Wayward Dogs has moved!

I have been tempted away from Blogger! Wayward Dogs is now a WordPress blog. Please continue reading about the dogs we keep finding and all the fun we have in the garden at waywarddogs.com.

Bats: Like dogs that can fly

Bat. My Free Photos

Bats are really cool. I have always thought so, and not just because I used to be slightly obsessed with vampires. Bats are mammals, but they can fly. Some species, like Giant Indian Fruit Bats, even look like dogs with wings. Seriously --  that's why they're also known as flying foxes.

Lost shi-tzu from the neighborhood

The pack and I encountered a red-eyed fellow putting these posters up on the trail yesterday. I hope little Static makes it home. There's a Craigslist post about him, too.

Machete finds a sweet Spot

Wily Machete escaped from me on Friday night. Having chased him down a few times now, I've figured out that it's best to just grab a leash, give him a wide berth and let him run himself tired. He dashes aimlessly but only within a three-block section of the trail that we regularly walk.

Sometimes, he'll find puddle of water and lay down in it. Sometimes he'll dive under a tree and emerge with a plastic sack looped around his neck and flapping in the breeze like a superhero's cape. (OK, that only happened once, and I desperately wish I had a photo.) On Friday night, I looked up to see him romping through the grass with a fellow bully dog.

You can't save 'em all (Musical payoff after the jump)

This disgusting picture is a turtle that Zach and I saw one afternoon this spring, scrabbling in the road near our house. We were in our car, and another young couple had pulled over and exited theirs to, presumably, get Mr. Turtle out of harm's way. They seemed excited and confused. Traffic was building up in the street.

New mascot for the Kansas City Chiefs?

UPDATE: Babette made the local news. Click for the story and video by KCTV 5!

Somewhere out there is a Kansas City Chiefs fan in need of a football-sized dog with whom to watch the games. Babette the terrier mix desperately needs to meet that person.
At some point during the game at Arrowhead Stadium on August 26, Babette wandered onto the Arrowhead grounds.
We have been in touch with the shelter and our friends in the dog rescue community since learning of her case. Babette is now officially available for adoption from the shelter. Check our her profile on Petfinder.com. For $100, you can take her home. For $15, a licensed rescue group can get her into a foster situation.
I wish that we could foster her, but with Machete we are already at the city's legal limit for pets (four dogs and cats in any combination). So, we are hoping some other local foster family will step up. Better yet would be a forever family.
As commenter Jennifer Hunter remarked in response to a Pitch post about Babette today, it would be awesome if the Chiefs decided to somehow help Babette get out of the shelter. Located not far from Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri's animal shelter euthanizes between 6,000 and 9,000 dogs every year.
If the Chiefs adopted Babette -- or just helped publicize her story -- the notoriety would surely help save more shelter animals' lives than just Babette's.
So, whaddya say, Chiefs? How about throwing up her picture at the next game for 76,000 people to see?

Special thanks to my friend Stacy A. for whipping up this e-flier for Babette.

Original wayward blond?

Time flies. I snapped these pictures on Wednesday, August 24. I believe this is the third sighting of this particular blond. (I think he's the original wayward blond that I mistook for a female several weeks ago.) He is always hanging around the same block. My hope is that he lives there. He and the boxer did seem to be friendly -- they definitely were not fence-fighting.
I pulled over and squatted down to see if he'd approach me. He seemed skiddish but didn't run away as long as I didn't seem to move toward him. Lacking a leash and the ability to take this guy on, I tossed him a milkbone and went to get back in my car.
At that moment, another woman pulled over, demanding to know if the dog was mine. She was pretty excited and claimed she'd seen it lunge at people. I shrugged my shoulders. I didn't get the vibe that this particular dog would attack unless it felt cornered. She mentioned calling animal control to come pick him up. I haven't seen him since.