Eco Tours

When I go kayaking he is often with me, the same goes for when I travel for work, hike, and just about anything else I do.  But, he has separation anxiety and I can not leave him at home without him destroying it or freaking out if he’s in a crate.  Lately, all of my once friendly neighbors  claim that he barks from when I leave in the morning until I return in the evening.  Since it’s way to hot to leave him in my truck during the day and I can’t leave him at home……and doggy prozac doesn’t work I had to give him up.  Yesterday was sort of the straw that broke the camel’s back, I left him at home and got a text from my neighbor who couldn’t take the barking anymore.  I returned home but parked down my street to witness the barking first hand.  My neighbors were correct, he barks non stop and you can hear him 100 yards away like has has a fucking mega phone.

I loaded him into the truck and went to work calling shelters between stops.  Most of them were very friendly until I mentioned his issues and then they wanted nothing to do with the dog.  My dreams of placing him with a nice older couple or someone that never leaves their home started to fade quickly.  After an hour or so I found a shelter in Boston that was willing to take him and they never asked why I was giving him up…..I never offered up the reason either.  My dreams of him living out a good life were once again floating around in my head!

So, I’m sitting in this nice “surrender room” with my dog and I can’t even look at him while the nice lady is going on and on about them being a no kill shelter (a sales pitch to hit me up for a nice donation I think).  About 5 minutes into the process she asks that dreaded question “why are you giving up your dog”  honest me fessed up about the separation anxiety…..mistake!  Her nice attitude changed to a cold “we might not have room for your dog”.  So I said “no no no, I called ahead to make sure you have room”.  She said that she would check with her boss and returned with they can not take my dog as a dog for adoption but would be happy to take him in as a kill dog (they use a nicer term).  She went on and on about how it’s next to impossible to place dogs with separation anxiety and even if people take them they return them.

Talk about being boxed in a corner!  If I leave him he goes to doggy heaven, if I take him home and leave him there my neighbors will burn down my house or call the police, if I continue to take him to work in the summer heat he will die in my truck.  Doggy daycare is out since I can’t afford it.  In the end I left him at the shelter, hence the title “I Killed My Touring and Travel Companion”.

RIP “Thunder”  2003-2011