On the outskirts of Columbus, Ohio a 5-month-old Great Dane mix called the streets home. His problems were made when he got hit by a car. His hind leg and a couple of toes had been broken. He also had road rash. It’s safe to say this puppy didn’t know the meaning of kindness. Then, one day, kindness entered his life by means of a cyclist.
Cyclist meets Columbo in Ohio.
During a group bicycle race, Jarrett Little and his friend, Chris Dixon, were waiting for their group to catch up. In the treeline near South Lumpkin Road, they spotted the puppy.
“At first, I thought it was a fox,” Dixon said to the Ledge-Enquirer. “Then this dog started running across the road toward us. He looked terrible. He was hungry. He was in bad shape, but he seemed happy to see us.”
Even this puppy recognized salvation!
Friendly Helpers
The cyclist, Chris Dixon, dumped out his energy chews which are supercharged gummies. The dog, named Columbo, looked malnourished, his ribs showing through his coat. He devoured the chews in no time.
Each cyclist decided not to leave Columbo there.
Image by Chris Dixon via screenshot from the website via Ledger-Enquirer
“We couldn’t leave him,” Little said. “Out there where he was next to Oxbow, he was going to end up alligator food. … In my head, it was, ‘We’re saving you from that now, we will figure out the rest later.’”
The Journey
They were 7 miles from the downtown. Option one was for someone to stay with the puppy so someone could get a vehicle. Of course, option two made for a better story. Dixon, a new cyclist, tried to carry Columbo on her handlebars. When that didn’t work, Little took over.
At this point, Little was calling the puppy “Sprocket.” When the handlebar method became too difficult, Little gave this puppy a piggyback ride.
He put the dog’s hind legs into the lower pockets of his cycling jersey and positioned his front legs over his shoulders.
“I just picked him up like I would my little girl when I put her on my shoulders,” Little said. “He was injured, so he wasn’t trying to fight a lot. He was also happy that we were there, touching him and hadn’t taken off on him.”
A Possible Forever Home
They passed several people who waved at them, thinking the dog was Little’s. All he was thinking was, ‘Do you want him?’
The cyclist already had rescue dogs at his Phoenix City home, and Dixon was preparing to take the puppy with her. It was amazing that the dog held on for as long as he did. The last 2 miles, Little rode while holding onto the dog on his shoulders – for nearly a half-hour!
When they made it to town, the 200 riders congregated for food and water. Enter Andrea Shaw, a corporate attorney who lives in Maine and was in Columbus on business, had been eating at Smoke Bourbon & BBQ restaurant. When she and a colleague had decided to walk around downtown, she spotted Little, and Dixon pulled up near them.
“She walked by the instant we pulled up,” Little said. “Had I been 5 minutes later or 5 minutes earlier they might now have crossed paths.”
Finally, A Forever Family!
“Sprocket” knew salvation again!
He ran up to Shaw and started licking her, giving her kisses all over her face. It happened fast. Shaw knew this puppy was going home with her.
“It was immediate,” Dixon said. “She said, ‘I am keeping this dog.’”
She called her husband, Joel, back home in Gorham, Maine, just west of Portland and told him that she couldn’t leave the puppy in Columbus. Before she could take him home, his injuries needed to be addressed.
The injuries were significant.
The first stop was the Animal Emergency Center on Manchester Expressway. Shaw was told the dog would need surgery before he could travel to his new home. The dog received four pins in his leg due to the extensive injury.
Going Home
During his stay at the vet, “Sprocket” received a new name.
“We named him Columbo, for obvious reasons,” Shaw said. “We’re going to call him Bo.”
Now that he was cleared to travel, it was time to go home. His start with the cyclist was just the beginning. Bo had to travel more than 1,100 miles back to Maine. Enter Grateful Doggies, an organization that moves rescue dogs up and down the East Coast. They helped Shaw get Bo to Maine while she traveled by flight. Grateful Doggies has a wonderful mission for dogs in need, just read their mission statement;
“Our mission is to safely transport as many dogs as we possibly can in a safe and comfortable manner from undesirable lives to forever homes.”
Columbo’s new home is on a small horse farm in Maine.
From Rags to Riches
He even has new friends! A 5-year-old boy, Christopher, two black and tan coonhounds, a horse, and a pony.
What a long way from living homeless and wounded in the woods along South Lumpkin Road. What kind of person takes in an injured stray, multiple states from home, and adopts the dog?
“What can I say?” Shaw said. “I am obviously not playing with a full deck.”
I’m so lucky that Jarrett Little likes to bike! He and his friends found me outside of Columbus. They gave me some…
Posted by Adventures of Columbo on Thursday, July 12, 2018
Who knew the life he would have had if no one had stopped there. All due to the kindness of a cyclist and the love of a stranger, Columbo finally feels safe.
I’m home! Made it to my new house! Mom took pictures but I’m so excited and wiggly it was hard to get good pictures. Thank you to my friends at Grateful Doggies for delivering me safely to Maine!
Posted by Adventures of Columbo on Saturday, July 14, 2018
Shaw had this to say about Columbo; “Any little dog that’s going to fight that hard to live, I am going to help him,” she said. “I have the means to give him a shot, and that’s what I did.”
She and her family are thankful for the cyclist who stopped and noticed him at that tree line. If you want to see more cuteness of this lucky dog, check out the Facebook page dedicated to him!
Featured Image via screen capture from the website The Dodo
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