Gunner Part One
Yesterday Luna and I went for our usual 4:30 a.m. walk in the neighborhood. Apart from it being too humid it was pleasant enough. About half way through the walk we acquired company. A little fellow trotted on up to us and walked the whole way home. I’d say he followed us but he sort of led the way…he is a cute little guy…a little smaller than Luna, some kind of mix…Australian Shepherd/German Shepherd/Collie mix…not an expert, so I don’t completely know. When I bent down to see if he had a collar he leaned into me as if we were old mates. At the house I left him at the front door and went to set the sprinkler for the back yard…he heard me…the gate hadn’t been closed since the last time it was cut, so he helped himself. I went to shower and get ready for work thinking that he’d go continue his walkabout. When I went to put the trash out, there he was by the front door, head on his paws, looking at me like, “are you going to let me in, or what?”
So, of course I wigged out a little…WHAT DO I DO? I called my sister (the family dog-whisperer) and she calmly gave me some suggestions…post it on Nextdoor (done), see if he’s still there when I get back from work. I had errands to run, so I got home around three…I drove by the front of the house (where I’d seen him last): nothing. I looked in the driveway as I pulled into the garage: nothing. I enter the house…Luna is wagging her whole body as she usually does when I get home. Only she doesn’t stick around for my normal adoration…she bounds to the back door…and this other dog is sitting on the back porch, tail wagging. I LOCKED MY GATE BEFORE I LEFT FOR WORK. I know he wasn’t in the yard!
Anyway, I fed and watered both of them…then I took him to the shelter to see if he was micro-chipped. He is…the guy who registered the chip says the dog’s name is Gunner and that he (the man) had given him away two months ago. His wife would call back with the number of the new owner. Meanwhile, Gunner is climbing on my lap, tail tucked between his legs…I get the feeling he’d maybe been there before. I decided to bring him home until the new owner could be found. I just couldn’t leave him in the shelter.
He is smart, has some tricks up his sleeve, and is not quite as needy as some other dogs in our family. I slept out on the couch so there’d be no fight over territory from Luna….
