the best dogs in the world

Today Georg came home to discover the front door standing open and both dogs outside. As near as we can figure out, I must have left the front door unlocked, and a gust of wind must have blown it open.

Nothing was missing from the house so clearly no intruder was involved. But honestly, when I found out I was so freaked out about the dogs that the possibility of theft didn't even occur to me until hours later. It makes me literally sick to my stomach to think about what could have happened to them. Who knows how long the door was open. Hours, probably, with the main gate standing wide open. Jane could have run away, or gotten hit by a car. Thirteen too: I don't think she would want to leave the yard on her own, but if she saw Jane heading down the driveway she could well have followed. She's not even wearing a collar. We live on such a busy road, christ, I can't even think about it. And I can't stop thinking about it. One stupid mistake, and the consequences could have been so bad.

The worst didn't happen, but I'm still quite upset about Thirteen being outside by herself for so long. She doesn't know how to get back inside the dog door (don't ask me why; she just never figured it out), and so once she went out, she was trapped. As cold and windy as it was today, she must have gotten a terrible chill. She seems worn out and her leg is noticeably worse. At least she was dry; it would have been so much worse if she'd been out there in the rain. That's also encouraging because it means she couldn't have been outside all day. It was raining until early afternoon. Anyway she's sleeping it off now. I hope she's okay in the morning.

To sum up, I may be the worst dog mom in the world, but Jane and Thirteen are the best dogs. Alone in the yard with an open gate for hours and they stay right where they're supposed to be. We are so lucky to have them.