and Rufus ran out. They tried to run him down and that drove him farther away.
The phone rang and the rescue coordinator called to say she needed us to come to the west side of town as he had been spotted in a bean field and wouldn't respond. He had managed to safely navigate 3 major roadways and elude the efforts of several people who were trying to help him.
We loaded up Jessi, our Dream Team captain, and drove to the property. He wasn't interested in teaming up with Jessi, but we could see the movement of the bean field - much the same color as Rufus at that time of year - he was moving farther west. The field was bordered on the west and north by a fence, and the south by a housing development and another street.
The rescue coordinator and I got in the car and headed west to the last house on the block - at the end of the bean field and before the fence. It was nearly dark when we knocked on the door to ask if they had seen Rufus and if we could look behind their house. They had seen a dog that fit the description, but had no idea where he might be. We moved around the house to the back and into the edge of the field. It was too dark to see the beans moving now. We couldn't see him anywhere, and calling his name was not producing any results.
We decided to give calling him one more try, and from somewhere inside me came the words "kennel, Rufus, kennel". I heard a rustling behind me and turned around, and out from under an evergreen with branches that hung on the ground, came Rufus and straight into my arms. He was unhurt and mighty glad to get into the car for the trip back to his home.
I use the food drive and teach a "kennel" command to give the dogs structure and let them know that their kennels are a safe, comfortable, and food friendly place to be. Rufus spent a couple of years with us and this command was a part of his daily life.
He got adopted by a great family, and they were told that he would need plenty of exercise and in view of the change in environment, to be sure they had him on a leash or in the back yard till he was sure where "home" was. About two weeks after they adopted him, they opened the front door, and Rufus ran out. They tried to run him down and that drove him farther away.
The phone rang and the rescue coordinator called to say she needed us to come to the west side of town as he had been spotted in a bean field and wouldn't respond. He had managed to safely navigate 3 major roadways and elude the efforts of several people who were trying to help him.
We loaded up Jessi, our Dream Team captain, and drove to the property. He wasn't interested in teaming up with Jessi, but we could see the movement of the bean field - much the same color as Rufus at that time of year - he was moving farther west. The field was bordered on the west and north by a fence, and the south by a housing development and another street.
The rescue coordinator and I got in the car and headed west to the last house on the block - at the end of the bean field and before the fence. It was nearly dark when we knocked on the door to ask if they had seen Rufus and if we could look behind their house. They had seen a dog that fit the description, but had no idea where he might be. We moved around the house to the back and into the edge of the field. It was too dark to see the beans moving now. We couldn't see him anywhere, and calling his name was not producing any results.
We decided to give calling him one more try, and from somewhere inside me came the words "kennel, Rufus, kennel". I heard a rustling behind me and turned around, and out from under an evergreen with branches that hung on the ground, came Rufus and straight into my arms. He was unhurt and mighty glad to get into the car for the trip back to his home.
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