Cherokee


Julie from Another Chance Ranch inspired me with her story of Mia so I decided to share Cherokee's rescue story.

One day a dog was hanging around the school where I taught. Her coat was dull and matted and she was thin, but we figured she belonged to someone in one of the houses near the campus. We really didn't think much about it because it wasn't odd to see a dog strolling around the school grounds. The dog was still hanging around the next day. My friend, the school counselor and fellow animal lover, told me that if I would take the dog home with me, he would pay to have her spayed. I was somewhat reluctant for several reasons. I already had two dogs and three cats. The stray dog was covered with ticks and fleas and I would have to drive around ten miles to get her to my house. And, I didn't know if the dog actually belonged to someone.

I taught at this small rural school in the days before Columbine so it was normal for boys to have their pocket knives and even hunting knives with them at school. At the end of the second day as I left my classroom, I heard a dog yelping and I saw a group of boys gathered around something on the ground. When I walked over to investigate, I discovered the boys holding the stray dog down on her back. Several of the boys had their knives out and when I asked what they were doing they told me they were going to "cut the dog". Needless to say, I was furious. I told the boys that she was my dog and that they had better leave her alone. I proceeded to load the dog in my small car and took her home.

I am not ashamed to say that I didn't even try to find out if the dog belonged to someone. I cut the matted parts out of her coat, treated her for ticks and fleas, bathed her, fed her a big meal and named her Cherokee. She has been with me for ten years. And, yes, my friend did give me a check for Cherokee's vet bill and he also dealt with the boys who were going to hurt her.