Stinky Dog

The prodigal has returned.  Tuesday afternoon I went outside to let the dogs back into the house and Cody's chain was empty.  They had been outside for more than an hour and he was there once before when I looked out.  My heart sank.  Cody is blind and we live in a strange town that he has never run loose in.  We live less than a block from one of the highways that runs through town so my first thought was he wandered out to street and tried to cross.  I walked around and called him but when that proved fruitless, I loaded the kids into the van to look for him that way.  Fearing the worst, I drove around where we live and a couple of blocks surounding.  I asked some people working near us if they had seen him.  They had but it had been a while.

Eric drove around some when he got home but it was not any use either.  I called the police station to report him missing.  They took the information and informed me that if he were to be found by them, we would be fined for an "unleashed dog at large." I was then hoping he would wander home on his own.  All evening I ran to the windows or the door every time I heard a dog barking, hoping it would be barking at Cody.  He didn't turn up all night, nor was he sitting on the step when I woke up in the morning.

But, while I was in the shower I got a message on my phone from a woman that thought she maybe had him.  She found him stuck on her deck between the rails and the grill early this morning.  He was cold and had hurt is good back leg but other than that was fine.  He was only a couple of blocks away.  Although in the opposite direction he had last been seen walking.  I can't help but wonder if he tried to find his way back home but being blind in a strange town he just walked right by. 

Cody sometimes bothers me with his stinky breath, excessive shedding and constant drooling but I was so happy to see him.  I almost cried.