Dink (Run Free)
This is a hard story for me to write, but we feel it is important that people know how Bridge makes tomorrow possible for so many unwanted animals.
Dink arrived bloated with worms and dirty from diarrhea. He was cleaned up, able to heal and have love for maybe the first time in his life thanks to the help of the people at Bridge. Folks say he was a sweet old guy and we can testify to that, he was a very sweet soul. We had the pleasure of spending time with him on our last trip South. I remember that day, it was a perfect day, the sun was shining and no rain in sight, unlike at home. So many dogs were happily bouncing around and barking to get attention. As we wandered around to pick dogs to walk, Dink sat there so patiently. As I neared his kennel he looked at me and my heart couldn't resist picking him. So there I was opening the gate to let this happy boy out of his run and you could clearly see the lasting damage that someone had done to him. Poor Dink had scars on his back and head, but that didn't stop him from wanting to be petted and loved. He was a perfect gentleman on our walk and enjoyed the free time. As he sniffed around I couldn't help but ask myself how people can do such horrible things to animals and still they love and trust us. This question I am afraid will never be answered. At the end of our walk I tried to take his picture, but he was much more interested in trying to see my phone than holding still, so this is the best I could do for a picture of this sweet boy. I am told that Dink had an unhealthy heart, so he was not a candidate for heart worm treatment. Unfortunately Dink's story ended at Bridge as he was a Hospice case and they cared for him as long as he was happy and healthy. The time has come now for Dink to run free with all the dogs that all of us have lost. Dink you will not be forgotten as you were loved by so many wonderful people.
Some of you may read this and think well what was the point.....Our point is that the hearts of the people who care for the animals at Bridge are big and even though horrible things happened to poor Dink, people loved him and he left this world in peace, not because someone beat him, starved him or left him out in the freezing cold at the end of a heavy chain.
A moment to state my peace...Not everyone is a crazy dog owner, not everyone has to love animals or even like them for that matter, but there is absolutely no reason that any animal should be mistreated. It isn't just abuse we are talking about either, it's the people who abandon their animals during a storm or the people who won't get their animals spayed/neutered to stop the over population of unwanted animals. I read a statistic the other day that 5,000 unwanted animals get euthanized every day. I would hope that even if you aren't an animal person you would see the reality and the fact that something needs to be done.