Dogs and angels

What we learned today.

We learned our dog Keela, whom we adopted in January, loves to swim. She also loves to chase squirrels and birds, but we already knew that. Linda took both our fearsome pit bulls down to the beach. As they reached the shore the leashes got tangled. At that moment a family of ducks filed by. Keela took off. The ducks swam straight out into West Bay. Keela followed them. They flew away. Keela homed in on a nearby swan. Thankfully it did not attack her. (We've seen swans go at dogs and people.) Instead it swam farther away. So did Keela. By this point Linda could barely see her.

We also learned angels exist. A man on a jet ski—with his dog on board—tried to coax Keela back. She ignored him. He drove away. A man with his retriever on a leash approached. He tried to console Linda with the thought that Keela would swim back. At this point Linda believed Keela could never make it all the way to land. The water is still extremely cold.

A man appeared out of nowhere to ask Linda what was wrong. She told him. He returned to his parked van, retrieved a paddle board, and began sprinting toward Keela. He tried to get her up onto the board but she, panicked and what they gently call a “reactive dog” (translation: apt to go ape crazy if people or dogs upset her) would not cooperate. Linda is not sure what he did next. Maybe he grabbed her leash—still attached to her collar. Or maybe he just kind of led her back. But back she came. All the way to Linda.

(A note for those of you familiar with Traverse City. Linda estimates Keela swam about halfway from West End Beach to Clinch Park Marina, and perhaps a quarter mile north out into the Bay. And back.)

The angel put his paddle board back on his van. Linda asked how he could repay her. He said he was glad to help and no payment was necessary.

I guess Keela really is a rescue dog, after all.