December 12/9/2013 - Snowy Meeting

It was a routine house call. Routine was putting the event mildly. I was off to the Mackey's ranch, about 5 miles out from the city of Rhydin. One of their trail horses threw a shoe and was now limping after a long ride in the stony trails of high mountains. I was pretty sure the poor horse had bruised the pad of its foot. Off I went in the Rover, Cali stayed behind to answer phones and receive my appointments that were due in two hours.

The drive out to the Mackey's was easy. Crisp winter morning, bright sunlight, but as a got closer to the ranch, dark storm clouds were riding in fast. I made a point to move this house call along as fast as possible so I could back to A.R.K. Vet clinic without dangerous road conditions. Sure enough, I was right about the horse and withing a few minutes and with a few strong lads, we had the foot pad lanced and draining. Instructions to keep the horse on mild exercise, no damp ground for a week and a return visit to pull the penrose drains.

With a few waves of goodbye, a check in hand and a box of donated candles, blankets and coats for the Homeless, I loaded up Rover and left their ranch. It was snowing heavily after travelling 5 minutes, not the steady snowing either but a blizzard dump. The first 3 miles were a bit hairy with the snow robbing Rover of traction in areas that froze rapidly making it difficult to keep the APC steady. Then something bolted past the nose of the vehicle and I swerved in reaction, Rover went into a spin and crunched into a snow covered ditch. Once I had made sure nothing was damaged inside and my wits were steady I tried to get Rover out a few times. The snow was too deep for traction; it was time to get out and use the cable and wench.

Leaving the APC, I undid the wound cable and started a long cold limp to the closest, stout oak tree 800 ft away. The cold was biting into my left leg, the brace I war was sucking in the chill like a starving puppy. I made it to the tree, tethered the cable and headed back for the APC. Along the way, I must have stepped on some covered ice that sent me crashing into the snow, twisting my left leg nastily and breaking straps on the brace. Normally I'd be cussing by now but sitting in the snow and only wearing my denim jacket was not an ideal situation for frustration.

I tried getting up, but proved an issue. My leg was smarting pretty badly and without the brace the old break in the bones throbbed like a smith hammering metal. I started to crawl for the APC and found myself stairing nose to nose with a snow covered muzzle. A large tongue rolled out as the dog started pant and swung its body to face me. The dog must have been part massive with strong back and shoulders it presented. I was able to get up onto one foot, using the dog as a brace to pull myself up; it didn't move, whine or snarl but walked with me, letting me lean me left hand on it's back. The dog looked big and sturdy but I could feel it was starved and most likely wouldn't live through this blizzard.

We made it to the APC, wenched Rover back onto the road and put the cable away. By this point, the dog was shaking non-stop and my chattering teeth agreed with him. I opened the door and patted the seat, indicating for it to hop in.

"Come on. You've earned a warm ride, a hot meal or three and a chace to find out who lost you." I said with a shiver.

The dog didn't need any prompting and hopped into the vehicle. We took off and went back to A.R.K. Veterinary Clinic. The day went by and when I had time, I checked in on the dog. He, yes it was a he as Calibri found out when giving him a bath and a grooming, was a stray it seemed. No collar, no tags, no RID, yet he seemed to have some service dog training in him. Cali asked if he was going up for adoption, and I leaned on a cane while my brace was out being fixed.

"I don't know Cali. I'll think about it." I told her. She just gave me a long quiet look and didn't say anything more. I swear she can read my mind. At the end of the day, everyone was seen too, cared for and as I sit by the fire, my left leg is being warmed up by a new mountain of fur. We still have no idea what mix Gabriel is, but his coat was black with mahagony highlights and a few splashes of white here and there. I would hazard a guess at Newfoundlad and Bernese Mt. Dog, but Gabriel doesn't seem to mind not knowing what he was and I felt same.

All in all, at the end of the day, if someone or something takes time to make your life a bit warmer and easier in life, a little mystery is quite alright.