By LINDA GRIMESHi, first I would like to say, that Los Alamos has families and individuals that foster the dogs/cats from our local shelter. It is a service that is needed in every community. We are fortunate to have people that take that task to heart.
Bringing life into the eyes and soul of an animal can be so rewarding as well as heartbreaking. When they are finally adopted by their forever family it is a rewarding loss. I think that it would be great opportunity to spread the word and thank those individuals behind the scenes who foster the pets in our community.
I have a good friend and a volunteer, Kara, who lives in White Rock. She is one of the small community of foster parents. In February 2017, she was given an opportunity to foster a new Chihuahua mix, Mikey. On the second day, after his arrival, my friend Kara returned home from the store and discovered the little guy had escaped by climbing the wire fence in her backyard. We searched for two days, with no luck. We thought he would die from the elements or worse.
On Feb. 20, the holiday, Ashley from the LA Animal Control called Kara, four days and three nights later, to inform her that a woman had found a small dog at the bottom of Overlook Canyon. We both rushed to the overlook and finally located the lady and Mikey at the bottom of the canyon. He had been hiding under a scrub oak tree, wearing the leash and collar.
The lady that found Mikey was able to grab that leash before he could run. Kara, mad and happy at the same time, descended, vertically like a goat down the canyon wall. She held Mikey as she and his rescuer climbed back up the cliff, bringing Mikey to safety. Unbeknownst to Kara and I, the lady had called a friend and he rushed to the top of the cliff with bottled water and sliced turkey breast to feed Mikey. Mikey was dirty, looking very sad, hungry, mostly staring blankly.
To this day, we do not know how Mikey got to the bottom of Overlook, survive the elements, and avoid the predators. I took pictures of this adventure and unfortunately forgot the names of the two people who located Mikey and helped to bring him to safety. Might I add, there was no path nearby, there was no alternative but to climb up the steep cliff.
This labor of love is without thanks sometimes. Oh yeah, Mikey was adopted by one lucky woman who now posts his little wagging tail on FB, I think her name is Bonnie. So I ask, would your paper give a shout out to our foster parents. (Yes – we are happy to do so!)
