I don't know if I'm pissed off or sad at the moment. More of a cross
between both, I just need to unload right now.

I was coming home like usual from work, with Chris, on the SkyTrain. We
were both busy reading the articles in the Straight (local arts and
entertainment newspaper that also happens to cater to the Queer and the
Geeks). So we were nearing our stop, I just take a look around and see a
cute black and white ball of fur. Take a closer look, it appears to be a
puppy. I go over to the people that are sitting close to it to ask if
it's theirs. After a quick survey the puppy doesn't have an owner.

I go over to entice the puppy, and tell Chris to press the emergency
speaker button to inform SkyTrain staff that there's an unattended pup
on the train. Attendants meet us at the train at the next station. We
show them the pup, they lead it out. As we stand around waiting for the
supervisors to meet the attendants, I fall in love with this little ball
of fur. Let me describe this little thing to you. Attendant is holding
it in her arms, and I can see that the puppy has little nipples on its
belly, so it's a female. The pup looks like what we call a Holstein dog,
black patches on a white coat, sorta what you think of when you see a
cow. The ears stick straight up, with a slight tendency to flop a bit
too. It's about medium-size for a puppy, with thick but coarse fur. The
attendants take us and the pup down to their break room. Once the pup
gets accustomed to its new surroundings, it takes a few moments to
"flush the system," shall we say.

By this time, I've fallen in love with the little darling, and am ready
to give her a new forever-home if she's not claimed. Then the attendant
receives a call on his 2-way radio that someone had lost their dog
earlier today and is calling in to hear about it. So apparently the
woman who lost her dog left the SkyTrain very close to where we got on;
this is about a 25 minute ride on the SkyTrain to where we are now. The
woman was apparently pissed drunk and had fallen on the platform, and
the dog got left behind on the train - either that or the woman left the
dog on the train and then fell on the platform (I think it's the latter
scenario, myself). So, she had a few pops to sober up (a laugh in my
opinion, as the only thing that will sober you up is time).

So it's about 1 am by this time and the woman is apparently thinking
about heading to where we are to get the dog. Now, by this time there's
only a few trains left before the system shuts down for the night. This
woman is going to have no way of going back home with the dog. The dog
came off the SkyTrain without a leash or a crate... although it did have
a rawhide chew and a rope toy with it. Chris and I leave as apparently
the owner and dog will be reunited.

Now let's get into specifics here. Why in the blue FRELL was this dog on
the SkyTrain with a drunk owner? Even if the owner weren't drunk, the
dog had neither a crate nor a leash and collar. The rules of the
SkyTrain state that all animals must be in a crate, unless they are
assistance animals. The owner has the presence of mind to bring the dog
its toys (2 of them - I don't think the dog could have brought both with
it - one sure, not two), but not a method of restraining the animal. Now
she would have either been drunk when she took the animal with her, or
gotten drunk when she had the animal with her. All of this reeks of
irresponsibility.

Now when Chris and I had the chance to help a pet out, we blow it. We
had the chance to either a) take the pup home and not tell authorities
or b) reason with the attendants at the irresponsibility of the owner
and take it to a better home.

I say this last paragraph as there are feline owners here in our
community who allow their pets to roam free at night and uncollared as
well. I live in an urban environment, a city of about 2 to 2.5 million
people. There are still wild animals here folks. I've seen it with my
own two eyes. I've seen a skunk chasing a cat in broad daylight. And I
saw a racoon chasing a fairly large cat in a shed ... I actually tried
to chase the 'coon off, but it wasn't scared of me. Then there's our
neighbours downstairs (I live in a highrise complex) who allow their cat
to roam free even at night, and it's gone missing twice. The owners put
up signs for the furball both times, and it doesn't get through their
thick skulls. Urban environment -- not safe for cats. We've domesticated
a lot of the hunting instinct out of them, some have been declawed, and
they have predators larger than them.

I want to go back there and get that puppy back. I could have given it a
responsible, caring home.