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My Dog Just “Saved My Bacon” and Other Tails of Heroism
Okay, not really a bacon story. ???? And I probably wasn’t going to die, but on a recent hike, my 10yr old Aussie, Joy, was able to get me out of a tight spot by being willing to TUG when it wasn’t playtime.
We were on a too-hot hike in Oklahoma in a sandstone canyon. I was looking for the “shortcut” trail partially but badly marked as a “halfway point” and supposedly easy exit down to the road. I ended up slipping down a bit of sandstone that I couldn’t get back up. Down was … straight down and into some treetops. Up was where my dogs were, because I’d pushed them up above me. They had 4-foot traction but I could not get a toehold. My boots kept slipping.
I tried a couple other spots… and couldn’t figure out a way to get back up. Joy was panting hard in the shade above me. Bliss kept coming back down the slide as if to show me how easy it was to climb back up; very helpful. ????
I pushed Bliss out of the way and called Joy who came toward me. I folded up my leash and held it up toward Joy – “Joy,” I said. “Tug”. She looked at me for a second. I repeated it, “Joy, Tug”. And she took hold of the leash. A deep bite, with her molars. She tugged a bit. “GOOD GIRL – TUG!” I said. She backed up a few steps. “TUG!” She lowered her head and pulled hard, backing up the steep and slippery red sandstone. I held on and started scrambling with my feet as she continued to back up, “TUG, TUG, TUG, TUG” I kept saying. And she did. She pulled me up about 4 feet of sandy rock.
What a very good girl. She was all business and then was like, “Fine, can we get back on the trail now?” We still had a couple miles to walk, as it turns out, because the trail was, as I mentioned, not terribly well marked. All’s well that ends well – and I was really grateful for my good girl. She’s an experienced hiker with me, but I can’t recall ever asking her to TUG quite like that, before. She sure knew what to do, though. ????
(Photo is from a different hike, a few weeks ago. Same type of sandstone!
What good deeds have your dogs done? Can you share a time when they did something they weren’t specifically trained to do, or some cue out of context where they helped?
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9 Replies
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What a THRILLING story!! This is absolutely wild. Great to see the power of the dog and the power of good training as well!
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Thanks, Krish – yep, she’s a keeper for sure. I love old dogs; they just *know* things.
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Wow- what an experience. I am always amazed when dogs just seem to “get it” when they need to!
Good job Joy. Bliss is still learning so, she has the next adventure, surely! ????
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Yep, exactly, @jenz , Joy and I have been on hundreds of hikes and thousands of adventures. She had been paying close attention to my distress and was, in fact, whining a bit, when I tried a different route unsuccessfully. We were on another solo-heights related adventure a few months ago where I had to carry her up some rings in the rock wall, so she was not unfamiliar with the conundrum… it was just a whole new thing, to bring a “play behavior” into this context. I was really proud of her, and very, very grateful. I wish I had had some bacon with me to give her! haha.
And yep – Bliss may get there, one day. This day’s lesson for her was: Save that energy, kiddo, you’re gonna need it. She was all zoomy at the beginning of the hike and very, very laggy by the end of it. I’m like: You are 40lbs hunny; I’m not carrying you! March! We also learned a thing or two about spiny goathead thorns… the very best place is in the middle of the trail.
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I had one of these moments but I didn’t use a command. When my dog was 5 or 6 I took him and his sister who was 3 or 4 on a long hike in the woods. I live on a dead end street that leads to a state forest so there are lots of trails that I wanted to discover. One trail was overgrown and poorly marked so I ended up veering off onto an unmarked trail that just went on and on and kept going deeper and deeper into the woods. I couldn’t see a definitive trail to try and walk back to where i came from so I just kept going. Then I was like well we’re lost. I then decided to let my oldest dog lead the way and he got us out of the woods in about 15 minutes, and onto the main path that leads back to the house. Thank God for dogs with great noses!
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Oh my goodness, you must’ve been so grateful to your dog and his stellar nose. I remember once being lost in the woods in the winter without the benefit of a dog, and started to get panicky. By some good luck, I finally found my way out, but it sure was scary. So glad you had your wonderful dog to help you get back to safety, @cbradley .
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Oh, for sure – so glad you are safe. When in doubt, always follow the nose! 🙂
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@catherine i absolutely love this story. Great thinking on your part too!! I would really have to think about a time my dogs helped out. We hike a lot and I will definitely keep your story in mind if that happens to me. Although when I am tired I always let my Berner “pull” me up a hill. Lol. Does that count?
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100% absolutely use that draft dog to pull you up! haha – and then teach carting so you can just sit down and let him work. ???? ????
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