New Dog in Town
The following originally appeared in The Floyd Press on January 18, 2007
She showed up about the same time as “A Taste of Floyd,” the slow food event that was hosted at the Harvest Moon Food Store last September. But some had spotted her even before that, with pups. The staff at the Harvest Moon has been collecting suggestions for names in a big glass cookie jar that sits on the check-out counter, along with donations to have her spayed. Meanwhile, they call her Ms. Hound.
Ms. Hound lives on the Harvest Moon grounds or by the barns that border it. Mostly she sits by the moss cow topiary that stands near the Harvest Moon driveway, the one that was donned in red ribbons and bells at Christmastime. She sits by the cow as if it is her rightful place in life, as if they were a likely pair.
“She wasn’t too happy when the wind blew the cow over and its head fell off,” Margie, the Harvest Moon owner, tells me. “She dragged a piece of it back to her doghouse that day,” she adds.
I had been trying to capture a picture of Ms. Hound for weeks, but she’s skittish of people. She’s either been abused in the past or is just used to living on her own in the wild, staff members, who have been feeding Ms. Hound, think.
But Floyd isn’t the wildest of places and Ms. Hound actually has a pretty darn decent dog house, which was generously donated by some of her fans who shop at the Moon.
“She’ll go in it only if no one is around,” Connie, a Harvest Moon manager, suggests. “She doesn’t want to feel trapped.”
One of the names in the cookie jar is Ms. Olive Chaepelle, which may refer to the lady-like dignity that Ms. Hound embodies. Margie likes the name Lu Lu.
“Yes, she does seem a little lu lu,” I respond. “Do you think she thinks the cow is real? How will the Humane Society ever get her in to be spayed? I haven’t been able to get within 10 feet of her,” I tell Margie.
Every time I shop at the Moon I have a new question about Ms. Hound, or I hear a bit of news about her. Sometimes I write a possible name on a piece of paper and drop it in the glass cookie jar, along with some coins that I hope are mounting up.
Connie thinks the name Freeda fits Ms. Hound’s personality. I nod my head.
She is a free spirit, after all. A loner with a lot of new friends.
January 27th, 2007 1:36 pm
I hope she becomes more friendly . She probably will after a longer time of feeding her. Even if it takes several months, it would be worth it to get her into a loving home where she could trust her owners. That is neat that she dragged part of the cow’s head to her doghouse! It shows she is willing to bond to something so there is hope she will do that for humans
January 27th, 2007 3:52 pm
i love this, colleen. it made me smile! i have a penchant for stray animals, much to my husband’s chagrin…..
January 27th, 2007 10:11 pm
A neat story.
I’ve known PEOPLE who are much the same way. Whenever one runs across my path I am inextricably drawn to attempting to open up communication and try to get on friendly terms. A challenge I guess.
A good story Colleen. I hope things turn out well.
Michelle says hi.
January 27th, 2007 10:23 pm
I already read this in the paper of course, :^} but I wanted to stop by & say thanks for visiting my blog tonight! My oldest will actually be 17 on Monday. She swears it didn’t hurt at all to have her lip pierced but I think she may just have really high pain thresholds especially since I have them too.
January 27th, 2007 10:35 pm
i wandered this way via michele’s place and i am glad i did. i love this piece on ms. hound. she certainly is a free spirit. she looks happy and healthy. i hope that things go well for her. as for where she belongs, maybe she really does belong right where she is.
January 27th, 2007 11:14 pm
I do hope that she gets over her skittishness soon. I expect she will. My son-in-law has a dog that was like her for a while (except no babies) and she finally calmed down and became docile.
January 28th, 2007 1:04 am
She is a darling looking pup! I love the way she is looking up at the cow in that picture, as if the cow IS real! Maybe she knows ciws from her previous home….like, on a farm or something…
I kind of like “Ms. Hound”, myself….
January 28th, 2007 2:21 am
If she stays in the area all the time, she could be sedated in her food and watched closely. In Mississippi, I fed an abandoned dog who lived in a culvert under a busy street. It took nine months but she finally started following me and I was able to get her in an enclosed fenced yard. I put sedative in her food and just sat with her. The lady from SPCA came and waited with me. That was the first day she let me touch her. We took her to a local vet and he checked her out and spayed her. Then she went to her forever home with a girl who had also helped feed her. I already had two rescued dogs. We had called her Sweety but they renamed her Gypsy. She still lives with a rescued greyhound and pomeranian there.
January 28th, 2007 7:44 am
Another great story Colleen. Look forward to the conclusion of the “name” hunt. And they do look like quite the compatable pair.
January 28th, 2007 9:45 am
OOOOh, THAT cow! I’m laughing because when we were in Floyd and at the Harvest Moon this past October, my Holly went insane over that cow! We let her out of the car to pee, she took one look at that thing and wouldn’t stop barking. I swear she thought it was real. I coaxed her up next to it, but she kept her distance and continued to bark. It was great to see the cow again here, but I think I’ll pass on showing it to my Holly…lol
BY the way…just yesterday, I took the last tea bag from my container of Green Tea-Orange Spice and I noticed the price tag on top said, “Harvest Moon”…so it reminded me where I’d purchased that great tea.
Sure hope Ms. Beagle gets spayed and finds a new home. She sure is sweet!
January 28th, 2007 10:27 am
Lovely story of Ms. Hound and you got in print too. Kudos.
January 28th, 2007 8:40 pm
Heck, *I* thought the cow was real when I first saw the picture! Terrific story. Ms. Hound might be skittish, but she doesn’t shy away from the camera and looks like she would give you a piece of her mind. I’m glad she has friends who care about her.
January 28th, 2007 8:52 pm
Michele sent me over to see you, Colleen.
The town I grew up in had a lot of strays. It was a densely wooded area with lots of snow in winter so the dogs had plenty to eat, if you know what I mean. Little kids had to be careful when the snow was melting though. I remember as late as 6 or 7 being worried when they were packing up. I guess one solitary stray is cute. A pack isn’t.
January 28th, 2007 8:53 pm
The best shots are those that show her sitting next to the cow, but they’re hard to get. In this shot she got up because she was suspicious of my intentions, and after I took it she walked away.
Thanks for the suggestions on how to get her legal, srp.
January 28th, 2007 10:09 pm
Bless her little heart! I bet she was abused….how nice that everyone is keeping her fed and giving her a place to sleep. Ms. Hound is a great town mascot!
January 29th, 2007 11:40 am
How wonderful that your town is looking out for this lovely lady. Bless your kind hearts.
January 30th, 2007 5:49 pm
I became a journalist precisely because I believed in the power of the press to make a difference in the life of its immediate community.
There is no more obvious proof than this story here. This is what the power of the free press is all about.
January 4th, 2008 12:40 pm
awww, how is Ms. Hound doing these days?