Mookie’s Story

Contact Us:

PO Box 554
Beaverton OR 97075

503.640.7979
info@indigo-online.org

We are happy to report, that on July 15, 2001, the Dane mix dog who had survived on her own for three years at the Tillamook Creamery, was successfully trapped and brought to a foster home in Hillsboro.

It was a long journey home.

Since she had just been called “the dog”, or “the Dane mix” until the time that we had been made aware of her, Claudia gave her the name “Mookie” after the creamery.

Indigo’s involvement in the rescue of Mookie began when a woman who was a former employee of the creamery contacted us. She and another woman had been feeding Mookie for about the past year, but neither woman was able to approach the dog without her bolting in fear. Rumors circulated that some of the employees had thrown rocks at her in the past, and that she had nourished herself late at night from the “raw milk pail” left near the docks at the rear of the creamery. Numerous employees had seen her with a leg injury about a year and a half ago, and she had apparently healed it up on her own.

Over the course of several months, one of the two women, Patti B. made endless phone calls trying to get a “professional” or someone with experience rescuing large dogs, to get involved. Unfortunately, while all expressed genuine concern for the dog, everyone was either busy with their own rescued animals, or geographically unable to participate in the rescue. Our own involvement included coaching and consulting in the form of about 250 e-mail exchanges. We all felt helpless and frustrated, but we continued to offer suggestions and encouragement to Patti, so that she would feel less nervous about the inevitable task before her.

We tracked down a large trap in Clatsop County, but before she was able to do the trapping, Patti needed a scheduled surgery, and time for recuperation. During that time, I went out to the creamery and met with the manager Eric. He told me that they couldn’t allow the women to feed the dog any longer because the food was attracting rats to the property. I asked him if he could assign someone to help Patti with the trapping of Mookie, and told him he needed to help get this dog to safety. He said that he would try.

Ultimately, Patti rented the trap. They chose an appropriate place to set it up, and Patti spent a week putting hamburger in the trap without setting it, moving it further and further back, until she was confident that Mookie was not afraid of the trap. She and her husband Jay chose a night, and sat out waiting the entire night for Mookie to come for food. By 7am the following morning, when they were about to give up, Mookie finally showed up. Another minute and she was in the trap, remarkably, acting quite calm. They packed her in the shell of their truck (Patti sat in back with her), and brought her to my house in Beaverton.

Over the prior week, I had been nosing around, and found a woman named Eileen who used to breed Danes, and since retiring, had a large empty kennel area. The kennels were indoor-outdoor, and she has a large fenced exercise area. We brought Mookie straight to Eileen’s, and released her in one of the runs. She was a little nervous, but allowed all of us to pet her, and marvel over her beauty and strength in surviving as she had, alone out there for three years. We asked Barbara Tuler the dog trainer to come out and evaluate her temperament, and Mookie immediately responded to commands such as sit, come, and shake, showing us that she had belonged to someone who had trained her.

The mystery of how a dog like Mookie ended up abandoned continues to baffle us. Had she been left out there intentionally when someone moved away? Had she escaped someone while visiting the creamery, and if so, why hadn’t they tried to find her?

Over the next several days, Mookie improved steadily, mingling with Eileen’s other dogs, and sleeping in the house. She bonded immediately with Eileen, and we have a sneaking suspicion she may end up staying with her for good (she’s quite a charmer). Her injured leg had been broken in four places, one of the breaks healed incorrectly, causing her leg to be an inch and a half shorter than the other. The other, lower fracture healed with the bone exposed, eventually growing a protective callous over it. Dr. Munjar, who is a surgical specialist, will determine later this week whether surgery will correct the damaged leg.

Mookie’s story has a very happy ending. It took a long time, and a lot of individual effort to make it happen. Most important, it took tenacity and an unwillingness to give up on another poor beast, left to survive out on her own. We hope that this story gives both encouragement, and meaning to our readers, as they face the endless numbers of homeless animals that surround us. As difficult as it may seem, you can make an amazing difference, just by making up your mind, and putting forth the effort. And believe us when we tell you, the gratification of seeing Mookie safe and happy, is a gift that cannot be purchased for any price.

Again we must quote:
“Become the change you want to see in others.”   Mahatma Gandhi

Heather Hines