Herding Cats

By Stacy Mantle,  Author

"You can say any foolish thing to a dog, and the dog will give you a look hat says, 'My God, you're right! I never would've thought of that!'"

~ Dave Barry

My husband and I just got a new dog. We obtained this puppy, who we christened Cochise, through a series of serendipitous events – more specifically when my husband accidentally ran over the little guy with his car.

Now, it’s not that we make a habit of running puppies down with our car. We generally obtain our pets by way of more traditional methods; for example, adoption or rescue (not a rescue that was caused by us). This event was unusual to say the least, and occurred when the puppy bolted across six lanes of traffic, all of which was moving at 45 mph plus. So, the running over part was a bit inevitable (although my husband and I now both claim that Cheiss figured his current condition couldn’t get much worse, and opted to take his chances, in the process winning the doggie equivalent of the lottery). But I digress…

Needless to say, my husband was devastated. And so, he frantically called me from his cell phone after the young pup scampered off from his 45-mph collision and disappeared into the nearby desert. "I can’t find him anywhere." Sam frantically reported. "Come help me look for him!"

Well, as the accident had occurred on a six-lane road, near the freeway off-ramp, in the wild deserts of Arizona, we had a fairly large search area. But luck was with us that day, and we located not only the puppy, but also its homeless owners and two doggie brothers who were all living out of shopping carts on the Indian reservation. Cheiss had fallen into a nearby canal as his owners passively sat by, watching him struggle to get out of the water.

"My husband just ran over your dog." I shouted in their direction as I ran towards the struggling pup, being the first to arrive on the scene. "We need to get him some medical attention."

They simply nodded, and replied rather coldly, "We know – we saw him get hit."

In disbelief, I shook my head and told them that we were taking their pup to the veterinarian. But they were in no hurry to help and instead stood by watching as my husband tried to wrestle their dog out of the canal. Finally, in desperation, I stated, "Either you can help us catch him, or I can call the police and they can help us." The word police apparently got their attention, and they finally assisted my husband in fishing the injured pup from the canal.

The young puppy was in shock, that much was obvious. I mean, he was just struck by a vehicle at 45 mph and drug 50 feet, which is enough to throw anyone into shock. So we rushed him to the nearest veterinarian’s office whom, by good fortune, was the same veterinarian who cared for our own animals. The good-natured doc shook his head, figuring that we had just found the dog lying on the side of the road and spent a few minutes chastising the irresponsible driver who had left a young animal in such pain. Finally, he looked up and asked if we had seen the accident. I glanced at Sam who was by now feeling quite low, and said, ‘We were the accident."

The vet hastily mumbled an apology, and proceeded to tell us that he saw a precious few people who had brought in an injured stray, and remained willing to pay for it’s care – a statement that saddened us even more. Dr. Florez continued to examine him, calling him a "chow mix" and estimating his age to be about 4 months.

That day, we anxiously awaited the x-rays, blood-work, and the exam results. When the call came finally came in, the diagnosis was poor, but the veterinarian was optimistic. "He has a crushed femur, which will need to be removed," the vet said to us with his heavy South American accent. "He’s anemic from tick infestation, he has fleas, and possibly tick fever, as well as worms. He’s severely undernourished and only weighs 12 lbs."

Sam and I just stared at him. "So, what do you recommend?" We asked, dreading the answer.

The veterinarian just smiled. "Let’s get him fixed up."

After a quick discussion on the formidable charges involved with "fixing" the little guy, my husband and I added a neuter, vaccinations, and flea/tick dip to the long list of services and left him in the veterinarian’s capable hands as we arrived home trying to figure out how to pay for the $1,200 event.

Three days later we took him home to call our own and that’s when the games really began…

The veterinarian had told us he believed the dog to be a chow mix. But, we soon took issue with that when he began herding both my husband and I. When our kids came over, he began nipping at their heals to get them into a position that he thought they needed to be in, and even the other dogs found themselves in separate corners of the yard with our nipping little "chow" mix at their heals. My husbands’ leg became peppered with tiny little bruises, and I was mostly afraid to enter the room where Cochise resided.

But it wasn’t until the cats curiously poked their heads out from hiding that our real problems began. As it turns out, cats don’t like to be herded.

The problem escalated when Cochise (Cheiss, for short) decided that the coyote should be herded as well – away from the food. Tristan, the coyote, took offense to being moved around by a 4-month old puppy, and his response was a return nip on the nose.

Beagles don’t appreciate being herded either, nor do people, and for a good month, our household was in an uproar over the new addition. The cats hissed their malcontent, the coyote immediately set out to train the newcomer, and as Cheiss’ leg healed, and he doubled in size, his arrogance increased as well.

He was obviously an intelligent dog, despite the concussion that he had sustained in the accident, and over the next few weeks, we had little training to do. The other cats and dogs took care of it for us. He learned that "to herd" was to be forced into submission by the coyote, or scratched across the nose by a cat; and he learned that no matter how hungry he is, the coyote always eats first. The pecking order has indeed been established, and we can now walk freely through the kitchen area without fear of having to wear pants for the rest of our lives. His shattered leg, and the empty socket that once blanketed a crushed femur, is nearly healed.

We have all learned a valuable lesson in the last couple of months, and that is: there is a big difference between pack animals and herd animals. Cows, sheep, and horses live in herds. Coyotes and cats live in packs. You cannot mix the two behaviors, they are sole and separate. This is an interesting development in our food chain, and one that we will all remember for years to come.

But all good things soon become better and now, Cheiss is sleeping peacefully with the Beagle, being respectful towards the cats, and acting much like a gentleman towards the three Alpha members – myself, my husband, and the coyote. We continue our hope for a quiet, peaceful life together, but that wish is always overruled by new adoptions. However, I think our next additions to the family will probably be cattle, because you cannot deny a "chow dog" his true nature of herding.

Other Stories: Teaching A Coyote to Fetch, Once Upon A Midnight Dreary,  Feral Cat Day, Computer Guide for Cat Lovers, Just Wait 'Till You Have Children of Your Own, Diary of A Cog, How To Pill A Cat, Herding Cats, Sleeping With the Enemy, A Fish Tale, Do Animals Have Souls, The Problem With Kittens, Counterproductive Behavior in Dogs, Counterproductive Behavior in Cats, Cody is My Sister's Dog, Diary of A Cog, Free Kittuns, Pet Theft, On With The Show, Making Noodles with A Kitten

About the Author

Stacy Mantle is a freelance writer who currently resides in the southwestern deserts of Arizona with a number of cats, a coyote/wolf hybrid, and a very understanding husband. Her writing has appeared in publications such as The Arabian Horse Times, Today’s AZ Woman, and Pets Illustrated. Many of her stories and articles have been translated into several languages, and now reach an international audience. Quickly becoming known as "…the Erma Bombeck of animals", her writing has skyrocketed to new heights as she records the stories of those she loves, inspiring the reader to learn why we have all come to love the animals we share our lives with. She is the author of Conquering the Food Chain: Living Amongst Animals (Without Becoming One), which is available in Barnes & Noble bookstores nationwide, as well as online at www.bn.com or www.amazon.com.