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Sarah McCurry Hall poses with Rufus, the family dog, after he invited himself to her wedding. Rufus got away from his boarding kennel last week and was found shot near Highway 130. He came through surgery well, said owner Joe McCurry, and his chances for survival are promising. (Submitted photo) |
When Sarah McCurry's wedding got crashed, she didn't mind at all. In fact, the fellow sitting in the back was very polite. He sat up when the bride passed, grinned, then sat back down and waited patiently for her to say her wedding vows. He was, after all, a member of the family and the only reason he didn't get an invitation was because, well, dogs can't read.
Rufus is an unregistered 4-year-old boxer owned by Sarah's parents, Joe and Susan McCurry of Wartrace.
"The day of the wedding, he kept showing up at the ... church and wouldn't stay home," said Joe. "So my wife said, 'Oh, just let him stay.'"
But now Rufus the wedding crasher, Rufus the family member, Rufus the boxer has been shot, and the family is devastated.
For his own safety, they left the dog at a boarding kennel before heading out on a family trip. Rufus vanished from the kennel Thursday and was found four days later, the victim of a gunshot wound.
"The vet's 99 percent sure it was a gunshot wound," said Joe. "He was in surgery 3 1/2 hours."
There was no serious damage done to any major organs done by the bullet, said Joe.
"It went in and made a mess coming out," he said. "It took that long to sew him up."
The saga began when the McCurrys dropped Rufus off at the kennel.
"We took him to a kennel -- (Kristina's) Kountry Kritters on Rippy Ridge Road -- Wednesday night and left him. We went to Ohio," said Joe. "Kristina (Carlson) called me Friday and said they had not seen Rufus in 24 hours."
The family left Ohio and immediately came home, but not before Joe called his son in Wartrace and started the search.
Rufus, a tan, or fawn, color with a black mask and a white blaze on his chest, was staying in one of the kennels that has an outdoor run. Beyond that run, said Joe, is another fence, about 4 1/2 feet high. In order for Rufus to get out, the gates to both the run and the fence would have to have been open.
"They don't know how he got out," he said Monday morning, before the dog was found. "We've been scouring the area for him. It's solid woods out there."
Rippy Ridge is a hilly part of the countryside near Normandy Lake and Wartrace. Joe, his son, Kristina and anyone else they could dragoon into helping went out looking, calling Rufus' name and posting flyers at convenience stores.
"Everybody's been real helpful. We asked the postal carrier who works in that area and all of the bus drivers to keep their eyes out," said Joe, who even asked a friend who works for the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency to watch for the dog. "You don't realize how many people you know until you need them."
Despite the somewhat fierce boxer expression, he's actually very gentle and even a little timid around strangers.
"But only at first," said Joe. "He loves people. He comes to his name. He's just a big old family dog."
The boxer was found near Highway 130. A woman found the injured dog and called Kristina Monday, who picked the dog up and took it to the office of veterinarian Bobby West in Wartrace. Dr. Dana Garrett began piecing the boxer back together.
"Hopefully, he'll be fine," said Joe. "He's our fourth child."
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I used to hunt quite a bit in my younger years and always resented people thinking all hunters were careless. After my sister lost a boyfriend to a hunting accident and having seen cows and horses shot, I now believe that many are careless or reckless.
It is one big reason we do not allow hunting on our property. During hunting season we used to restrict our daughter's roaming the property and when she did, she wore bright colors. No one had permission to be there, but we have found remains that came from field dressing a deer less than 100 yards from the house. Not a comforting find.
It may not have been a hunter who shot your dog, but I hope either way it was a mistake and not someone just out to "shoot something".
Not all hunters are bad, but that being said we have had a big problem with some. There are some near us who think if it's a field then it's theirs to hunt. We have posted signs , and we have actually spoken to some of them and made it clear NO HUNTING ! ! They stalk the road we live on starting a couple weeks before the season starts, driving by slowly scoping out the patterns of the deer, same trucks at dawn and again at dusk and even some guys on horses. We have neighbors who have had dogs strangely disappear during hunting season from their own yards ( they would bark when the hunters came around - our guess is the hunters didn't want the dogs to draw attention while they trespassed to hunt) These hunters even hunt on the roads from their trucks across our field. More than once we have had been outside and had bullets fly by our garage. It's one thing to be a responsible hunter hunting on your own land or where you have permission to hunt, but the ones near us are rude and unwelcome. We should be able to let our children and pets out on our land and not worry about idiots with guns..... ( like I said first off not all hunters are bad )
If it was a hunter, he's hunting out of season anyway -- but it may well have been a farmer, concerned when he saw a big dog in the same field with his cattle. Regrettable,but understandable.
my dog looks just like him but he still has his tail. our dog is a big baby too. and its sad to know that he was shot, boxers are scary looking dogs. somebody couldve been scared of him and shot him because he was wandering to close to them. either way they shouldve called animal control instead of hurting the poor baby.
What ever the reason or who ever shot the dog, should have at least made sure he was either dead or notified authorities when they shot the dog. But to just leave an animal suffering and laying there like that is inexuseable in my opinion.
I am glad the poor dog is going to be ok. In 1990 my horse was shot and killed by a "hunter", It was devestating to our family.
I hate hunting because of that very fact, carelessness or don'tcareness...
this a very sad story for the dog, the family, and for the hunting world. i am a very proud hunter and no real hunter would consider doing something like that. im very sorry that the dog and the family had to suffer something like this. this kind of crap is what gives hunters a bad name. it is very possible it wasn't a hunter who did it , but now everyone in that family will look at anyone in camo as a vicious monster. and in response to the earlier comment about someone hunting out of season , there are some animals in season right now that can be hunted with a gun.
Why is everybody getting down on the hunters? What about the kennel owner, the ones responsible for taking care of Rufus while his family was away?If the dog had been properly watched he wouldnt have gotten outand would not have been in harms way. I have a family i dog sit for several times a year while they are out of town while that dog is in my care all my time or whatever i do ,other jobs i have are scheduled around him because they are trusting me to take care of him.I am a dog lover this makes me mad .
Rufus died Thursday morning due to an infection and complications from his wound.
I just read Rufus died I am soooo sorry. I have tears in my eyes and I do not know the family or Rufus but I know how I love my dogs and I would be devastated. I just hate this! Many hunters think just because they see a dog that it is always chasing deer or something and shoot it that is not the case always and they should consider who they are hurting not that some of them care. What if it is someone or someones child walking thru the woods they shoot. I am sorry for this family.
I've got a couple of words for the coward that shot the dog,do't git in my way while i'm driving.One more thing "POW POW" catch my drift.