A very old stray {The Old Fella Story}

Back at the campground Fella was thinking about some of the things that had happened to him over the years. He was still carrying some shotgun pellets under his skin where he had been shot. Then there was the time he got his foot caught in the steel trap and he lay there for days trying to get out. He believed that was the worse time of his life. He was young and full of energy, exploring the woods was fascinating to him. He had just arrived at the campground with his family for a stop over just for the night. With his folks being busy setting up camp Fella found an opportunity to explore the woods. But waiting in the woods were the jaws of death. When Fella turned up missing a search began in the surrounding area but he could not be found. Having to leave the campground the next morning his family mentioned to the gatekeeper about their missing dog and would call back later to see if he showed up. The gatekeeper told them he would watch out for him as they drove off never to be heard from again. The gate keeper was looking for a healthy black dog with all four feet and a good set of good teeth, little did he realize when Fella began to show himself around the campground in the months ahead that he was the missing dog. Fella was in a lot of pain with the toes of his foot being cut off. It was difficult to get around and with the nerves of the front teeth being exposed where he had chewed the jaws of the steel trap until his lower teeth were worn down to the root canal, his lower and upper front teeth were all broken out he didn’t feel like eating. He was a mess to look at, yet inside was that determination to live. He must find a way to wait for his family to return and rescue him. There was a horse ranch next door that had some dogs and the folks there felt sorry for the old black dog and began to leave food out for him along with their other dogs. Fella understood the way of things and would wait until their dogs had eaten their fill before coming in to find what was left. Fella also found shelter in the horse barn making a bed in the hay staying warm there in the winter when the campground was closed. Those were the hard days of finding enough food to eat. With the campers home for the winter and the campground being closed there would be no begging for food from the campground. His only hope was rummaging through the trash cans at the only food market in the small town and at the dumpster just down the road. Going to the houses in the area was risky business, that’s how he got the birdshot under his skin. Then there was the time he was crossing the road and got hit by a car. He was lucky that he didn’t die from that one, but he received some damage to his hip and already injured leg. Fella thought, most would have given up but his desire was to find his loving family once again and go home.

Going back to his family didn’t seem to be an option now as years had past and if they were coming back surely they would have by now. So Fella began to think about the family he had just met and wondered if they could trusted.

Continued: