The Good, the Sad, and the Unfair!

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

Vern’s birthday was January 10, 2014.  He turned four. That is some of the good news.  The bad news, which ended with good news, happened the day before his birthday.  On that day, like we always do, the dogs and I went walking. I opted to take them to the campground to walk and then I did something I never do.  Usually, we go home after our walk, but I decided to take them across the street to the pier where we park our boat in the warmer weather.  It is an E shaped pier and the only way off is across a little metal bridge and normally, I block access to the bridge after they cross it and let them off leash.  They can run all over the pier with wild abandon and it makes me smile to see Fudge take off down the pier with her graceful, reindeer like prance, a moment after she realizes she is off leash and free as a bird. 

Vern lops along behind her and they like to stop and taunt each other, play bow, and mix it up a little.

Yesterday, I took them to the farthest place on the pier before letting them loose and then watched them go.  Both dogs came back when called and Vern reached me first.  I was snapping shots of Fudge with Vern beside me and in the blink of an eye, Vern stepped off the pier and onto the partially iced over lake.  Never has Vern jumped off of the pier into the water. Both of my dogs wade into the water, but are not dock divers and neither will jump into the water from our boat. This was so completely unexpected and I could see it happening as if in slow motion, but I couldn’t stop him and before I knew it Vern was standing on a block of ice within feet of icy water where the lake had not frozen over. All 100 pounds of him!

At this spot, but taken a few days later!

I reacted badly. I didn’t think to yell anything sane, but the panic in my voice reached him somehow as I yelled, “oh my God, Vern, oh no,” because he froze.  The other good news was Fudge kind of froze, too.  She stayed put and did not decide to use Vern’s predicament and my rescue attempt as a diversionary tactic to make her way around me and off of the pier.   With more strength than I knew I had, I pulled Vern up onto the pier. I acted on sheer instinct, and it was only after the fact that I felt the whole weight of “what could have happened?” Vern is a big boy. He stepped down onto the ice and luckily the ice held.  A few feet away it was icy water and the water below him was very deep.  We were a long way from shore and I could never have lifted a soaking wet Vern onto the pier if he had gone into the water.  The water was far too cold for Vern to make it all the way to shore. It was far too cold for a human to jump in and help and really could have been the difference between life or death for me if I had tried. Nobody else was around to hear any cries for help. The “what ifs” could keep me up for days if I let them, but like John said he is safe and everything turned out ok in the end.  Fudge knew it was serious and was wonderful in this tough situation and once Vern was safe, I held them close and told them how much I loved them.

 

Accidents can happen in the blink of an eye.  We have done this “pier thing” lots of times and never had any kind of problem.  By now most of you have read about Max, the dog in the DRC that was tragically killed by a hunter’s stray bullet.  We live in a heavily wooded area and hunting is huge in Pennsylvania. The schools in our area close down for the first day of hunting season.  They hunt in the field right next door to our house.  It is not unusual to hear the booms of rifles all around us.  My neighbor called me this year after setting up a camera in the woods to keep track of the deer and upon review of the first pictures spotted Laurie, Fudge, and Vern walking in the field.  He asked his wife to call me and let me know it was not safe to walk there during the hunting season.  I was under the stupid assumption that no one could be dumb enough to mistake one large woman and two dogs on a leash for deer, but I was wrong. I am a city girl learning it happens all the time. Max probably played outside in that same yard lots of times with no problems and again the “what ifs” are probably haunting his remarkable foster family.  I have no answers for why Vern was safe on the ice and Max was unsafe in his own yard and I can’t help but be thankful for the one and saddened by the other.  The fate of dogs always rest on humans making the right or wrong choices and decisions and sometimes, just dumb luck is involved. 

 

I loved that show Touched by an Angel and I always loved the way it depicted God’s loving hand and his angels guiding the dead towards the light and heaven beyond. I am going to believe that Max was guided along his way that day and left this world knowing what it was like to be loved and cared for by his foster family and is now in a better place. We have all made choices in our lives that we wished we had not and we’ve all done something careless that we wished we could take back.  I don’t know what happened that day with that hunter or what he thought he was doing and I can only hope it was a mindless accident, but stories like this always make me think about timing and fate.  If only that hunter had opted to stay home that day.  If only Max had been standing one foot to the left.  And then we have Vern’s story.  Thank God I was standing right there.  Thank God the ice held.  All these thoughts could make a person go crazy and I have no answers why one story had a happy ending and one story didn’t.  It just happened that way.  As my kids used to tell me all the time, “It’s not fair!” when they felt I had doled out the wrong punishment to the wrong kid.  This time I have no smart, motherly reply back.  It really isn’t fair.  Sometimes, the world makes no sense to me.

[F, Calla & Luca]

Honestly, when I have seen your dock pictures in the past I have had thoughts of dogs overboard. Thank goodness Vern is safe. I cannot imagine how you hauled him up. I doubt I could have hauled up even Calla. but fear gives us lots of adrenaline strength and maybe that did it. I am so glad it ended well!

[cheryl & oliver]

OMD, Laurie, as I started to read, I kept getting more afraid to read once I read that he ran and landed on the ice with freezing water so close by...I am so happy that Vern is ok, and that you somehow had the srength to pull him out..I am sure you were able tp do that with just pure adrenilin flowing with the fear in you...I prob. would have hugged and cried with the two of them, and would be shaking for hrs. after...Please hug Vern for me real tightly, and an extra hug for fudge for being such a good girl...I am sure she was frightened too...I told you a long time ago, you have your angel wings, and this proved it...

[Gail and Bailey]

Oh Laurie,  I am so glad that Vern is fine and you managed to lift him from the freezing water!  I am sure your fear gave you that super strength!  Give that big boy an extra hug from Bailey and me!

BG...the same thing happened to my old dog years ago and I managed to get him out of the pool just before he went under enveloped in the solar cover too!  

[Linda And Loo]

I am soooo happy everything is ok! It was a very frighting experience! I am glad you had a happy ending!

[Janie, Jackson and Jilly]

I have such a lump in my throat reading about Vern and what might have been. That angel must have been on his shoulder and yours for such a good outcome and on Fudge's too for her being so good. You just never know. Thank heaven all is well. A big Happy Birthday wish to Vern too and hugs to all! <3

[BG and Gavin]

My heart was in my mouth - I can picture the whole frightening scene.  Glad you are all safe and that you had the strength and wherewithal to rescue Vern.  

There is a house that backs on to a park that we frequent.  There lived a beautiful Newfie pup that Gavin loved to play with.  The owner would open up his back gate and let the dog out into the park and around and around they would go.  One day a couple of years ago, the owner invited up into their yard and around and around the dogs went.  Gavin for some reason decided to cut straight across the yard to get to his friend and in the middle of the yard was a swimming pool with a solar blanket.  He got to the middle before the blanket gave way under his weight and threatened to envelop him.  In a flash the owner acted, laying out on the diving board and grabbing up all 80 lbs of Gavin and hurling him to safety. It happened so fast that neither Gavin or I realized what was happening.  I have not seen the Newfie around in a number of months, so inquired about him to another park-goer just the other day.  He apparently died from a medical problem.  He was just a young dog :(.

[Robin and Libby Louise]

My heart is pounding too, although thankfully I knew that Vern was safe before I got to the end of that story.  I have those fears about Libby too - when she was limping a few weeks ago my mind went to terrible places although I knew intellectually that the fact that she chose to jump off someone's deck a few times instead of using the steps was probably the cause (yes, we went to the vet and she is fine, although he keeps saying she should lose a few pounds....).  I am so happy that Vern is safe and fine and that none of those "what ifs" happened, and I too choose to believe that what happened to Max was part of some great plan.  Thanks, Laurie for putting it into words!

[Miss Ellie]

OMG Laurie...I have chills reading this blog.  I am so sorry that you went through this...can't even imagine your fear...but so, so very happy and relieved  that our very loved & adored sweet Vern is safe and sound and none the worse for wear.  I am so glad and will say a special prayer that this had a happy ending.  You must have been so shakened up and for that I am sending a great big hug your way dear friend.  I must apologize for missing Vern's birthday.  Sending great big belated Birthday wishes to Vern...Happy 4th Birthday sweet boy...sending doodle kisses from Ellie...XO

[Lori, Quincy & Frankie]

Oh my, my heart is thumping.  How awful and so scary.  Vern, big goofy love, thank goodness you are safe and your momma did not wind up at the bottom of the water with you.  thank goodness.  Be safe, please.  I much prefer to laugh when I read your blogs, not have tears streaming down my face.  And wear a red jacket during hunting season.  sheese...too close a call 

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Laurie, how frightening that must have been.  I can't imagine it.  My greatest fear has always been that something would happen to one of the kids, and I wouldn't be able to help them...and now I have that same feeling with the Doods.  Thank heaven that it all turned okay and everyone is fine....although I'm guessing you have a few grey hairs as a result.