I hate the telephone

We don't have caller ID so I never know who is it, which is probably a good thing or I'd rarely answer it.  CVS pharmacy robocalls daily about refills.  There is some fly by night debt relief business that intentionally violates the no-call list.  I inexplicably get surveys from some right wing political organizations that I have to wait through until a live person comes on so I can spew vulgarities at them.  And there's the fund raising calls; they are brief at least because I just hang up.  I have a bit of a mental block about the telephone.  It's ring fills me with dread and I hate to place outgoing calls as well.  It can take me forever to get around to dialing a phone to make a call that I don't really want to make.  I could happily live without a telephone, as long as I had email.

Part of my problem with the phone is that often the calls are about dogs in need, more often than not they are dogs that I can't help.  And it's not like my phone number is listed as "Call this guy to dump your dog", you have to know someone who knows me and knows that I do rescue work in order to get my phone number.  I want calls about dogs in need, but I hate it too.  I even hate calls from people who are wanting a dog because I feel cornered if it's obviously a bad applicant.  Generally it's someone who can't be bothered filling out an application and thinks that if they talk to me I'll give them a dog.  It doesn't work that way.  An email is so much more likely to get my attention, and stick in my memory.  I can save an email, a phone call is gone as soon as I hang up. 

Well, enough about the telephone.  I got home with the rottie today, got him settled, got his pictures on the blog, and my answering machine was blinking.  I listened and had to return a call about a boxer.  It was a local dog,  young, too much energy for the household.  Same old story, with a kicker.  Today the dog had gotten her foot caught in the crate, which I've seen happen many times.  It scares the dog, they yelp, often jump and jerk the foot in the wrong direction and make matters worse.  In this case the woman tried to free the dog and got bit.  My call was from the sister of a neighbor of the people who had the dog.  Fine, I told her to pass my number along.  

My back is killing me today, so I went to lay down and take a muscle relaxer.  The phone rings again and it's the director of the Fluvanna shelter, asking what I know about an owner surrender boxer.  As we were talking, the dog showed up at the shelter and I was soon back on the road over to the shelter for the second time today.  

She's a nice dog, the bite incident was just one of those things.  She's lived with kids and a cat.  She's sweet, she's a beautiful, one year old pure bred boxer, and she's spayed!  She's here now, named Zoe, but that may change too.  These pics are of her meeting Buddy.  Their relationship will be brief because he's getting adopted tomorrow.   I'm thinking that she will enjoy Ryland's company.  Apparently she's very playful; I bet Trooper would like her.