Posted on 08/18/2012 5:45:57 PM PDT by AlmaKing
Re: Dog Found: Mt. Bierstadt! by aortolani14 » Tue Aug 14, 2012 4:34 am
Hi all,
I am the owner of the German Shepard girl found on Mt. Bierstadt.
I need to know the name of the vet clinic that Missy is at so I can go see her and re-reimburse them for helping her, and if I am fortunate enough, to bring her home.
I am at a complete loss of words. My gratitude for the people involved in this is without measure.
Missy was hurt during an attempt at crossing the Sawtooth. It was Missy, a friend and I. Her paws got bloodied up right in the belly of the sawtooth. I was assisting her with the climb using ropes and a harness for a while but she kept getting hurt worse. A few kind hikers stopped and offered some assistance but incoming weather pushed people off of the saddle. My friend and I realized that we could not get Missy up the saddle to Evans or Bierstadt safely so we decided to bail off of the saddle into the valley between the two mountains to escape the incoming clouds. We were lowering her for a while with ropes from boulder to boulder but she was hurting herself worse against the rocks sprawling out and catching them with her legs. Eventually she just stopped standing or moving at all and I knew she was pretty badly hurt. I picked her up on my shoulders and was hopping from boulder to boulder but I couldn't keep her on me. I dropped her once and I almost fell once too and I realized that I couldn't carry her off of the mountain. At this point I made the decision that I honestly never thought I would even be faced with. I left her there so that my friend and I could get down safely with intentions of calling S&R when we were off of the mountian. We both spent about two hours trying to move her up and down the mountain and were pretty exhausted. Neither one of us wanted to hike up the saddle with the cloud cover growing so we continued down into the valley and hiked back to Guanella Pass Rd. It was a lot farther than we thought it would be, and we got lost several times. A group of hunters showed us the way out and gave us a ride back to our car. Thank you to them as well.
I called the 911, the sheriffs office and search and rescue and I was told that it was to risky for them to send rescue crew up there for a dog, which was upsetting but understandable. I'll admit that while trying to get off of the the mountain I was not as concerned because I was focused on making it safely off of the mountain, but once I was safely at my car I was overwhelmed with the loss, and the decision to leave her there. The next couple of days was absolutely horrible wondering about her, if she was alive, or if she died. Thinking about her suffering was awful beyond words. Many confidants comforted me by saying that she was probably gone from injury. All I can say is that I am relieved that she is okay, I am ashamed that it was not me that started this thread, I am ashamed that it wasn't me who got her off of the mountain, I underestimated the good will and resolve of the hiking community of Colorado, and I am eternally grateful to all of you and to 9news. I humbly beg the forgiveness of the community and most of all my Missy Girl. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.Top --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
aortolani14 ProfilePrivate messageE-mail aortolani1414er Peak List Not Entered Posts: 20 Joined: Tue Aug 14, 2012 4:05 amReport this postReply with quoteRe: Dog Found: Mt. Bierstadt! by aortolani14 » Tue Aug 14, 2012 5:13 am
I am reading through all of these threads, and I am just in awe of how heroic and amazing everyone is that did this. I also see all of the anger and hatred towards me and the decision that I made. I feel that I deserve it all. I made it in a panic to be sure, and what I felt was a survival situation. I didn't think to post on 14er's.com to ask for everyone to come fix my colossal mistake in judgement. It is truly amazing that all of you did it on your own. I don't have proper words. It was several days before I would have even been able to even think of walking back up Bierstadt much less into the sawtooth and to try and carry Missy out, and after that I just thought it would be to late. I honestly never thought that I could just ask strangers to go check the sawtooth and carry my 112lb German Shepard out. I don't know what to say. Thank you again to the community, and to those who are angry I am so so sorry. Missy has done 6 14'ers and she loves being out there in the mountains. She depends on me to make smart choices, and taking her into the sawtooth was beyond foolish.
I have to assume you’re being sarcastic, of course.
Yeah, me too.
When one goes, it brings back the memories of all the others long gone.
[and if one more person tells me “But you’ve still got your other dogs” I’m gonna break their face]
They are not her.
They are not all the others.
Each one is a special, separate grief and deserves better than to be lumped into a universal “one bawl covers all”.
Wow.
That sure is “different” from the “I was carrying her dying body on my breaking back” story the “owner” told, isn’t it?
The true tragedy is that, if she is given back to him, she’ll be glad to see him.
The poor dog deserves better than that.
He is not worthy of her of loyalty.
[my dogs go bonkers with worry if I get out of the car and go in a store...and ‘dad’ is still sitting in there with them. can’t imagine how she felt]
HELL YEAH!
Way different.
Bless *her* for having such noble grace and bearing while I was coming undone.
It’s ironic...she was horribly abused before she came here and was always phobic and afraid.
[dogs *do* get PTSD]
*I* was her strength, courage and ‘safe place’.
She clung to me all the time.
In the end, she totally reversed our roles.
She was a very, very good dog.
[and the vet was on the verge of tears, himself...he’s *such* a wonderful, compassionate man]
I know, but in their stupid, clumsy way they might think it helps, or they’re trying to cover for their own inadequacies. You know, you will always find plenty of sympathy and support, right here, from your animal-loving FRiends.
I wonder which person is lying their ass off?
/rhetorical question
Funny you’d say that.
My family has no idea she’s gone.
When I hurt, I come here.
They think my life is a 24/7 laugh fest with no worries or sadness.
They wouldn’t really care if I told them, anyway.
Nailed it!
That’s what hurts me and angers me the most... the thought of Missy waiting so devotedly for her buddy who never returned! Can you imagine her head turned rigidly, expectantly, never taking her eyes off that spot where she last saw him? —and her heartbreak and fear when darkness descended those seven nights without the sound of his voice or his scent on the wind? The poor girl!
You’re absolutely right... she would, ever-faithfully, go to him, but she deserves a fine buddy with a love, character and devotion equal to her own.
I agree. This guy said the dog passed 6 times. Why didn’t he take the necessary precautions to make sure the dog was safe. I would think at least once he was informed of some kind of precaution. When I take my dogs into a show ring they have the necessary equipment. This is the owners fault. He can scream all he wants with all the excuses he wants; but he was clearly not responsible with Missy.
Give her to the people who not only rescued her but show responsibility toward her.
I read all 46 pages at 14er.com and it is pretty clear what the posters there think of this asshole.
We were brought a stray that wondered into a store at a near by mall. We got a good photo of him and made up a color poster then had copies made and posted them in the neighborhoods close to the mall. We did more to find a stray’s owner than this guy did to get his own dog back.
We never found the owner so we fostered the dog to adopt out. As it turns out now his name is Foster and he lives here with my six other dogs.
The guy didn’t turn around when the dog was first in distress and then he just got stupider after that. He didn’t even have freaking booties for the pup!
What a beautiful circle you and your dog closed so fully and peacefully tigether. I’m glad you guys have such a fine vet.
>> He is not worthy of her of loyalty.
Based on my understanding of the situation, definitely no pity for the original owner.
Whatever is best for the GSD even if that means changing owners. Though, they long for their masters.
If you haven’t noticed; we have.
My second Dobermann was like that.
He waited for his worthless “owner” to come back for months after the guy gave him to me.
He’d sit in the yard, watching the road where the guy had driven away.
Then, one day, he decided that I was the center of his universe and that was that.
We saw the guy a while after that and the dog ignored him.
[these dogs hold a grudge that’d make an Irish ashamed]
You are right Eaker. Dogs running on concrete can run the pads of their feet off very fast. Just think what happened to Missy?
All the strays that turn up here either go back to whomever is on their collar tag, just stay here or go to my relatives.
I watch the papers and call the pound and if nobody bothers in a week, they’re mine.
;D
[but blast it..why are there never any stray horses?!?]
Very glad to see the posters didn’t fall for the same pre-fab sob story that *some* FReeper did.
And you know, of course, that now you have to show us a photo of Foster or we’ll all whine.
:)
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