He lived next door with his brother. They were just pups when they arrived. I kiddingly said ‘you ever not want them I’ll take them’.
We are in a rural area he & his brother were allowed to roam. We gave & installed a gate to try & keep the boys in. The neighbor never closed the gate. The boys were left out in all sorts of weather. Many times I didn’t see cars for days so I put water & food through the fence, they gobbled it up.
It got to the point they would hear my car & come running to see me for a treat. Sadly Busters brother was hit by a car. We were on our way home when I saw him on the side of the road. I cried for days.
Buster took to jumping the fence to spend time with us & our two dogs. One day he met me at the gate with a huge part of his skin hanging. He’d been in a fight, I knew he would not get the care he needed & doctored him up daily.
I remember one day passing the front door & thinking it was my Sierra I said ‘why are you being silly get in here’ it was Buster waiting to be invited in.
When he was around 18 months they asked me if I wanted him. I talked to my husband who reminded me I had two girl dogs & didn’t want boys again. Plus I was allergic to his hair. I thought about it for a few days but knew I could not leave him to his brother fate or worse.
I told them I would take him in two weeks when I returned from vacation.
When we return the person who said I could have him was no longer there. I watched & waited. I saw him being fed a raw steak, I never did see water for him. Finally someone else asked me if I still wanted him. They said he was being aggressive with the kids.
I took him the next day, asked about his vet. He had never been to one. I put him in the car & drove 40 minutes to a no appointment vet. Got his shots started & scheduled to neutered.
A week later we discovered he had worms. I thought it could be from the raw meat but they said it was likely rabbits he caught because he was starving.
I have a picture of him standing with my girls looking out the window, when I see this picture I cry, all you can see is his ribs.
He hated car rides, it would take me 45 minutes to get him in the car. And he cried the entire ride. He would stand smack dab in the middle of the back seat. I found putting a harness on him helped his anxiety & he started getting in the car himself.
This past year while working from home I would take Buster & his brother Flynn with me in the morning for a quick soda pick up. He started to follow his brothers lead & got closer to the window after about 10 months he put his head out the window, another cue for my tears.
He has never been aggressive, loves my grandson, Busters problem is he loves everyone. I am still allergic to his hair but I’m okay with that. He & his brother are my world.
EDGEWOOD, NM
