“What in the hell is that?” I blurted out loud at the weirdness I’d just witnessed. There between the trees was what first appeared to be the strangest woodland creature known to man. On closer inspection though it was clearly a dog with its head stuck inside a small bucket, the kind of bucket used for watering chickens. Poor thing.

She wasn’t very trusting at first, running far enough away to be just out of reach each time I approached. With her vision completely blocked, she finally ran smack into a tree, slowing her down long enough for me to grab the bucket and pull it off her little head. We learned later from some neighbors that she’d been stuck like this for at least three days, unable to eat or drink, dodging the coyotes and other predators out there in the woods.

Understandably it took a couple of days to get past her trauma and warm up to us humans. Puppy treats helped a lot. Being a mix of some sort of Australian Shepherd or Cattle Dog with a lot of Catahoula Leopard Dog in her, her markings reminded us of camouflage. So her official “racehorse” name is Catahoula Camouflage, but her everyday name is Camo.

We’ve called her by a lot of other nicknames since she first joined the family: Camo Kardashian (big butt), Ginger Snap, Pop Tart, Frankie Blue (blue eyes like Sinatra), Frankie Blue Cheese, Velveeta, Grease Monkey (after half a tube of tractor lube), Camo Bambino, etc. Doesn’t much matter to her though. As long as she’s at the front of the line for belly rubs and puppy treats, she’s a happy girl.

Today Camo is a member of “The Insiders Gang,” one of the privileged few many who live in the human house, sleep in the human beds, and beg the humans for scraps like some sort of starving orphan from a Charles Dickens story. In her spare time, Camo’s a professional fetching machine, running down and retrieving her favorite dog balls for a lot longer than anyone else cares to participate. She’s a relentless little kiddo but I reckon we’ll keep her around. 

JUST THE FACTS:

• Name: Catahoula Camouflage aka Camo
• Breed: Mixed (Catahoula Leopard Dog, Australian Shepherd, Other)
• Coat: Red Merle
• Eyes: Blue
• Born: Summer 2018
• Favorite Dog Toy: Tuffy Ultimate Ring in Blue Camo (of course)
• Favorite Snack: Jerky Treats

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