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This Yellow Lab Ain't Yella
The 70 lb. lap dog seen with me belongs to my sister and her husband, Bill. They live in Fairbanks, Alaska, and have a summer house on Flathead Lake in northern Montana. Pal, who is a yellow Labrador Retriever has had extensive field training as Bill is an avid hunter. Pal, of course, has the run of the place and loves to dive off the dock and retrieve whatever is thrown.
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One morning two years ago, I was helping Eileen build a stone wall around her raised flower garden. Pal was being pretty noisy, barking at something going on at the neighbor's house. Since it was fairly early and Pal did not quiet down when Eileen yelled at him, she put his training collar on him. This has a remote control that can deliver a static electrical shock. It has three settings; #1 is something like, "Be quiet, you naughty dog," while #3 is more like, "Get back here you stupid animal, you're about to be run over by an 18-wheeler!"
Actual bear from Flathead Lake - photo taken by Aunt Eileen's next-door neighbor
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After one or two hits on #1, Pal came over to us, but we soon realized what was upsetting him. A black bear had been rummaging through the neighbor's garbage. Pal had spooked him and he was now racing through the back part of the property. We stuck Pal in the house and Eileen and I jumped in the car to follow. We saw a few neighbors out for a walk or bike ride and warned them about the bear. By now, he was probably half a mile away, and we returned home.
We let Pal out of the house and about 20 minutes later, he ran to the edge of the lake, barking like crazy. The bear had doubled back was was now swimming past the property about 30 yards offshore. By this time, the bear had had about all he was going to take from some dog. Eileen and I began to panic as the bear turned about 90 degrees toward Pal and began swimming toward him. Pal was really going nuts and not flinching at all. |
Defiantly he started into the water headed in the direction of the bear. He was paying no attention at all to our screaming to, "Come!" Eileen finally dialed up a #3 on the collar and Pal came to his senses and returned to the house. The bear eventually turned back around and continued his swim. |
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Pal, of course, became our instant hero. He had buffalo burgers for dinner that night. And, as long as he hasn't just been swimming, he can sit on my lap anytime he wants.
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