I've been trying to coordinate with the organization that I wrote about that helps stray dogs, 4A, for a few weeks now and finally was able to connect with them on Saturday. My grueling Friday evening of classes, combined with the rain that plagued Santiago all day made for an early night so I was up and raring to go Saturday morning. It's a good thing too because the commute was kind of killer--two line changes on the metro, about 15 stops, and then we had to drive from the metro station to the shelter! Add in the thirty minutes that I waited for the organization's coordinator at the metro station (I've really got to get adjusted to the "chilean time" phenomenon), and I was glad that I was feeling well rested.
4A is an organization run by Universidad de Chile's veterinary school, so their shelter is on that campus, out in a comuna called La Pintana. We pulled up to the little shed-like building and were greeted by a caucaphony of barking and howling, as well as a few little pooches who roam free around the campus. 4A's shelter houses about 10 dogs and its members take on one shift per week to come clean out the kennels, give the dogs food and fresh water, and take them for walks.
The pups were excited to see us to say the least. From the tiniest little terrier mix, Globita, to the overweight but extra affectionate El Oso (the bear), all the dogs were friendly, if a little over hyper. The first part of the shift--poop duty--was unpleasant, and I'll definitely be needing to invest, or scrounge up, some junkier clothing. But I was excited to take them for a walk around the campus.
But that's when things started to go south. First, the other new volunteer's dog wriggled out of its collar and took off. Luckily, John, the coordinator was on his game and caught him. And then, just as I was thinking, "hmm maybe I should tighten my dog's collar, it's looking a little loose," he sees another dogs and with a little tug and a twist is off the leash and off like a rocket.
We spent about fifteen minutes trying to lure him back, but somehow a pack of other dogs had come out of the woodwork and now they were all running around the field like crazy, having a great time, and there was NO WAY he was going to stop. John tried to make me feel better by telling me that this particular dog was the "escapista profesional" (escape artist) and that he always comes back, but that didn't assuage my guilt at having lost my dog on my first walk. But, the rest of them had to get walked too, so we went back to the kennels and got new dogs, this time ensuring that their collars were snug.
When it was time to go my pup still hadn't returned. I have to hope that he came back later that day, or at the very least the next morning for his daily meal. The mishap didn't seem to ruin my chances of volunteering with the group again. John insisted I email him about my availability and when I would want to come back. Next time I'm going to stash dog treats in my pocket so that my dogs won't ever think of leaving my side.
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