The Trials and Tribulations of Chap

So I was standing in my front door the other morning at 5 AM when the Killer Attack Wolf Dog darted between my legs into the frontier. No big deal.. I let him run free every now and then and he'll usually be back on my porch in 20 minutes. After an hour though, he's still not back. He isn't back at 7 either, which is when I started heading to class.

aight, still no big deal.. one of my neighbors will probably grab him and just throw him on their porch. Good thing I took his collar off earlier last night.

I got home around 4 expecting this issue to be resolved, but it wasn't. I go look for him in the marshes behind my house. I drive down every street in my neighborhood. I took the hunt on foot.. right in time for the afternoon showers. I looked crazy walking around in the rain yelling for my dog.

None of this worked. I file a report with the SPCA. Then I found a picture of him and went to FedEx/Kinkos to make some fliers. After Kinkos donated $30 worth of color copies to the cause, I headed back to tape them around the 'hood. I just finish taping the first copy to a stop sign when a car pulls next to me.

'Hey, you missing a dog?'

Hot diggity damn! This was easy enough.

'Yeh, I sure am.'

'What's he look like?'

Dammit. He looks like the dog in the freakin' picture on the flier I just posted. Don't waste my time.

'He looks like a mix between an Australian shepherd and a collie.'

'Oh, ok. Well if I see him I'll give you a call.'

Great, I'm glad we went over all this.

'Thanks.'

After the car drove away, another one pulls up behind it.

'Hey, are you missing a dog?'

My systolic raises. My teeth are clenched. My pheochromocytoma starts acting up.

'Yep, I sure am.'

'Ok, I think I saw a dog that looked like that this morning. He was following some lady that was walking her basset hound. I think they were on Tiffany St.'

'Thanks for the tip!'

So I jumped into the car and sped off for Tiffany St. I felt like I was playing Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego. I drive down the street. No signs of Chap, a lady, or a basset hound. I take one more drive through the street and I see this woman in her front yard.

'Hey lady, you got a basset hound?'

'No, but we found this lost dog this morning.'

There was Chap amidst a family of five that was showering him with attention, food, and hygiene. He walks back to me with his ears tucked back.

'He's such a sweet dog.'

'Yep, he sure is.'

The patriarch of the family of five asked for some proof that he was my dog. I pointed to the stack of missing dog fliers.

'Have a good evening.'