DogTown

by Stefan Bechtel

  Mister Bones was not a dog who had ever been aggressive toward people. But his aggression toward other dogs was one of the key things that kept him from being adopted, and something that the caregivers at Dogtown hoped to help him overcome. At one point, Mister Bones even acted aggressively toward his old streetmate, Negrita, the one who had shared her food with him when both of them were starving. Fortunately or unfortunately, Bones’ dog aggression meant that he was kept in a private run, close to but separated from other dogs.

  Thomas was one of the caregivers responsible for feeding, watering, and walking Dogtown’s roughest customers. Each day he carefully div-vied up all the specialized diets for the various dogs, loaded the food dishes into the back of a golf cart, and with his personal dog, Monty, running alongside, went out to distribute the grub, like a meals-on-wheels deliveryman. But while running his rounds of Dogtown, he never failed to deliver something else these strays and outsiders needed just as much: love, affection, and a scratch behind the ears.

  THE MISTER BONES FAN CLUB

  Even though Bones was having trouble finding a home, he did not lack love. Caregivers, like Thomas, are able to give attention to the dogs, but Best Friends also relies on the work of volunteers to supplement the staff. Every year, thousands of volunteers come to Dogtown to help take care of the animals (7,000 were expected in 2009). Some are so dedicated that they make return trips, year after year. After the Dogtown team determined that Bones could be safely handled by volunteers, the dog began to win a special place in the hearts of many, but none were as dedicated as four women who came to be known as the Jersey Girls. These women first met while working with a breed rescue organization to save greyhounds in New Jersey, and every year they planned and saved for their summer trip to Best Friends sanctuary in Utah, where they volunteered for a week. The staff came to recognize the Jersey Girls when they drove up in their Mustang convertible, wearing scrubs and ready to work.

  Tail wagging does not always signify a happy dog. The way in which the dog wags his tail is most important in interpreting his mood. Broad and fast wags often equal a good mood, but a tail that is upright and wagging stiffly could indicate a dog who is gathering information. A low tail wag often indicates that a dog is cautious.

  The moment they met Mister Bones, “we instantly fell in love with him,” Joyce, an emergency room nurse, wrote later. Joyce and the others continued to go out to Best Friends every year for the next nine years to see Mister Bones, their favorite dog. The Jersey Girls started showing up every year with some article of clothing with his name on it—one year it was Mister Bones T-shirts; another year they had custom-made jackets that said “Mister Bones Fan Club.”

  The Jersey Girls would all have loved to take Bonesy home with them, but they were each involved in dog and cat rescues with several fosters at home. It just would not have worked, given Bones’ history of aggression with other dogs. They would have to make due with their yearly visits.

  Every year, Mister Bones greeted them with that sweet, cryptic smile, massive tail wags, and a big, wet tongue. And every year, he was a little bit older, a little grayer, a little slower. One of his favorite things was to cavort in water, especially on hot summer days. The Jersey Girls would fill his plastic kiddie pool and spray him with a hose, and he would get so excited it was almost like he was a puppy again. He would prance around delightedly in what they called his water dance. Mister Bones’ steps got slower and more plodding as the years went by, but his delight never seemed to wane.

  After a few years of being visited, Bones was allowed to go on sleepovers in the cottages at Best Friends. He would spend the entire week with the Jersey Girls, who took turns sleeping in the living room to watch him through the night. (He snored like a freight train, it turned out.) Bones didn’t require anyone to watch him at night; the Jersey Girls just loved spending time with him so much that they wanted to sleep near him too. As he got older, they had to lift him into the car and up the steps. At the end of every visit, they would say goodbye to Bones and he to them. As much as they enjoyed seeing Bones every year, the Jersey Girls hoped that by the next summer, Bones would be gone, happily living at his new forever home. But for nine summers, Mister Bones was always there, wagging his tail to happily greet his fan club each year.

  “HE DESERVES THE BEST”

  Despite Mister Bones’ sweet, enigmatic smile, the years came and went but nobody adopted him. Whole generations of younger, prettier, less problematic dogs who had been brought to Dogtown found new homes. SUVs with out-of-state plates, filled with lively families, pulled up to the main entrance of Dogtown and left a few hours later with one additional passenger. But Mister Bones was left in his run, peering out at the departing cars, year in and year out.

  Bones did not look forlorn about this state of affairs. In fact, he seemed rather good-natured about it. Compared with his life as a stray, things were pretty good: He had a dog run to himself, plenty to eat and drink, lots of exercise, and a legion of Dogtown staff to play with him. Mister Bones wanted a home, but until the right match came along, he knew he had a warm bed and a safe place at Dogtown.

  As the years rolled by, the caregivers of Dogtown never gave up on Mister Bones and the possibility that he could find a home. Dog-aggressive dogs do face an uphill struggle in their search for a home; often they need to be the only dog in the home, and many potential adopters have other pets. Mister Bones settled into a comfortable middle age. His red muzzle slowly went gray, and the silver fur extended down his neck and up around his eyes. The gray softened the ferocity in his eyes; they were no longer as hooded and threatening as they had been when he was younger. The little sharp vertical “eyebrows” faded away.

  And, with time, Mister Bones’ wise, wizened smile grew ever more pronounced, as if despite a lifetime of bad luck and hard knocks, he was still cosmically amused.

  But still he stayed at Dogtown.

  Gradually, Mister Bones’ temperament began to mellow. He grew easier to control, even when he showed aggression toward other dogs. In his youth, it had been difficult to restrain Bones when he got riled up, but as he aged, he didn’t fight quite as hard. But still, no forever home materialized for the old guy. If he spent the rest of his days at Dogtown, it would not be the worst fate in the world. It had happened to many other animals who came to Best Friends—dogs, cats, birds, horses, rabbits, even potbellied pigs—and had never been picked out of the lineup, living out their last days at Best Friends, never having found a home to call their own.

  At more than 13 years old—roughly 90 in human years—Bonesy lived a life that was dramatically cushier than his former life on the hardscrabble streets of Puerto Rico. He had clean, comfortable accommodations, good food, a place to run, loving caregivers, and even medical care and hydrotherapy for his arthritis. Even so, Thomas said, “I’d like to see him complete his story. It’s time for him to go home. I’d like to see him have his own couch, and his own people. He’s getting older. He deserves the best.”

  THE FINAL EXAM

  Bones had come such a long way—from a red collar to a green one—in his time at Dogtown that the staff decided to conduct a new behavioral assessment to measure how far he’d come. If he showed strong results, it would strengthen his chances for adoption. These tests would be a way for the aging former stray to prove that his aggressive tendencies, especially toward other dogs, could be managed. It would also be a way for him to demonstrate that he was fully rehabilitated and ready to live in a home.

  Because he showed aggression toward other dogs, Mister Bones occupied a solitary run at Dogtown, an amenity he enjoyed.

  Trainers John Garcia and Pat Whitacre conducted the test in the kitchen of Dogtown. Pat sat at a table, with a pen and assessment forms, as John brought old Bonesy into the room on a leash. The elderly dog was wearing a green bandana around his neck, all gussied up for his special day.

  “Are you ready, Pat?” John asked.

  “Sure,” Pat said. The trainers’
basic strategy was to place Mister Bones in a series of real-world situations that could unnerve him. Then they would see his reactions to assess if they were dangerous or aggressive. If the results were good, then Bones’ chances of a new home might well increase.

  First, John tied Bones’ leash to the refrigerator handle and then left the room. Moments later there was a loud knock at the door. Mister Bones perked up, curious. Then John came lurching through the door wearing a blue rain slicker, with the hood pulled over his head and his face down, so he was unrecognizable. He walked into the room with a strange, stiff, Frankenstein-like walk. Mister Bones seemed nervous but curious. He wagged his tail at this strange blue plastic monster (although tail wagging can sometimes be a sign of anxiety rather than pleasure). He did not display fear or aggression in the slightest.

  A good result.

  Next was the petting test. John lavished the old white-faced dog with pets and back scratches, and Mister Bones, although he seemed a little stiff and wooden, clearly enjoyed the attention. John and Pat noticed that he licked his lips a little, which can signal uneasiness. But when John stopped petting, Bones tucked his nose up against John’s side, clearly seeking more affection.

  “He likes that!” John said. “He’s cuddling now.”

  Monty, Foyles’ personal dog, has been his pet for almost the entire time he has worked at Dogtown. Monty is a terrier mix, and their friendship began when he started following Thomas around wherever he went.

  Another good sign.

  The next test, and perhaps the most unsettling for Bones, would check to see if he could remain calm in the presence of an excited child. Since using an actual child for this test would be dangerous, the Dogtown trainers used a reasonable facsimile—a plastic doll about three feet high, fully dressed, with eerily realistic eyes and hair. (“That doll is freaky, dude—I’m scared of that thing!” John said.)

  Moments later John came out from behind a corner, walking the doll across the floor and talking to Bones in a high-pitched, singsong voice. “Bonesey! Here, puppy, puppy! Here, Mister Bones! Hey, Mister Bones! Hoo-hoo-hoo!”

  Mister Bones responded with a mixture of fear and curiosity, tentatively trying to sniff the doll, but with his tail tucked partly beneath his legs. He seemed ready to bolt at any moment. But he didn’t. Nor did he lash out with frightened aggression, a response at the core of all his problems. “Bye, Bones!” John squealed, and marched the doll out of the room.

  The child test was over, and things were looking bright for Bones.

  Now for the ultimate test—another dog. Bones had never been human aggressive, but he had learned to be dog aggressive on the streets to survive. But a lifetime had passed between then and now. Maybe now he had permanently and completely changed.

  With Bones leashed to the refrigerator, John brought in Pat’s personal dog, Rollie, on a leash. Rollie was calm, easygoing, and not aggressive toward other dogs. When John took him off his leash in the confined kitchen, Rollie immediately approached Bones. The two dogs both had white muzzles and were about the same size. They approached each other curiously until their noses nearly touched, tails wagging in a stiff, tentative sort of way.

  The dogs had met before when they were younger, and it hadn’t gone well. Now that they were both older, there was hope that it wouldn’t explode into a bad situation. At one point Pat put his hand between the two dogs, “kind of as a little safeguard” in case the old boys had some fight left in them. But they both seemed calm, patient, and gentle, like oldsters waiting in the cafeteria line. “In the old days, Bones probably couldn’t get that close to another dog without doing the old alligator snap,” John said. But nothing of the kind happened today. There was no sign of the aggressive streak in the dog who arrived at Dogtown more than 12 years earlier.

  “All right, dude!” John howled. “You did good!”

  Mister Bones had passed his final exam with flying colors. Maybe these results would make the difference in finally getting him adopted. The trick would be finding someone who welcomed Mister Bones’ maturity.

  THE POWER OF TELEVISION

  Mister Bones found his match thanks to the DogTown television show, which airs on the National Geographic Channel. In 2008, the show’s first season aired and told the moving stories of different dogs at Best Friends, the challenges they faced, and the relationships built with the Dogtown staff. In February 2008, Bones’ quest for an adoptive home was featured in a DogTown episode called, appropriately enough, “The Outsiders.” Every dog featured on an episode has his or her own Web page on the Best Friends website where fans can read about their favorite dogs and post messages of support to them. After Bones’ appearance, the Mister Bones Fan Club expanded dramatically. There were so many people following his story online, it was as if the Jersey Girls’ little Mustang convertible had a Fourth of July parade trailing behind:

  Three of the Jersey Girls, a group of volunteers who traveled from New Jersey to Dogtown every year to see him, cuddle Mister Bones.

  I saw my very first episode of DogTown on NatGeo here in South Africa on Saturday morning and spent most of the hour in tears, happy tears I have to add…. Thanks to EVERYONE showering their love onto Mr. Bones, he deserves it….

  As a person with experience with senior dogs, Mr. Bones calls out to me. I never thought to rescue an old dog…[then] I saw a picture of an old guy needing a home like Bones does. The rest is history…. He is so happy to be with us and adds so much. Even one week experiencing his sweet spirit was worth it. I just know someone will realize this about Bones!

  Bones’ online following grew and grew, but it would take until the following summer for his forever family to arrive. By midsummer, in fact, Mister Bones was the only dog from the three DogTown episodes that aired in 2008 who had not been adopted. It looked like Bones would be with Dogtown forever, but then along came Sharon.

  “MISTER BONES HAS LEFT THE BUILDING!”

  Mister Bones had attracted the attention of one special viewer, a special-education teacher from suburban Baltimore named Sharon. She saw Mister Bones on the DogTown episode and was, like the Jersey Girls before her, completely smitten by the old boy’s smile and sweet, wizened face. Although Sharon was a self-described “cat person,” with ten cats and two dogs at home, there was something about Bones that touched her to the core. She and her sister Martha, who was a longtime member of Best Friends, arranged a trip to Utah in the summer of 2008, partly to do a short volunteer vacation at the sanctuary and partly because Sharon wanted to meet Mister Bones.

  And when Sharon met Bones in person, “I just fell in love with that old dork…he was the love of my life.” Mister Bones apparently felt the same way. Although his manner was slow and dignified as befit an aging “man” of the world, he nuzzled up to her with his grizzled old face as if to ask for some scratches and petting.

  Sharon’s original plan was to take a different dog on a sleepover each night of her weeklong stay at Best Friends. But after the first night with Bones, she and her sister were driving through nearby Zion National Park, discussing which dog they should take that night, when they both looked at each other.

  “Who are we kidding?” they both said at once. “We’re taking Bones!”

  They wound up taking Bones home every night of their stay. Sharon and Martha loved everything about him, from his crazy smile to his “water dance” to the odd little wart on his forehead. Completely smitten, Sharon called her husband, Larry, back in Maryland. “Don’t tell me—you want to adopt another cat,” Larry said, knowing his wife well.

  “Uh, no…” Sharon said. “I want to adopt another dog.”

  “A dog? We’ve got two already!”

  “He’s the sweetest old guy, and his name is Mister Bones.”

  “Well,” Larry grumbled, “come home and we’ll talk about it.”

  By which Sharon knew Larry meant, OK, let’s do it.

  In the following days and weeks, good wishes and joy poured in to the Best Friends we
bsite, where periodic postings kept Mister Bones’ fans up to date on the latest developments:

  Mr. Bones has been adopted! If good things come to those who wait, Mr. Bones should be qualified to inherit his own planet. For now at least, he’s content with his own private wing in his new home….

  Getting Mister Bones back to Maryland would be a bit of a challenge. Dr. Mike decreed that Mister Bones was too old and too weak to fly. (He was by now, after all, almost 15 years old, which amounts to something like 100 in human years.) He was also taking multiple medications—for arthritis, for anxiety, and for his thyroid.

  Sharon and her sister decided they’d have to fly back out to Utah, rent an SUV, and drive Mister Bones cross-country back home to Maryland. But a trip like that would cost, they estimated, around $3,000, for airfare, SUV rental, and gas (which at the time was close to four dollars a gallon).

  Sharon tried raising the money by tapping in to her own network of animal rescue friends, but without too much success. It was only when she contacted Joyce and the rest of the Jersey Girls that money started raining down from heaven. Within 28 days, Mister Bones’ oldest and most loyal fan club had raised $3,150, more than enough to send Sharon and Martha out to Utah to bring Mister Bones back—at last—to his forever home.

  When the two women came back to Dogtown to pick up Mister Bones in October 2008, there was a sense of celebration that electrified the whole staff, volunteers, and visitors. Little posters and banners were posted everywhere, including a particular favorite: “Mister Bones has left the building!”

  On the Best Friends website there was also an outpouring of unalloyed joy:

  HAPPY HAPPY NEWS!!! MR. BONES WENT TO HIS FOREVER HOME ON TUESDAY OCTOBER 14!!! GOD SPEED MR. BONES!! WE LOVE YOU!

  I have been following the saga of Mr. Bones for quite awhile. I do animal rescue and have 3 dogs and 2 cats so I knew I couldn’t adopt this glorious fellow, but I have been praying that someone would fall in love with him and take him home. My prayers have been answered….