Today we went to catch a dog named Buddha. We had been trying for days, but our efforts had been disrupted by people with good intentions who kept approaching Buddha and displacing him. As people chased him around, he had been hit by cars on two separate occasions. Animal control had tried to catch him at least twice, chasing him and terrorizing him with a catch pole. I call him Buddha because he liked to hang out at and near the Buddhist monastery in north Seattle near 1st and 83rd. We decided to try the kennel trap just to make the capture easier. I had to drive to Kent to pick up the kennel trap, where it was set near Lake Meridian for a dog we were trying to catch. It took 40 minutes to drive to Kent, 30 minutes to disassemble and load the trap, an hour to drive to the monastery, and about 40 minutes to set up the trap, and then it took five minutes for Buddha to go in.
Actually, I was going to try Calming Signals, first. I thought I was taking a good approach, offering him food from the other side of the fence, so he would feel safe. It didn’t work out so great. The first chunk of hotdog I tossed to him just happened to hit him right between the eyes. I’m used to my dogs catching treats. I tossed him another bit of hotdog, and he got up and walked away. Fortunately, Dori and Carmen had planned for this, and they had the barriers set up so that Buddha would be funneled into a fenced backyard. Once inside, he tried to find a way out, but then he just settled in the corner for a nap. I sat in the fenced yard hoping to use calming signals, but calming signals can’t work if a dog’s eyes are closed.
So, we set up the trap just outside the gate. When we had it all set, Carmen opened the gate, and she went and roused Buddha from his slumber. Buddha grumbled and whined, unhappy about Carmen getting in his space. After a few minutes, he headed for the gate. He walked right into the trap with hardly any hesitation. He wasn’t happy once he learned he was trapped, but he didn’t work too hard to escape. Once in the trap, I could see he was still a puppy, maybe 7 or 8 months old. I took the 48 inch trap inside the kennel trap, to get him in there for transport. He didn’t want anything to do with that. It took about an hour to get him in the smaller trap. Carmen could pet him through the fencing, and he liked that. He didn’t like me so much, inside the kennel with him. We eventually got him in the smaller trap by using a section of fencing to get him wedged toward one side, and then using a sled to scoot him into the trap. Once in the smaller trap, he whined and grumbled but he was okay.
Buddha looks a lot like Mu. I wanted to hug him, but he didn’t want that. Once we were at the vet, he was much calmer toward me, but still not wanting to be petted. He is at the shelter now.
Actually, I was going to try Calming Signals, first. I thought I was taking a good approach, offering him food from the other side of the fence, so he would feel safe. It didn’t work out so great. The first chunk of hotdog I tossed to him just happened to hit him right between the eyes. I’m used to my dogs catching treats. I tossed him another bit of hotdog, and he got up and walked away. Fortunately, Dori and Carmen had planned for this, and they had the barriers set up so that Buddha would be funneled into a fenced backyard. Once inside, he tried to find a way out, but then he just settled in the corner for a nap. I sat in the fenced yard hoping to use calming signals, but calming signals can’t work if a dog’s eyes are closed.
So, we set up the trap just outside the gate. When we had it all set, Carmen opened the gate, and she went and roused Buddha from his slumber. Buddha grumbled and whined, unhappy about Carmen getting in his space. After a few minutes, he headed for the gate. He walked right into the trap with hardly any hesitation. He wasn’t happy once he learned he was trapped, but he didn’t work too hard to escape. Once in the trap, I could see he was still a puppy, maybe 7 or 8 months old. I took the 48 inch trap inside the kennel trap, to get him in there for transport. He didn’t want anything to do with that. It took about an hour to get him in the smaller trap. Carmen could pet him through the fencing, and he liked that. He didn’t like me so much, inside the kennel with him. We eventually got him in the smaller trap by using a section of fencing to get him wedged toward one side, and then using a sled to scoot him into the trap. Once in the smaller trap, he whined and grumbled but he was okay.
Buddha looks a lot like Mu. I wanted to hug him, but he didn’t want that. Once we were at the vet, he was much calmer toward me, but still not wanting to be petted. He is at the shelter now.
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