A very old stray {The Old Fella Story}

[Dixie_Flyer]

Went camping this weekend at a campground on the lake, had not been there for a few years. Once there I began to walk around looking at the different sites when I noticed a very old dog. He just lay there until I got too close then he got up on three legs and hobbled away. Just judging I would say he is at least 11 years old. Well back to my story. The next afternoon he wanders into camp and just sits there looking. He looked so sad, so the wife got a bowl of our dog's food and put it down for him and he came over and ate. He then walked over to our dog and the two of them sniffed each other over and then they lay down together for the rest of the afternoon. That night he disappeared.
The next morning he was back and was a little more receptive of me. I looked at his injured leg and found that half of his rear foot was gone. It had healed and was not causing any problem except that he was walking on the stub that was left with no foot pad which causes him to limp. His front teeth were gone except for one canine tooth and it looked decayed. His eyes were tired looking and showing his age. He spent the rest of the day just laying around looking for a handout and by afternoon the campground host came around and saw him. I enquired about the dog and was told he had been there for three years and that most of the campers were tolerant of him and gave him food.
So what to do? Do you pick him up and bring him home or do you let nature take it course. He can't harm anyone, he has no teeth and he isn't a nuisance unless you don't like dogs, and no one seems to mind him being there. He is gentle and likes other animals as seen by his interaction with our dog. He still would not let me touch him but he would eat from my hand. Enough said, what would you do???

On June 28th 2008 Old Fella passed away of complications caused by bone cancer. Fella spent almost three years with his new family and became the icon of rescued old stray dogs. He will be greatly missed but his foot prints have been left in our hearts forever.

Now Charlie, the ten year old rescued Golden Lab has come to be a part of the continuing Old Fella story. (*Note, Charlie took his journey to Rainbow Bridge unexpectedly September 30, 2008)Suzie continues to charm her way into our hearts with her antics as she has grown from a puppy into a young lady. Togther they will carry on the Old Fella legacy. Come join us in their daily lives and be a part of the best feel good thread in RV.NET history. The legacy lives on.


HIghways Article Puppy Love

Old Fella Burke County Animal Rescue

[Magic_Carpet_Pi]

Richard, your doing it again. I cried and laughed and prayed all last year even when we were down in Mexico and now here I am at home reading the story and all the emotions are flooding back. You truly have a way with words, please keep writing.

Jacquie

[Dixie_Flyer]

When the holiday was over and the family that Fella had met returned home and things went back to the old routine except for one thing. The old black dog was still on everyone’s mind and Fella was restless and anxious about his life at the campground. For the first time he felt as if his days were numbered and life for him was coming to an end. Fella lumbered about sadly thinking about all the days he had spent sleeping in the woods, trying to find shelter when the storms rolled in and having to endure the biting flies, ticks and fleas. His growing weakness and his inability to find food as often as he would like was wearing on him. There were some bright spots in those memories but they were far and few between. His only hope now was to find someway out of the Campground and into somebody’s home.

Meanwhile the family that had visited the campground was busy about their daily lives but still thinking about that old dog they left at the campground. Sitting at a computer Levi’s Dad began to type a note.

Went camping this weekend at a campground on the lake, had not been there for a few years. Once there I began to walk around looking at the different sites when I noticed a very old dog. He just lay there until I got too close then he got up on three legs and hobbled away. Just judging I would say he is at least 11 years old. Well back to my story. The next afternoon he wanders into camp and just sits there looking. He looked so sad, so the wife got a bowl of our dog's food and put it down for him and he came over and ate. He then walked over to our dog and the two of them sniffed each other over and then they lay down together for the rest of the afternoon. That night he disappeared.
The next morning he was back and was a little more receptive of me. I looked at his injured leg and found that half of his rear foot was gone. It had healed and was not causing any problem except that he was walking on the stub that was left with no foot pad which causes him to limp. His front teeth were gone except for one canine tooth and it looked decayed. His eyes were tired looking and showing his age. He spent the rest of the day just laying around looking for a handout and by afternoon the campground host came around and saw him. I enquired about the dog and was told he had been there for three years and that most of the campers were tolerant of him and gave him food.
So what to do? Do you pick him up and bring him home or do you let nature take it course. He can't harm anyone, he has no teeth and he isn't a nuisance unless you don't like dogs, and no one seems to mind him being there. He is gentle and likes other animals as seen by his interaction with our dog. He still would not let me touch him but he would eat from my hand. Enough said, what would you do???


After leaving his note on the RV.NET forum he went on with his other work. Later when he returned he began to read the pleas from people who were asking him to go back and get the old Dog and bring him home. Now should he ask his wife about doing this, or just go and rescue that old dog on his own? The he got an idea. He would go get the old dog and carry him to a vet he knew, get him the medical attention he needed and then find him a home. Now that was a plan! He wrote back on the forum that he would go back and rescue the old dog.

Continued.

[Buzz-ette]

Dear Richard and Forum Friends,

Thank you for the t-shirt from the Western Rally and the beautiful card. Attending the Rally in Branson will always be one of my fondest memories. I cannot tell you how often Bill wore the t-shirt from that Rally,including that last trip to the hospital. He told the "Old Fella" story at every opportunity.

Fondly,

Pixie (Buzz-ette)

[Dixie_Flyer]

bonniesoo wrote:
Heeelllllloooooo...is anyone here????? This area is never this quiet....

I have been so busy today. I have a surprise but I can't tell it yet! The Big boss said to wait until the cat's in the bag, I can't wait!!

[bonniesoo]

Heeelllllloooooo...is anyone here????? This area is never this quiet....

[Dixie_Flyer]

The next morning Fella decided to try the gate keeper’s house to see if there might be some food. They often gave him food when he came around and they also let him play with Lady their small dog. Lady was a nice friend and she would always allow Fella to eat from her bowl. But this morning was a surprise as breakfast was waiting on him when he arrived. Some nice scrambled eggs mixed in with some dry dog food and a large bowl of water to boot. Why he thought he had died and gone to heaven. He was so hungry he hardly tasted the food as he gobbled it down. Lady was ready for some play time and she raced around him barking “Let’s play Fella, come on catch me if you can.” “I would love to” said Fella, “But for some reason I am winded this morning, it’s hard to catch my breath.” Lady moved in a little closer, “What’s wrong Fella, you don’t look good either.” ”I really don’t know,” Fella said, “Just getting old I guess. Anyway let’s go for a walk down by the lake and take a dip. The water is nice this time of year. I can tell the season is about to change, Winter won’t be far away now so let’s enjoy the water while we can. I really don’t know if I can take another cold winter like the last one.” With that Fella started off toward the lake. Looking back over his shoulder he asked Lady, “Are you coming?” “Yeah I’ll come down for a little while.” So the two of them walked through the woods down a path that led to a favorite swimming hole of Fella’s.

The morning was filled with song birds singing and flittering about from tree to tree as the young birds that were born in the spring were learning a bit about nature and survival Fella watched and thought, you have a lot to learn my feathered friends, yep you have a lot to learn. I hope things go well for you and that you live a long life. Fella was beginning to wonder about his own mortality. It worried him now that he was getting up in age, if he might just die right here in these woods alone without anyone to comfort him. About that time Lady starting running towards the lake, “Last one in is a rotten egg.” Fella knew he couldn’t keep up with her so he decided to take advantage of Lady’s curiosity. “Look over there in the woods behind that big Oak tree,!” With that Lady stopped to see what Fella was talking about as he scooted past her and on to the lake. “Oh you got me again you old rascal.” But she knew all along what he was up to and let him get away with it. Lady knew Fella was having a hard time with that bad foot and leg, but she also knew he was having even more trouble than he let on.

Once in the water Fella and Lady swam around in the shallows barking and just having fun. It was about that time a park ranger showed up. Now Fella had always been allowed to stay in the campground, but he also knew that it was the job of the ranger to get rid of any strays that might wander into the park. For some reason and no one knew why, Fella had been allowed to stay. The ranger looked at Fella and Lady swimming and having a good time and thought to himself, “Old boy this may have to come to end someday if someone complains about your being here.”

The ranger made his rounds and on his way out he stopped at the gatehouse to speak to the supervisor. “Good morning, how are you doing?” he said. “Fine” was the reply from the gatekeeper. “Look, I really need to talk with you about that old black dog that has been hanging around. You know there could be trouble if somebody complains.” “Yeah I know, but what can we do? He doesn’t hurt anything and he is not a nuisance.” “Well we had that situation over on site 65 the other day with the ladies who were afraid to come out of the camper with him there.” “Yeah but I went right over and showed them he wasn’t going to harm them.” The gate keeper said. “Yeah, but just the same someday he will cause trouble.” With that the ranger started to leave and then turned to say "By the way", he said laughingly, "You need to keep Lady on a leash and not running loose." "Yeah, just like that old black dog right?" replied the gatekeeper.

Fella’s stay at the campground comes to an end


Continued:

[Dixie_Flyer]

Check this out.

Opening your screen door

[Dixie_Flyer]

The thread has gone over 300,000 today!

[Dixie_Flyer]

Hi Angie, Sue is doing very well and has completely recovered from her Thursday night adventure. I cannot tell you the joy I feel when I hear how Old fella impacts the children.

Every where we go when the children hear his story they gather around and love on him just as if he belonged to them. On the way home a group of children came to our camp and asked about Fella's foot and leg. When I told them about how he was rescued and the life he lived as a stray you could see the expressions on their faces as if they too felt the pain he went through. Yes Fella is a special dog and he does have that outward appearance of goodness and pure joy about him. When I look at him I marvel at the animal I have in my presence that God has allowed to come into our lives and make such a marvelous change in the way we now see the world about us. If nothing else I will never look at another stray without thinking of Old Fella and the blessing so many passed up.

[TwilightOwl68]

Richard,

I just read about Sue and I hope that she is doing fine now. Please tell her thank you from me and my kids for letting us come to your camp at Mountaindale and meet Old Fella and Levi. She was so very nice to do that! My kids adored both dogs. Fella was playing like a puppy with Sue! He sure has a special personality. Really, he leaves an impression of pure happiness and goodness. My daughter put on the rally t-shirt as soon as she got back to our camper, and also wore it the next day. And the picture of you and OF is now displayed prominently in her room now that we are home. 🙂

Angie

[chemisd]

Richard, even though I know the story, you tell it so well!!

Hope Sue is doing well this morning.

Happy Father's day to all you dads out there!

jana

[Dixie_Flyer]

Several days had past since Levi and his family had come to the campground and Fella had begun to trust them more than he had anyone who had come to the park. But still Leery of them Fella hung back from making any real friendship with the humans. Finally deciding to check them out one more time before allowing any real commitment to take place Fella hobbled over to site 20. It was slow going that morning as he pushed his way through the forest. His leg was bothering him more and more lately and it was hard to breath. Little did he know that inside him there was a bomb ticking and his time was running out. He would have to trust the new family and hope they would take him out of the woods he had called home for so long or he would soon cross over Rainbow Bridge. He thought I must hurry and get there before they leave. But just as he stepped out of the woods onto the road leading out of the campground he saw the family coming up the road in their truck pulling the camper. Old Fella stepped aside and watched as they passed by and Levi’s Mom looked at the tired old dog standing on the shoulder of the road and thought so long old boy, I hope you make it.

Fella roamed around the campground thinking about the man and woman he had met with their companion Levi and dreamed about days gone by when he was a pup just learning about life and then the terrible day he became lost from his family. How he longed for those days once again to fill his life. He wondered if he could have trusted the man he had met to be good to him. So much had happened in the years since he had become homeless and he was afraid that if he left the campground he might be taken to some far away place and he would never be able to return. But all of that didn’t matter any more. The family was gone now and perhaps gone forever out of his life. That night Fella lay in the woods behind the children’s playground trying to sleep but he was restless and troubled about the events of the last few days. How was he to know the person who would save him? All of these things weighed heavily on Fella as he lay alone in the darkness of the night, his stomach empty and wanting food and he noticed his labored breathing was getting worse. He wondered how much longer he could hold on to any hope of being saved.

Continued:

[Dixie_Flyer]

When you think of their life span you realize that they are on loan for a short time. So for that instant in time let us love them and care for them with all the intensity that our hearts will allow.

[Dixie_Flyer]

Todd&Bonnie wrote:
Richard, I wonder if the doggie surprise has anything to do with Anna's sister?? That would be the only reason I could think of for Dramamine.:B:B:B:B:B This is actually Dandy Dan posting on Todd's computer as I can't seem to get a signal. Anna says hi to her first Daddy.
Dan

Me give up Suzie!!! Never in a million years!! Only if the compensation was right;). I like to kid about Suzie but she has found a place too deep in my heart to ever give her up. She has made a complete turn around since Anna's adoption. She has now become Daddy's little girl. She follows me where ever I go and is never more than two steps away. She loves to go with me in town but she still gets car sick.

I can't wait for her and Anna to see each other again to see their reaction to each other. How is Beau doing? I hope he is doing better and is getting around without pain. What about the East Coast Old Fella Rally in Rutherfordton, NC, think you could make it? I think that will be a lot of fun. Enjoy your weekend and I will talk with you later.

Richard

[Todd_Bonnie]

Richard, I wonder if the doggie surprise has anything to do with Anna's sister?? That would be the only reason I could think of for Dramamine.:B:B:B:B:B This is actually Dandy Dan posting on Todd's computer as I can't seem to get a signal. Anna says hi to her first Daddy.
Dan