Mogollon Estates HOA

A Dog’s Tale by Ken Floberg

Dec 20, 2003

Several weeks ago I was stopped by one of our full time owners. One of their Saint Bernards had made a dash for freedom the previous evening and had been missing for going on 9 hours. The owner asked me to keep a lookout for his dog, Samson, during my walk. About 30 minutes later I could hear a dog barking off in the forest. Just then the owner was driving by so I informed him of what I heard. While he parked his car, I decided to head into the forest to find Samson. I was just about to wiggle through the fence when Samson barked again. This time the sound came from behind me. As soon as I heard Samson behind me I knew where to look for him. Sure enough, there he was at the bottom of a deep perk hole on the adjoining lot. Both dog and owner were very happy to see each other. One slight problem, how do we get Samson out? I know another owner who keeps an extension ladder under his deck so I quickly retrieved it. I placed the ladder into the pit but having met Samson only one time I was not about to climb down into that pit with a 150-pound dog. I asked the owner to make the journey. Saint Bernards are smart but we knew he could not master climbing the ladder. The owner?’s wife had joined us by now so she headed home to get a rope. The owner attached the rope to Samson and threw the other end to me. Have you ever tried to move a 150 pound dog when it did not want to move? Things could have been worse. It could have been Samson?’s brother, Hercules, who weighs 250 pounds. While I pulled the owner pushed. With GREAT effort we were able to free Samson. Another neighborly mission accomplished by your friendly HOA board member. In appreciation of my efforts the owners and Samson sent me 2 boxes of pears from Oregon.