A Celebration of Tripods
I really loved the video of Hanzo and I didn't want us to get too off track on the "checking in" thread.
Hanzo is clearly a great example of the strength of spirit of our canine companions.
I have no shortage of sad stories of people who have dumped wonderful dogs after they lost a leg. The worst being the people who dumped their 8 month old beagle puppy after he got hit by a car saying they wanted a "whole" dog.
But let me share with you my favorite tripod!!!
A long time ago I was living in New York City. I was walking to the post office just off Avenue B when I saw a HUGE 3 legged pit bull tied to a parking meter. He was smiling and hopping up and down. And she eemed so happy he was practically glowing. I walked up to him and even though he was a little short on limb, he had no shortage of power. I was knocked on my butt so quick I had to laugh. I was immediately underneath the behemoth of a pup and being slobbered on with reckless abandon. Suddenly I hear,"Hey! (I forget what his names was but I remember it meant "Miracle" in Hawaiian, Pam?) get off that girl!". He steps off me and sits sweetly next to his owner. The man apologizes to me for his dogs exuberance. I tell him, it is no big deal and that honestly I was kind of honored. I ask him if he could tell me what happened to his leg. And he explains that he and his dog are from Hawaii (the man was of Polynesian descent and told me his whole family is still there, and had been for hundreds of years). The two of them used to go cliff diving all the time. One time the dog leaps off a cliff and hits a rock and shatters his leg. His owner goes and dives in after him. After the dog heals he continues to cliff dive with his owner until they move to New York. As far as this dog could tell, his life was exactly as it should be. He still had nothing but love in his heart and a smile on his face. This dog and his owner were special enough that I am sad I never ran into them again and I take the story with me to this day 15 years later.
As if we didn't already know this, we have a lot to learn from dogs.
Hanzo is clearly a great example of the strength of spirit of our canine companions.
I have no shortage of sad stories of people who have dumped wonderful dogs after they lost a leg. The worst being the people who dumped their 8 month old beagle puppy after he got hit by a car saying they wanted a "whole" dog.
But let me share with you my favorite tripod!!!
A long time ago I was living in New York City. I was walking to the post office just off Avenue B when I saw a HUGE 3 legged pit bull tied to a parking meter. He was smiling and hopping up and down. And she eemed so happy he was practically glowing. I walked up to him and even though he was a little short on limb, he had no shortage of power. I was knocked on my butt so quick I had to laugh. I was immediately underneath the behemoth of a pup and being slobbered on with reckless abandon. Suddenly I hear,"Hey! (I forget what his names was but I remember it meant "Miracle" in Hawaiian, Pam?) get off that girl!". He steps off me and sits sweetly next to his owner. The man apologizes to me for his dogs exuberance. I tell him, it is no big deal and that honestly I was kind of honored. I ask him if he could tell me what happened to his leg. And he explains that he and his dog are from Hawaii (the man was of Polynesian descent and told me his whole family is still there, and had been for hundreds of years). The two of them used to go cliff diving all the time. One time the dog leaps off a cliff and hits a rock and shatters his leg. His owner goes and dives in after him. After the dog heals he continues to cliff dive with his owner until they move to New York. As far as this dog could tell, his life was exactly as it should be. He still had nothing but love in his heart and a smile on his face. This dog and his owner were special enough that I am sad I never ran into them again and I take the story with me to this day 15 years later.
As if we didn't already know this, we have a lot to learn from dogs.
Comments
I've never met a tripod before, but I did walk by a dog with both hind legs non-functioning a few times. He had one of the cart things. He and his owner would walk through the local park near my parents house and take a break to roll around in the grass together. His owner would let him out of his cart so he could fully enjoy the grass time. It didn't slow him down a bit. He would eagerly chase after people, leaves, balls, whomever or whatever sparked his interest....the whole time dragging his back half along the ground. It was one of those situations where objectively you want to feel sad, but there was no way this dog was going to allow people to feel bad for it. I saw that dog daily for a week when I was last visiting my parents, and each time it put a smile on my face for hours. That dog truly had a will to live and, more importantly, to be happy that could inspire just about anyone. If I ever see that guy again, I'm going to ask him if he does therapy with his dog. I can just imagine how a pediatric oncology patient would react to seeing a handicapped dog with so much joy and happiness.
Great thread Jess!
We see a "tripod" doggie at the off-leash park sometimes. She is amazing... one of herding breeds but a mix, I think (collie and something else -- long-haired, very pretty! -- likely in the 40+ lb. range)... Interesting thing is I often forget she is missing one of her hind legs if I am looking at her from the "whole side". She loves to run, and herd the other dogs, and engage in "body-to-body" contact sports with the other dogs. There is no slowing her down --- she keeps up with all the other doggies, large and small and medium! She is truly awe-inspiring and a joy to be in the park when she is there.
Sorry to hijack your thread, Jessica, but there is one dog story that really touched my heart. As you all know, I rescued Keigo from the Akita Rescue of West New York. A few weeks later, I found out they had Magnum.
This beautiful, sweet gentle giant was left in his owners home WHILE they sprayed for Roaches. As a result, Magnum lost his vision. The owners still had time to save Magnum's sight. Instead, they carted him off to the Akita Rescue during off hours and tied him up to a tree til morning!!! IN JANUARY!
Luckily, a kind soul rescued Magnum almost immediately and he has been (when I last heard) a wonderful, happy amazing dog.
Any dog with a disability can live an full, enriched, happy life.
Jess - I don't know the Hawaiian word for Miracle but I tried some online translation engines: Do any of these sound familiar?
Miracle - Milakale
miracle - Hana mana.
Maybe Derek or diggah would be better at this!
A good friend has a Samoyed named Misty who, at age three, lost one eye to glaucoma. This is apparently one of the things purebred Samoyed's are prone to, and further I recall that her dog was the product of some terrible breeder mill. We won't go down that path again here. Nevertheless, in spite of the eye issues Misty has led a happy life and has had one glass eye for many years. About 2 years ago (about age 11) due to another health issue Misty lost sight in her other eye. (I'm not recalling the exact cause, but right around that time she also fell victim to the dog food with the poisons in it, and had kidney problems, etc. This may have been a contributing cause, or perhaps just weakened immune system due to the poisoning.) Anyway, Misty made it through all that, and is thriving and leading a happy life. Amazing to me: She is able to navigate stairs, both in her own "owners" home, is not afraid of stairs in new places (for example, on a visit to the farm last fall she followed her owner upstairs, and also took a trip down into the basement due to the enticing smells down there, no doubt)... My friend leads a busy life on the weekends and summertime, taking lots of road trips and tenting or staying in motels. Misty accompanies her everywhere, just about, with no particular challenges to herself or her owner. I do know that my friend is careful to keep her on leash most of the time, as she seems to know no fear in spite of the blindness. Ocassionally she is startled because of the lack of sight, but that simmers down right away when the "scent" kicks in. I agree --- dogs with disabilities of all sorts can lead a joyful life, and continue to bring joy into the lives of their "people".
He was always very calm around me.
The lady of course had no money for treatment so she ended up signing the dog over to us for care. The doctor scolded the lady and told her "you should never own another pet in the future, not even a guinea pig. This is really disgusting that you let you dog's condition get to this point" Even the lady's 10 year old son was crying and told one of the staff members that he told his mom to bring the dog to the doctor sooner. The doctor ended up making a police report for animal abuse and neglect against this lady too.
Well, the cocker ended up having surgery to amputate his front leg. They shaved him down and he looked like a real dog again for the first time in god knows how long, you could see his face and eyes and throughout the entire ordeal, this dog was as sweet as could be even though he had been going through excrutiating pain for weeks, maybe even months. The doctor named him Cody, and he eventually was adopted out to a nice family that spoils the crap out of him.
We used to bring him up to the front desk on slower days and set up a bed and toys for him and he would hang out with us in reception for hours, and I'll never forget how sweet and calm he was. He loved being kissed on the forehead and sat very quietly just watching us and spending time with all of us. That dog taught a lot of us the true meaning of forgiveness and patience and I'll never forget him!
Hanzo is very self sufficient, perhaps from being a stray or perhaps he always was, and he will continue to be so while he gets his strength back. He's an amazing creature and recently we've had some upheaval to our 'best laid plans' and although it sounds corny - getting to know Hanzo as more than a 7 year old 3 legged stray shelter dog but as a fighter, a survivor, enjoying every minute of his new home setting, something who got a raw deal in life but kept on living and all he wants (and most certainly deserves) is someone... someone to sleep next to, someone to massage his bones, someone to mix his food, someone to hold the other end of the toy, someone to get excited for... just someone to live for. Thats all he wants and I swear that is what I will find him. He taught me, already, to accept the life we are given and make the most of it, even when it goes against 'the plan'. Even my mother, who breathes down my neck whenever we pull and foster another dog - once she met him, looking into his weathered face and saw what I see, she understood. No one should leave him behind, no one should look past his 'handicaps', he deserves to be a priority. He is an incredible dog to have known even in this short amount of time.