The Mysterious Madame X
Sep 15 '00
I am haunted by her face...quite lovely with its animated expression, laughing eyes and gentle smile. Holding that face between my hands, looking into those eyes I ask again. "Who are you? Where did you come from? How oh how did you arrive here?" And she kisses me, unable to give me words I can understand. Which only causes me to wonder anew HOW much of this does she understand?
Fate is capricious. Ruby Tuesday bears witness to the extremes of fate.
Mid June found her dodging traffic in Des Moines. By early July she was home with me and had gone from ‘JaneDoeDog’ to’Mocha’ and finally ‘Ruby Tuesday’.
She was never a dog I wanted, but when I heard there was a homeless Siberian Husky, a responsibility towards the breed came alive within me. This was not because I love the breed. Enjoyable dogs, certainly, but at heart they’re incorrigible tramps. The Siberian heritage appeared to have already rendered this little lady homeless. Escape artist and drifter describe her well.
Duty. A stern word with an aura of sterility to it. Fun, pleasure, joy don't sound as though they'd (willingly) keep company with 'duty'... Cochise, my canine soulmate, is a Siberian, but that's not why I feel this protectiveness. I realized I am better prepared to solve the problems unique to this breed than an unsuspecting innocent. And I know the fate of far too many Huskies in the hands of those innocents. Grappling with Cochise's escapades has forced me to 'escape proof' our environment. Taking her was the right thing. It wasn't hard. It was an obligation, a welcome obligation.
Ruby quickly demonstrated that she was people friendly, child loving, and dog tolerant . Displaying no interest in Simba, our aging Toy Poodle,(GOOD), she had a predatory fascination with our cats. Ruby immediately snapped at sweet Herbie, the mildest of cats (though fearless) and followed through by snapping at Gonzo twice! I love Gonzo almost as fiercely as Cochise, but Gonzo is a Character Cat and no 35lb WolfWannabe represents a real risk to my TigerTot. I watched amused (but CAREFULLY!) as Ruby crouched, then slunk towards Gonzo, prey instincts ON! Gonzo’s enormous green eyes expanded, tail twitched and Boom! Gonzo was STALKING Ruby even as Ruby moved in for HER attack! Ruby stopped, baffled at prey that rewrites the rules, and that CatO'Mine relentlessly moved on in, attacking Ruby's ribs and side with a four paw assault that left Ruby yelping and shaken. The attack was repeated several times in the early days (fun or reinforcement? I’m not sure) and Ruby now qualifies as cat rehabbed.
Well mannered, trained, and affectionate speak of a dog once cared for. She responds to sit, down, come and speak, enjoying any opportunity to ‘perform’. Vocalizing when she wants human attention (for food, water, love or play) indicates someone reliably responded to her requests. But no owner has come forward. There is no indication anyone is looking for this personable, loving and lovable dog.
The original estimate of her age at 5-6yrs seemed mistaken to me. Comparing her with Cochise (my Husky now 10yrs 8 mos) I felt she was around 11. This was supported by a tag she was wearing dated 1989. My vet guesstimated her age to be 9yrs,+/-2yrs, noting she was developing cataracts, had heavy wear of her teeth, with fat pads along her ribs, often seen in older female dogs, despite otherwise being trim and solid. This only makes everything harder to grasp. Who could have a dog 11yrs (or 9 or 7) and not be tearing up the countryside looking for her?
Dog doors were new to Ruby. More problematic was that they opened onto a large escape proof kennel attached to the house. Canine hierarchy often dictates door usage and where pack members eliminate. Ruby was wisely wary of encroaching on what might be another’s turf. With excellent physical control and house manners this didn’t present an insurmountable problem. I coaxed and encouraged, noting slow but steady progress. Poor baby (poor me!) was suddenly struck HARD with a vicious attack of gastric enteritis. The vet stated that her fecal smear contained so many motile rods it looked like sperm! Cleanup…Lots and lots of cleanup. Shortly after her recovery Ruby began using the dog doors and kennel as though born to them. Admirable in an aging dog thrust into strange surroundings with unknown dogs, maniac cats and rampaging kids. And I wonder again, was she inexplicably suddenly ‘not wanted’, or is a heartbroken person somewhere desperately seeking this dog?
Adjusting beautifully, Ruby is a revelation. Ordinarily extremely pleasant, she’s mildly inclined to snap in a way that’s foreign to me with my MonsterMutts. At times this appears to be a slight fear response. Assurances that no one will hurt her are immediately effective. I don’t think she was abused, but someone may have been inadvertently rough. Other times I detect a low level ‘brattiness’. Firm reminders that she DOES NOT want to mess with me on that level are quickly understood and heeded. She’s a smart, willing, capable, thoroughly FUN dog. Where oh where is her family? Why hasn’t anyone found her? Is anyone looking?
And the heartbreaker is that I sense she is quietly waiting, unable, perhaps unwilling, to commit to our home, yearning to return to her original home. Sadness lurks within this lovely, courageous little dog. I think of Cochise’s devotion to me. He never makes it obvious, his emotions are close and private, but deeply felt. I suspect it’s similar with Ruby and ache that her family seems lost to her.
A call from our vet raised new questions. Ruby tested positive for heartworms. Explanations, details, costs…I heard, but only distantly. Several things were important. Prognosis appeared to be very good. A mild infection was suspected as she was asymptomatic. The infection was at least 6 months old, an indication she was infected last summer (1999), as Iowa has no mosquitoes during the winter. Treatment was not cheap, but it was affordable. Unpleasant, yet unavoidable. Several days in the hospital were required for the initial treatment and another day for the follow up treatment.
Experienced rescue people suggested she was dumped when her owner(s) discovered she was heartworm positive. That’s too awful to imagine. What makes that even worse is that Ruby shows so many signs of being a cherished, much loved dog. Could anyone LOVE somebody for years and then dump her? I remember a lady I met several years ago who bemoaned the loss of her elderly dog (11 or 13yrs!). I asked if the dog had been sick long before they lost her, and the woman looked at me astonished and blurted that the dog hadn’t DIED. She was too old for the kids to play with so they took her to the Humane Society and bought a Christmas puppy! This woman pitied HERSELF because they’d ‘lost’ their beloved pet just before Christmas! Two or three years later I feel ill remembering that. But it certainly establishes that people will do the unimaginable with even their ‘beloved’ pets.
Visiting Ruby in the hospital revealed an indomitable spirit. Thrilled to see me, happy to curl up with me, she remained unfazed when I had to leave. Once again life was dumping on her and this girl handled it with a style Audrey Hepburn would have envied.
Fretting that Ruby wasn’t fully adjusting to living with us, I raised my concerns / doubts to a friend. Her blithe suggestion that I find Ruby another home, perhaps one without other dogs, prompted a visceral reaction from me, “Who would want her?” It sounds so ugly, yet it’s the bald truth. Personable and charming though Ms. Ruby is, she remains an elderly dog with cataracts, heartworms, high medical costs and an entrenched habit of escaping. I could not, in good conscience, place her with anyone that didn’t have secure arrangements capable of subverting her Houdini tendencies.
Am I unhappy to have her? Not even a little. She’s wonderful. But I doubt other suitable homes would line up to take her. Her age, health condition(s) and breed are a triple whammy. I’m not blaming or faulting anyone on this. Had I known of the heartworm condition prior to accepting her I doubt that I would have so readily agreed to take her. In any home, her age will make adjustment more difficult. Fortunately, Huskies are among the most adaptable of dogs. I’m convinced many breeds and mixes would find her situation untenable.
She’s shown me ‘duty’ can have unexpected pleasures. She’s brought me to a deeper feeling for what comprises commitment. She’s reminded me the unlikeliest dogs bring the nicest rewards. She’s helped me define the great debt I owe dogs and the role I can play in meeting those obligations. And her situation absolutely begs owners to microchip their pets.
But perhaps the best, she’s recently started running and playing with my MonsterMutts. How could I have so little faith in this valiant soul? Was I ever listening closely enough to her? I now believe Ruby will fully integrate into our home, becoming one of ours body and soul. Actually, becoming one of ‘US’.
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Epinions.com ID:
LaBruja
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Member: Jacinta
Reviews written: 43
Trusted by: 18 members
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