Posted on 01/10/2005 8:31:45 PM PST by Shermy
Jill Slevin didn't want to tell her kids Wednesday that she had pretty much given up hope of finding their dog Freddie alive.
The Pekingese mix had disappeared a week earlier. And an extensive search over the course of several below-zero nights had proved futile. "We had a lot of weepy eyes over the New Year's weekend," Slevin said Wednesday of her three children.
But then, miraculously, Freddie showed up at the door of their home north of Bozeman at noon Wednesday -- one week after he had disappeared.
He was covered with ice, riddled with bug bites and had cuts around his neck.
Slevin immediately put Freddie on a blanket and quickly took him to Valley View Veterinary Hospital, where veterinarian John McIlhattan checked out the wounded dog.
The cuts led McIlhattan to determine that the little dog had been picked up by an eagle. The marks were in fact caused by an eagle digging its talons into Freddie's neck.
The eagle likely dropped Freddie at some point, leaving the dog to find his way home. McIlhattan surmised that the dog then found some type of shelter and bedding to stay warm for a week. Whatever he was lying on, however, was likely infested with bugs, which bit his belly up terribly.
But the tradeoff was probably worth it because the bedding was vital for keeping Freddie warm, the vet said.
"He's a pretty lucky dog to be getting home in this kind of weather," he said.
He also said he was surprised how well the 13-year-old dog had endured his ordeal.
"He was chilled, but he seemed to be able to walk," McIlhattan said. "He seemed remarkably chipper for what he'd been through."
Freddie also suffered a scratch on the cornea, and lost three pounds.
He was last seen in a neighbor's driveway late in the afternoon of Wednesday, Dec. 29, Slevin said. The neighbors joined the Slevins in searching for the pooch for several days, but to no avail.
Slevin plastered town with posters and ran an ad in the Chronicle looking for any clues to Freddie's whereabouts, but no one had seen a thing.
Then, a week later, one of the family's other dogs began whimpering and barking. Slevin looked outside and discovered Freddie at the door.
By afternoon, Slevin's three children were busy pampering a sedated Freddie, stroking his head as the dog nursed his wounds while lying on a blanket.
"We're all just amazed," she said. "He's our miracle."
:(
LOL
I learned everything I know about doggies from my ex....oddly, it was the relationship's most redeeming quality.
I'm with you...When I had my poms I wouldn't let them out if I saw the crows. I always imagined them swooping down and grabbing my boys. It might be "The Birds" but I prefer to blame it on prudence!
Thank you.
I pray that he will either be found alive (a miracle at this stage), or that his family will find his body, so they will get some sort of closure.
Iridescent green wings on the back porch. Someone's pet bird isn't going home again. We don't know which dog has a taste for bird, but one of them does.
/john
Prayers up!
Try to stay happy, gal. When you can.
A neighbor of mine watched helplessly as a hawk grabbed his Yorkie from the yard and took it away. It didn't come back. Our small dogs are NEVER outside without a leash.
I do have a couple of outside cats I was concerned about when a large hawk took up residence in a tree overlooking my yard. The hawk chose a poor place to hang out.
MM
Sometimes there's so many of them it's overwhelming. Glad to see somebody on my side next time my husband laughs at me. Of course, now I'll have nightmares.
Oh my heart is so happy for these people! I was taking care of my friend's dog, and it got loose. It was the worst hour hours of my life. I mean it. This poor little doggie didn't know where it was and we had no idea where to even begin looking. I know you won't believe this, but I got on my hands and knees and I prayed to God to help me find this dog. I was shaking. I just started roaming the neighborhood. There's just so many places this dog could have ran, one of the directions would have been right onto the highway. After about an hour, I saw two people walking and I asked them if they saw a little white dog. They said YES! They said about 15 minutes before they saw a white dog go THATAWAY, pointing up their street. (This was a neighborhood about a mile away!). I drove up the street and saw two more people on that street. I asked them the same question and they pointed and there was the dog. It took another 10 minutes for me to chase down the dog who was just crazy with fear and was running wildly up and down the street. It was truly an act of God I will never forget. I only saw four people in a two mile radius that morning, and they had all seen the dog. It was unbelievable.
Zer vuss, macht's gut.
Etz'at, ma'klur.
This early-onset alzheimers is kicking my butt. No, Kicking bird. No, Kicking...oh, forget it.
My friend's little dog was swooped up by a hawk right from their patio (they live in the country). It was so sad--she said all that was left was a little puddle on the patio floor.
I only have enough German to fake it. Was ist das? The song in my tagline?
Thank you!
We're all praying for him. Not a lot else we can do for him, at this distance.
What the wildlife biologist reported:
Given the small size of the dog, I'm pretty sure it was not a lion. That's something the dog would not be able to survive.
It's hard to tell distances in the photos, but one does suggest claw marks, which probably eliminates a coyote. I would guess a bobcat may have done this. Terriers are pretty tough dogs and I'm sure this one put up a good enough fight to get away.
Lucky dog.
On a similar note, a few days ago I had quite a surprise when, as I was walking along a sidewalk at the local university, a huge hawk *exploded* out from between a couple of boxwood bushes, clutching a squirrel. There was a brief rustle, then the next second it was all this amazing predator bird getting airborn and leaves scattering around and the poor squirrel being hauled away. It happened maybe ten feet away from me. My heart about jumped into my throat. As I walked off the adrenaline, I couldn't help but think, wow, the lions and the wildebeasts on the Discovery Channel have nothing on this little episode. And who would have expected such a thing on a college campus sitting on the edge of downtown?
I live in the exurbs, on a gravel road. No leash law, and neighborhood dogs are free to roam. All are friendly, both toward humans and mostly toward each other (probably because they're allowed to roam). My dog, a 4-year-old Weimaraner named Atlas, weighs 85 pounds. My neighbor has a young Mastiff who is nearing, and may exceed, twice Atlas's weight. And the "boss" of the neighborhood? Well, that would be Buster. He's 14 years old, part Manchester Terrier and part Miniature Pinscher, maybe 7 pounds, to be generous.
All of the big dogs defer to Buster, whether it's a matter of who gets the stick, or who gets to greet the new female first, or who gets to be petted first by the next human who happens along.
BTTT
I am so sorry...
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