Traveling down the motorway, hemmed in on both sides by concrete barriers due to construction, rush hour traffic just beginning- when we spot a tiny little foxie-cross dog, three lanes out, hugging the barrier, trotting up the highway to no where.
We take the first exit and circle back- the whole time I'm panicked, wondering how to safely get out of the car, and get the dog's attention without frightening him into the lanes of traffic. I almost don't want to go back- I'm sure I'm either going to find a dead dog- or worse yet, be the cause of one. But I just can't leave it to the unknown, either. I have to try.
We get back on the motorway, eyes peeled for the dog or signs of erratic traffic or an accident. But all traffic is simply stopped. It's quite eerie- just a huge narrow parking lot of bumper to bumper cars. We roll up to the column of still traffic, and can see people about 50 cars ahead, up a hill, out of their card and running about- it's obvious they are trying to catch the dog. Then a man 6 cars ahead jumps out and runs back towards us. Ahead of him is the little foxie mutt- hightailing it faster then I'd ever believed possible from such stumpy little legs. About a dozen cars behind me, it crossed the now stopped multiple lanes of traffic and shoots though a tiny gap between two concrete barrier sections- off through a grass field in a blur of legs and fur.
Hundreds of cars, even more people at a standstill during their busy afternoon, each sharing a moment of compassion, trying to save the life of an unknown dog.
And they say cats have 9 lives.
