Rivers

by Mike Dillingham

  Poor Doc, who is the gentlest dog and the smallest of us, went first. Lakota told me that Doc did not make it past the first good hard pull. Mike went over to Doc and made a big fuss over him. Although he did not win, I know Doc felt good for trying hard and getting all of the praise Mike gave him.

  Lakota told me that Mike stood there with the rope in his hand and Christmas walked up to it and grabbed it. She held it good and tight. Christmas pulled the rope. Mike pulled harder and shook the rope, but Christmas would not let go. Christmas pulled and shook the rope, but Mike would not let go. The guys were all standing by me watching Christmas and Mike in the tugging game. Mike would pull harder, and then Christmas would pull harder. Neither would give up, until the rope broke! Lakota told me that Christmas fell backward, saying she won.

  Mike ended up sitting on his butt, laughing. Doc told me that Mike got up and walked over to Christmas and just rubbed her a lot, making a big fuss over her. Nope, we were not going to tell her the rope broke. Let her believe she won. It would not hurt to make her feel good. She had been so down since Sunny left.

  Mike got another piece of rope. Ugly said it was his turn. Now Ugly, who is a clown, said he was going to have some fun. He just grabbed the rope and sat down. When Mike pulled the rope, Ugly just sat there and let the rope go. When the rope fell to the ground, Ugly would jump up on his hind paws and do his “Ugly Jig,” which always makes us laugh. Mike just grabbed Ugly and gave him a big tummy rub.

  Well that left Nitro, Brownie, Lakota, and me. Nitro told us that he was going next. He told us that after he grabbed the rope, all of us should grab it also. When we were pulling very hard, he would give us a signal to let the rope go. Mike would fall backward into the straw pile and then we would all pile on him and wrestle.

  Now that sounded like a fun plan. Doc told me that Nitro walked over to the rope. Mike had a good grip on one end and Nitro grabbed the other. Nitro began to pull and so did Mike. Brownie told us they pulled so hard that the rope stretched very tight. That is when we all jumped in and grabbed on. Doc, Ugly, and Christmas joined us. There were seven dogs pulling on the rope that Mike held. We pulled and he pulled. As Mike pulled harder on the rope, Nitro told us to let go and we all did at the same time.

  Christmas started to giggle as she told me that Mike fell backwards into the straw pile just as Nitro had said he would. We all ran over to Mike and jumped on him, licking his face and sitting on him. He pushed us away or grabbed one of us and rolled us in the straw. Doc said that Ugly actually jumped on Mike's back trying to do his “Ugly Jig” until Mike shook him off.

  The bell rang. Mike has a little box that he can talk into and it rings when someone wants to talk to him. Doc said it was called a cell phone. Once it started to ring, Mike stood up and started to talk.

  “What do you mean, Doctor Jim, someone took Sunny out of your yard?” Mike asked. “You saw them head down the trail towards us?” Mike said, “We are on our way.”

  Sunny stolen! Then I heard her howl. It was a very painful howl.

  I turned to the guys and said, “Sunny is in trouble. I heard her. She needs our help. Follow me!” I started to race out the open gate. I heard the guys and Christmas follow me.

  “Stop!” It was Mike, but this time we must disobey him. He needed to follow us.

  We headed down the trail. I was running as fast as I could. I had never run this fast before, but I had to get to Sunny. She kept howling and I knew exactly where she was from her howls.

  Brownie was behind me. He is normally the fastest dog, but this time he could not keep up with me. “Jump, Rivers, a log!” and I jumped as he told me to do.

  Sunny,s howls were getting louder, but there was another animal near her, a wolf!

  I could hear Brownie's footsteps fading to my rear. I was on my own until the gang caught up.

  I found Sunny. “Rivers, I am caught in a snare and I think my leg is broken. The wolf attacked me and I am bleeding,” she said.

  “What is this? A dog coming to stop me? A blind dog no less,” the wolf said. “What a joke.”

  I needed to buy some time. I was no match for this wolf. “Yes Wolf, a blind dog.” I said defiantly, as I got between Sunny and the wolf. “A blind dog with friends.” I added, “You better move on while you still can.”

  Then I heard Brownie. “Hey Wolfie you don't want to deal with a sled dog with attitude, do ya?” Brownie was starting to sound like Mike.

  I heard Nitro and Lakota race off the trail next, snarling and barking at the wolf. However, the loudest and nastiest barking came from Christmas as she cleared the trail and got up front with the wolf.

  “Mister Wolf,” she started, but before she could continue, we heard Mike on the four-wheeler yelling, “Down, down!” We laid down and I heard two shots ring out from Mike's gun. Doc told me Mike missed the wolf, probably on purpose, and the wolf ran off into the woods.

  “Sunny,” Mike said. “It is okay girl. Let me help you.” Lakota was next to me and told me that Mike cut off the snare that was around Sunny's rear leg. Yes, Sunny's leg was broken.

  Mike gently laid Sunny down and put his fingers into the bloody fur on her neck. “Puncture wound.” Mike said. Lakota told me that Mike took a tube of something out of his pocket and squeezed the contents into the wound. Then Mike took a kerchief out of another pocket and tied it around her neck to help stop the blood flow. He then took two small tree limbs and tied one on each side of Sunny's broken rear leg using the snare wire. This way, the leg could not move and cause any more damage to the broken bone.

  Doc said Sunny did not look well at all. Doc told me that Mike took the cell phone out of his pocket and started talking into it.

  “Doctor Jim,” Mike said. “I found Sunny. Broken rear leg and a puncture wound on her neck from a wolf.” Mike continued. “I have the leg splinted but I don't know if I stopped the bleeding. I got the wound loaded up with antibiotics and covered. I am about 2 miles from my home. “Can you meet us there?”

  Brownie told me that the four-wheeler had a little trailer behind it. Mike wrapped Sunny in his coat and gently laid her in the trailer. He then grabbed my collar and told me that I needed to get in the trailer and cuddle up to Sunny to keep her warm. He told Lakota to do the same. I heard Christmas jump in also.

  Mike told the rest of the team, “Home” and Lakota told me that they followed us up the trail to the house.

  When we got to the yard, Doctor Jim was already there. “Let's use your warming shed,” Doctor Jim said as Mike lifted Sunny out of the trailer. I jumped out and Lakota led me into the warming shed with the rest of the team.

  “You did a good job with her leg splint, Mike,” Doctor Jim said. “We can deal with that later. The neck wound is bad and she has lost a lot of blood.” Doc told me that Doctor Jim was talking to Mike as he cleaned and then examined Sunny's neck wound.

  Christmas was standing next to me and asked me if Sunny would be okay. I said, “You bet Little One, Doctor Jim is the best.” I hope I sounded convincing for both our sakes.

  “Mike we need to do a dog to dog blood transfusion,” Doctor Jim said.

  Mike answered, “We have eight donors here, Doctor Jim.”

  “It is not that simple,” he said. “First it would be very unwise to transfuse blood from 8 different dogs into one injured dog.” Doctor Jim explained, “That would greatly increase the chances of a severe, possibly fatal transfusion reaction like a bad penicillin or bee sting allergic reaction in people.” Doctor Jim continued, “But there are other reasons not to use a dog as a donor. For example, the donor dog should be at least 44 pounds. That leaves out Doc, Christmas, Ugly and Brownie who weigh less than 44 pounds.”

  “Dogs should be between 1 and 6. So, that leaves out Sandy since she is 13. He said

  “Also the donor dog should be the same blood type. Type ‘A’ is universal canine donor and Rivers, Nitro and Lakota are all type A. Remember, we did blood work on all of your dogs last year.”

 
Mike asked, “Okay so who should we go with?”

  “My first choice would be Nitro since he is the biggest and has the most blood.” Doctor Jim answered. “After Nitro, I would use Lakota and Rivers.”

  Doctor Jim continued. “However, before we do the blood trans-fusion, I will need to repair the artery that the wolf nicked. That nick is causing the blood loss. If I can get it to stop, then we can go ahead with the blood transfusion.”

  “We are going to give blood to Sunny.” It was Nitro.

  “Yeah,” Lakota said. “And you are going to be first, Nitro.”

  “Guys,” I said, “I have to be the first to do this.”

  Lakota asked, “Why be first Rivers, we may all get to donate blood to Sunny.”

  I replied, “That may be true, but I need to be sure that I do this. It is for Doctor Jim.” I went on, “He made me pain free and this would be my way of thanking him, helping to save his beloved Sunny.”

  “This could be dangerous for you Rivers, you are barely 50 pounds.” Nitro said in a very calm voice. He continued, “And Doctor Jim said the bigger the dog the better for these transfusions. Lakota and I have 20 pounds on you.”

  “I am willing to take that chance,” I replied. “Besides, if it were not for Doctor Jim, I would never have been able to enjoy racing or running the trails again. Sometimes I feel that I have been selected to do something special and this may be it. Please guys,” I begged. “Let me be first.”

  I had to do this and the guys knew it had to be me. They agreed and the plan was that every time Doctor Jim or Mike went to pick up Nitro, I would get in the way and Lakota would block them. We hoped they would get the idea that I must be first. Nitro would be second and Lakota third. The other dogs agreed to help by blocking Nitro.

  I heard Doctor Jim tell Mike he was ready for Nitro. When Mike went to get Nitro, five dogs blocked Mike. I was in front. “Team, I have to get Nitro.” However, the team sat there shielding Nitro. When I heard Mike try again, I jumped up and put my front paws on his chest.

  “Okay Rivers, what is going on?”

  Come on Mike, you are a smart human. Can't you see that I want to be first and that the team is telling you that by blocking Nitro?

  Mike picked me up and said, “Doctor Jim, we are going to use Rivers first.” As he put me on the table next to Sunny, I could hear her breathing, very slowly, very softly. I am sure she was resting. If her eyes were open, I am sure she would have said something to me. I was becoming very worried and scared. Did I do the right thing? What if Sunny needs more blood than I can give her?

  “He is the smallest of the three, Mike. I have to be careful how much blood I take out of him,” Doctor Jim said. “Hmm, he was very calm when I operated on him. He will be Okay.” Doctor Jim continued, “That gives us the two bigger dogs in case we need more.”

  “Yes,” Mike said. “I bet they had this plan to let Rivers be first. Makes you wonder sometimes how smart these critters really are.”

  I felt the needle prick into my front leg where Doctor Jim wanted to take the blood. I heard my teammates move closer to the table. “Are you Okay Uncle Rivers?” It was Christmas.

  “I am fine Little One, don't worry.”

  “Rivers, is that you?” It was Sunny.

  “Yes, it is me,” I replied. “Don't talk. You need to rest and let the blood transfusion work,” I said.

  “Rivers,” she said. “Will you tell me how you see me in your mind's eye?”

  I answered, “Only if you get better and we run the trails again.”

  She asked, “You promise?”

  I answered. “Do you promise to get better?”

  “Yes,” she said as she drifted off to sleep.

  I heard Doctor Jim say, “All done, Rivers, you did a good job.” I never felt him take the needle out of my leg. Mike picked me up and laid me down in the big pile of straw that we have in the warming shed. I heard Christmas come over and sit next to me.

  “Well Mike,” Doctor Jim said. “I think we did it, but we will not know for sure for another 12 hours or so. Do you mind if I keep Sunny here for the night?”

  “I was going to recommend that since Nitro and Lakota are here and you might need them,” Mike said. “Let me get the team fed and watered.” He added, “I am sure they are hungry after this adventure.”

  I heard Mike command the team back to the yard for chow. They all left, knowing Sunny needed her rest. I needed mine also and I was just about to doze off when I heard her silky soft voice say, “Thank you, Rivers.”

  I heard Mike and Doctor Jim come in and out of warming shed several times. I just rested there in the soft straw listening to Sunny's breathing. However, nature does call and I headed to the yard. I wandered over to a far corner and softly howled my prayers for Sunny into the quiet of the night.

  I felt a dog sit besides me. I was puzzled since I did not hear any footsteps. There was no dog scent either. “Who are you?” I asked.

  “Now Rivers, I feel hurt that you did not recognize me,” a familiar voice chuckled.

  “Aurora!” I said excitedly, “Aurora Gooddog! What are you doing here?”

  “She answered, “I am here for you, Rivers. You did some very brave things today, even risked your own life for your friend,” She said. “Racing down that trail as fast as you could, and not being able to see. Facing that wolf, knowing you had no chance against it. After defending your friend, you gave her some of your blood. That is a lot to do in just one day. You made me proud that I am your Guardian Angel Dog.”

  I replied, “My friend needed help and that is all that matters. I know she is destined to fulfill her Husky destiny.” I paused, and then said. “What do you mean, Guardian Angel Dog?”

  Aurora answered, “Humans have Guardian Angels. Dogs have Guardian Angel Dogs. Most adult humans forget about their Guardian Angels when they grow older. Most dogs do not know they have a Guardian Angel Dog. We kind of watch over you.”

  “Do Sunny and my teammates have Guardian Angel Dogs? I asked.

  “Yes and no,” she answered. “I won't tell you about your teammates except for Christmas, she does have one.”

  “And Sunny?” I asked. “Nope, not yet.”

  “Why?” I asked.

  “We just have not gotten around to it yet. Besides there is a shortage of Guardian Angel Dogs, right now.” She continued, “See, Rivers, Guardian Angel Dogs are dogs who have crossed the Bridge and have shown that they care for others. Once they do that, some are given the job of Guardian Angel Dog.

  “Will you be Sunny's Guardian Angel Dog?’ I asked.

  “I am too busy. I have a bunch of dogs to take care of,” Aurora replied.

  “Okay,” I said. “Let her have my spot on your list of dogs to watch over.”

  There was silence. “Rivers, why would you do that?” Aurora asked.

  “Because she has been through so much that she needs and deserves a Guardian Angel Dog. I have done a lot. And I bet you were there to smooth trails for me as I ran them so I would not fall or trip and let my teammates down.” I pleaded, “Now it is her turn.”

  “Rivers, you are a true champion to think of someone else like that. Okay, tell you what I will do. I will sign on as Sunny's Guardian Angel Dog and make time for her and you also.” Aurora continued, “You can never tell her or Christmas about this. They have to believe on their own. Agreed?” she said as she put her paw on me.

  I replied. “Agreed. Thank you Aurora. Will Sunny get better? I asked

  “I don't have any idea about that nor any power to help,” she answered. “The power to heal comes from within you. Sunny has a strong desire to live and since you seem to know her pretty well, then you know the answer to your own question,” she said.

  Aurora continued. “Well it has been fun chatting with you, Rivers, but I have work to do. Take care.” With that, she was gone.

  I walked back to the warming shed. I lay down next to Sunny. I must have awoken her because she said, “Hi Rivers, g
ood night,” and she went back to sleep.

  Mike woke me up and said, “Mornin’ buddy, you must be hungry. Here is some chow for you.”

  “Yes Rivers, it is chow time.” I jumped right up when Sunny said that. “You okay?” I asked.

  “A little weak and this thing on my leg itches, but other than that, I feel pretty good. Now,” Sunny continued with a stern tone in her voice, “you promised me that if I got well you would tell me what I looked liked in your mind's eye, Rivers.”

  “Are you sure I said that?” I joked. “You were pretty out of it last night and after I gave you some of my super high test, grade ‘A’ Alaskan Husky blood, I got a little tired. I do not remember saying anything like that.”

  “Mister Rivers!” she demanded. “What do I look like in your mind's eye?”

  “Okay Sunny, don't get your fur up. You look like a pretty lady dog with a thing on your rear leg!”

  “Rivers, you are so frustrating,” she shrieked.

  “Yes, I know,” I said as I laughed, “That's what friends are for.”

  Randy

  Mike and I took a walk on a trail that I had never walked on before. This trail was on some kind of hard stuff that Mike called sidewalk. There were many people walking on the sidewalk and Mike told me that there were some benches where people could sit down and rest. Mike said we were in the town near where we live. Mike told me that a town is a place where the stores are located, where he can buy things like food and sled dog harnesses. This is a little confusing to me. Is the town the place where Mike hunts for our food?

  It was very noisy and busy, but I was not scared. Sure, I could not see all the things around me, but Mike was with me and he is a good leader. He would talk to me and describe all of the things that were around us. When Mike describes things to me, I can see them in my mind's eye.

  Anyway, as we were walking, Mike told me that we were passing a bench and there was a young boy sitting on it with a book in his hands. I heard a young boy say, “Hey Mister, can you help me?”