Keep Your Dogs Safe ~ Montana Dog Photography

Last week while driving in a hailstorm I almost hit this wonderful, older dog that was standing in the middle of the highway. He was practically invisible in the driving hail and somehow I saw him and managed to stop in time. He was clearly frozen in fear from the thunder, lightning and hail, so I jumped out and shoved him into the back seat of my car praying that Sugar wouldn't freak out by the new passenger riding in the seat next to her. I drove him up to the Flathead Valley Animal Shelter and of course it was Monday and they were closed but luckily the director, Cliff Bennett, was in his office and we processed the dog and got him in a dry shelter.

Cliff suspected that as an older dog he probably got spooked by the weather and wandered away from home so I went back to the intersection where I found him and did a little sleuthing to find his home and owner. Well I got lucky and managed to find them. When I reached them by phone later in the evening they told me that, yes, he had just been in the shelter the week before after wandering away from the house during a storm. We discussed their need to start fencing him even though for his entire life they had never had to do that.

Just like us, dogs personalities, needs and desires change throughout their lives and extra attention is needed as they age. I would have been devastated had I not been able to stop in time on the highway as anyone would have and Max's owner and I agreed that certainly fencing him or tying him was a much better alternative than putting him at risk every time a storm blows through the valley.

Love your dogs and keep them safe! Max, so glad I found you and helped get you home.