Almost killed myself in "Rescue" attempt :(

[CowGirlUp1833]

Every time I see a stray dog I'm compelled to stop. I've helped probably 1/2 dozen pets find thier owners.... but a couple weeks ago I saw a stray dog and pulled over to try and catch it. (No tags that I could see) He was running down a busy road so I didn't want him to get hit. I chased him down about 10 side streets in my van until finally I headed him off by pulling in a driveway. I threw my van in park and jumped out.

ONLY IT WASN'T IN PARK, It lurched forward with me 1/2 in and 1/2 out and pinned me inside between the door and a fence! I was able to get my foot to the brake (thank God!) but I was pinned. I reached out and pulled it into reverse and got unstuck, then swung back in, hit the brake again and parked it.

Then I just sat there is shock! "What do I do now?!" I looked around, the stray dog was no where in sight. So after a minute, looking at the mangled fence, I decided the right thing to do was go tell the homeowner and offer to pay for it (But I'm in the GETTO of Grand Rapids) so I'm afraid to go up to the door or walk thru the neighborhood. So I knocked, no one answered after a few minutes...so I left. I called my boyfriend and freaked out...that could have been SO bad...what if I got knocked UNDER the van or somthing! ***Shutters*** I vowed I was done chasing stray dogs.

But this morning I saw another dog running down a busy street downtown. I hit the brake but then my experience with the fence flashed through my mind...I kept going.... do you think I made the right choice? I'll feel guilty for a week now!

[dobermom]

Of course you made the right decision. You cant help them all, and its not your fault they are homeless. If your going to risk your own safety, in my opinion it not worth it! All of us wish we could help each and every stray, but its not possible. If it will make you feel better maybe you could make a donation of food, money, or your time to your local humane society.
Dont feel bad!

[CowGirlUp1833]

Originally Posted by dobermom

Of course you made the right decision. You cant help them all, and its not your fault they are homeless. If your going to risk your own safety, in my opinion it not worth it! All of us wish we could help each and every stray, but its not possible. If it will make you fell better maybe you could make a donation of food, money, or your time to your local humane society.
Dont feel bad!

I am fortunate to live close to our local Humane Society. I am a volunteer "walker" and I give food whenever I can... I just worry about those poor pups in the street. I love my shepard puppy to hit-by-car last year so I feel like in a way I'm helping her, does that make sense?

[Dax]

If you have ever taken a first aid course there is a rule that you must first make sure the situation is safe for yourself before offering aid. It is a good rule of thumb even when helping animals.

{In my best motherly voice}"Be careful silly-- we like having you around!"

[CowGirlUp1833]

Originally Posted by DaxAriel's Toy

If you have ever taken a first aid course there is a rule that you must first make sure the situation is safe for yourself before offering aid. It is a good rule of thumb even when helping animals.

{In my best motherly voice}"Be careful silly-- we like having you around!"

LOL I know! I just forget everything in reason when I see a stray that "needs" my help. LOL My parents panicked when I first joined the Humane Society...they were sure I'd bring home all the pets that didn't find homes. LOL...."No" I told them.... "Just the dogs". LMAO I've had several from the Humane Society...loved them all! I want to open a boarding kennel someday, but I'm told it will bankrupt cause I'll have it filled up with rescues! LOL

[ChandraRae]

The other thing to remember besides Dax' motherly advice is that not all dogs that have no tags are strays. I believe that if you help those you can, that's great. Chasing one down to help might get you in more trouble.. if that dog belongs to someone and either his tags have fallen off or the owner is too lazy to make sure the dog is tagged, you could get in a situation where the dog's owner sees you trying to load the dog up in your van and gets upset.

I'd say keep on volunteering and educate people about IDing their dogs where you can

[CowGirlUp1833]

Originally Posted by ChandraRae

The other thing to remember besides Dax' motherly advice is that not all dogs that have no tags are strays. I believe that if you help those you can, that's great. Chasing one down to help might get you in more trouble.. if that dog belongs to someone and either his tags have fallen off or the owner is too lazy to make sure the dog is tagged, you could get in a situation where the dog's owner sees you trying to load the dog up in your van and gets upset.

I'd say keep on volunteering and educate people about IDing their dogs where you can

yeah...well, the ones I'm talking about are usually in a commerical/industrial area.... If it is in a residential place I'll usually watch for a bit to make sure they aren't strays....but strays act different, you know? You can usually tell....

[Dax]

CG – you sound a lot like me. I’m always finding dogs and taking them home we live on an off the leash area and it’s amazing how many dogs find their way back there.

Yesterday at the dog park, we found an old black pug. No tags No collar. She was jus wandering around and ended up in the parking lot. Of course I scooped the little baby up. Another regular thought it was a dog from one of the houses that line the golf course so we walked over. Now this was not a puppy it had quite a bit of grey on the muzzle. I could see from the condition of her nails that someone stopped loving her long ago. They were a mess.

Anyway while we were walking the owner started calling for their dog. They were on the other side of the dog park with their “new” dogs. Playing catch with their poodles. Anyway, I give the lady back her dog and she starts saying what a stupid dog it is and how it doesn’t know which group to follow and she keeps that up for several minutes. Now I could tell she did not like this dog from everything she did & how she acted. I should have kept it and ran. What kind of owner can’t keep track of two dogs. They are either with you or not. You certainly would know in the hour she was there that the dog wasn’t with her. The way she tossed that dog into the backseat – if I ever see it loose again, it’s coming home with me where we at least love our old dogs as much as our puppies.

Anyway your story reminded me (it was only last nite) and shows sometimes these dogs would be better off lost. ~ rant ends ~

[CowGirlUp1833]

Thats terrible. We say this all the time on the horse forum...but people should have to be licensed to own [horses] dogs. (Pre approval) Its sad.

[Chris Paris]

I think the lesson here isn't that you should stop rescuing dogs, but just make sure your van is parked properly before jumping out. The same thing might happen when you get out of the van for some other reason!

This is more a lesson about auto safety than anything else. I have had quite a few vehicles in my life that "felt" like they were in park when they weren't. I've just trained myself to make sure the car is stopped and properly parked now.

As someone who rescues dogs and cats a lot, I can empathize and wouldn't want you to stop rescuing them over this one-time incident.