Mercury was in bad shape when he came to us from a woman who had too many dogs. It was a sad sight when we came to his birth place. Dogs were everywhere, running loose, some tied and all breeding as they wished. We made many trips to pick up as many dogs as we could all the while hoping they would work into a comfortable life in our kennel. Most didn't have the build or the work ethic we were looking for in our team and we tried our best to find them new homes all the while realizing that any home was far better than where they had previously come.

Mercury was one of the many shy dogs that roamed the place and he was frequently overlooked on our trips to pick the best dogs from the overpopulation. At only a few months old he preferred to stay hidden away in the woman's dingy run down trailer with a litter of puppies only a few weeks old.

Mercury eventually caught my attention on our last trip while hiding under the woman's bed. He looked terrible, dirty, terrified of strangers and with what appeared to be a fresh eye injury. Common sense told me it would be best to not take on such a burden but something in my heart was touched and I hoped that I could at least have the opportunity to heal his eye.

Mercury was not only in physical pain but also in mental distress. Here was a dog with such a fragile personality that he would defecate out of fear if his surroundings became too stressful. I was not sure what we were taking on but something told me this guy would be worth the effort it was going to take for his rehabilitation.

As soon as we brought him home he didn't trust anyone. The only way to calm him down was to bring in another dog to show him everything was okay. Having another there gave him the familiarity and security he needed to ease into his new life. But even with another dog calming him down Merk was still very skittish. A person rising from their chair would send him instantly into flight mode. He would franticly find the nearest corner, back himself into it as far as he could until everything, and everyone, was still.

I couldn't take him anywhere, especially to the vet to have his eye looked at, he didn't know who to trust. I knew that if I pushed him too hard it might destroy the fragile bond we were just starting to create. In an effort to help his body heal I started rinsing his eye out with saline solution. Gradually the signs of improvement started to show but his eye was persistent in giving him problems.

After a lot of time and patience a strong bond slowly began to form between Merk and I. Saving someone from a fate worse than death leaves a lasting memory in the soul and that is where Merk and I began. To this day we continue our journey side by side as steadfast soul mates.

Mercury is still terrified of strangers and at first I tried to solve this problem by exposing him to other people and places but after seeing the stress put upon him by the slightest exposure to either I quickly realized this type of training was not something I wished to continue. Instead we settled on the knowledge that I would be his protector for as long as each of us will live and that was more than enough of a reason to focus on enjoying the moments we had together.

I had this crazy idea of teaching him how to run in the dog team but Mercurys first lessons were a disaster, I was only able to carry our trust so far. The point where he realized he did not want to participate was when he had to be confined within the team by his neck and tug line. He adapted to the harness very well but soon felt cornered by the ganglines and immediately sat down refusing to run. It took no time for Merk to decide to fix his situation and chew out of his lines to freedom (which any determined dog can do in seconds)!

Working in the team was not something Merk cared to do but running free, alongside the team, was entirely another matter. He LOVED it and had no problems keeping up. As time passed I tried putting him in the team over and over again with the same results until one day he was enjoying his freedom so much that I tried him in the team one more time.

I remember it as if it were yesterday. We had just passed under the overpass on the flood control when I stopped the team and hooked Merk in. Fully expecting the worst and ready to stop the team to pull him out, I was absolutely shocked to see Mercury line up with the rest of the team and keep their pace! I couldn't contain my excitement as we pulled up a slight hill as I cheered him on and my heart swelled with pride!

Ever since that day I have been able to rely on him as an outstanding member of our team as he adds muscle when we need it the most and offering his companionship with me always.

April 2002