My puppy. I love her dearly. For those of you who are dog lovers, I’m sure you would agree with me when I say that you’d do just about anything to keep your dog out of harm’s way. This includes doing things that you never thought were possible for your body.
You see, I have a puppy who is always looking for a way to escape. The great outdoors is one massive dog park to Bella. No matter if it’s a wide-open neighbourhood street, a school playground, cottage country, or a massive apartment complex with endless grass, fields and forest, Bella loves her freedom in the outdoors, and looks for any opportunity to put nose to the ground and (Usain) bolt.
Yesterday, my sweet puppy gave me yet another chance (chance number 5 to be exact) to discover I can run (almost) as fast as Usain Bolt. Who knew my middle-aged legs were made for sprinting?
While at my Aunt’s condo complex yesterday morning, I had to pack a few things into my car out in the parking lot. Bella was sitting in the front seat…or so I thought. You’ve heard the saying “it only takes seconds for something to happen”? I found out how true this was. In the blink of an eye, Bella bolted out the back door and past me. While lifting a box into the back seat, I hadn’t even noticed she had exited the car! I quickly turned around to see her at the other end of the parking lot, rounding the corner of the building. My heart sank. My Aunt’s condo is a busy place. Lots of cars, 3 different buildings on a massive lot…and surrounded by endless fields and forest. I truly thought, that’s it, I’ve just lost my puppy.
Of course my first thought was to tear after her. I don’t think I’ve ever run as fast as I did yesterday, and certainly never in the sandals I was wearing. Lucky for me, there were two young guys working on the landscaping around the buildings. One saw me in total panic mode running after Bella. He immediately hopped off his lawnmower and came to my rescue. He ran around the other side of the building and alerted his co-worker who joined in on the chase. It didn’t take them long to corral Bella, and get her running back towards me. Problem is, you can’t catch Bella when she is running. I knew she’d come within 10 feet of me, then veer off in another direction, not wanting this game of chase to end. So I did the only thing I thought would work. I ran towards the front door of one of the buildings. I swung open the door, ran inside and….thank goodness…she followed right behind.
So back outside I went, holding Bella in my arms with Herculean-strength grip, and we went over to thank the guys who had helped me catch her. I was so incredibly grateful for their help. I really don’t think they know how thankful I am for what they did. One of the young guys told me he understood how I felt when Bella escaped. He said he once spent 3 hours chasing his own dog who had escaped from him.
So there I was, walking back to my car, feeling like I had just run a marathon that I had never trained for. I was exhausted but didn’t care. I was feeling such an overwhelming sense of happiness and relief that I had just gotten my puppy back.
Then SHE appeared. The Condo Watchdog. You know…the “I know all the condo rules and I will make sure you follow them” condo dweller. Yes, after 5 terrifying and exhausting minutes of chasing down my puppy, I had the Condo Watchdog yelling “HEY!” to me as I was walking back to my car. I turned around as she walked towards me. “You are NOT supposed to have a dog on this property!” she says to me. “There are signs stating that” Seriously? Did this woman think I was chasing my dog all over the property for fun??? It took all my remaining strength to remain calm and keep my hands wrapped around my dog instead of around her neck. Instead, I lit into a rant of “How dare you…”, turned around and walked away. Wish I could have taken a picture of the look of shock on her face.
As for Bella? No more freedom for her. She’s now a permanently leashed puppy…even in the car.
