Finding Pilgrim:Planned hike turns into an adventure for six local women
Adams County Pet Rescue courtesy photo - Pictured from left with Pilgrim are Kath Harrington, Anna Short, Vicki Nau, Shirley McCullough, Fay Coats and Liz Deasy.
Our plan, the morning of April 6, was to drive out to the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge and hike on one of the trails. There were six of us who gathered that morning at the Pilgrim Lutheran Church Parking lot — too many for one car. Anna Short, our leader for the day, drove the lead car and the rest of us followed. We did eventually take our hike; however, we had a bit of adventure along the way.
We headed north of Othello on Broadway Street (runs into McManamon Road) and turned off on the road leading to the Refuge. We had almost reached our destination when the driver of the car I was in, Kath Harrington, visiting from Yakima, noticed a dog on the right side of the road. We thought it was rather odd to see a domestic animal in an area so rugged. We all met up in the parking area where we intended to hike and quickly decided to walk back and see if we could locate the dog.
It didn’t take long to find him. There he sat, just where Kath had first seen him. We approached cautiously; Vicki Nau was the first to reach him. We needn’t have worried! He was delighted to see her and soon she was kneeling by him and petting him. He was obviously still a puppy — a big puppy! Vicky estimated him to be between six and eight months old with possible German Shepherd markings. The rest of us had arrived by this time and he was greeting us just as enthusiastically. He quickly made friends with us and we named him Pilgrim. Even though he was very friendly with, it was obvious he wanted to remain where he was; he wouldn’t follow us if we walked away.
Pilgrim looked to be in good health and well taken care of. He was thirsty and quickly drank the water we offered. We tried to imagine how such a beautiful dog could end up alone in this deserted spot. He appeared to have a slight weakness or limp on one side — maybe the result of a fall out the back of a pick-up truck. Perhaps a vehicle on the road where traffic buzzed by at a pretty good clip had hit him.
We made a decision — we couldn’t leave Pilgrim here in this lonely place. Shirley McCullough had adopted her cat, Jensson, from Pet Rescue a year ago; Liz Deasy and her husband, Randy, recently adopted two little dogs from them. We called Pet Rescue. Their director, Kyya Grant answered the phone, took our directions, and within 20 minutes, drove out to get Pilgrim. He liked her on the spot and jumped into her van when she opened the door.
We don’t know what circumstances led to Pilgrim’s being left alone. Sadly, he couldn’t tell us his story. We’re just happy to have found him and, especially happy to be have been able to call Pet Rescue where we knew he would have a safe place to be. Several weeks have passed since we found him. Kyya reports that a vet has examined Pilgrim, and he is in good shape and ready to be adopted. Give her a call at 509-760-1598.
There are lots of animals out there that need rescuing and have stories to tell. We’d like to know about them and write their stories. Please call Fay Coats at 509-855-3911 if you’ve rescued an animal or adopted one. We’ll write the story!
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