14ers.com

aortolani14 wrote:

nfire wrote:my first 14er after moving to colorado was bierstadt. i climbed it with my dog. there was a guy up there who told me "dont worry man, there's nothing on the traverse that a dog couldn't handle!". I sure am glad in my gaperdom that i didn't listen to that guy. glad missy was saved and huge thanks to the rescuers.

I did a web search on crossing the sawtooth with my Dog before we ever left the house. I don't know if it was this site, or some other site, but it said very close to this, "People take their dogs through there all of the time. You have to have a harness of some kind and some ropes to help them with one or two manuevers but other than that careful path selection is all that is needed." This was so wrong. I can't say how much I wish I never took her down there. All of this would never have happened. Missy did the decent on Bross' talus slope and I thought that this was going to be similar. No one should ever take a dog through that saddle unless they can easily carry them. I was so unprepared for this whole ordeal.

The hike up Bierstadt itself is faily easy and we even ran into people with their dogs. However, the crossing of the saw tooth will take you on a very intense class 3 scramble and is not dog or little child friendly. In fact, its not friendly for anyone who is not in shape or not able to take on a class 3 scramble.

I met up with some other hikers with a dog, at this point they had to turn back because it was just too steep for Fido. Don't bring your dog on this route:

JA_son27 wrote:It's interesting that mob mentality can actually exist on a website forum.

James Dziezynski wrote:You left your dog in the mountains to die. All the excuses in the world don't change that. You had dozens of outlets to do more, even as simple as making a lost dog flyer and posting it at the trailhead. I'm surprised you had to "learn" that lesson. Even a 5 year old child would make a flyer for a lost pet.

Thank goodness for the community who was strong when you were weak.

Anthony, you have guts posting here. You'll be very, very lucky to get your dog back. If you don't, you have no right to challenge that. In a life or death situation, you turned your back on your dog and even after you had taken care of yourself (in itself, a good decision) you took no further action. It is beyond many of us how you didn't think to post flyers at the trailhead. Or have a friend do it.

Moving forward, you would be well served by some of the hiking clinics at the CMC or even the free clinics on "Hiking a 14er" that pop up at REI from time to time. Leave your dog at home. Figure out what class 3 means. Ask questions on these forums.

In the end, you got very, very lucky you were on a highly traveled mountain and there were rescuers ready to step up. Nearly everyone has gotten in a bad situation on mountains, now you know there is a community at large willing to help. Next time instead of praying and feeling sorry for yourself, try actually doing something. Sure, it can be hard to ask for help but isn't your dog's life worth it?

All that being said, please stay safe in the mountains and take your time. As pissed off as I am at your lack of action, when you find your way back to the mountains you will have a new awareness and I hope for many less dramatic adventures in the mountains for you. And maybe when you are ready for responsible dog ownership, stick to the class 2 routes.

hootchiesmom wrote:Hoping we can bring this back to Missy, how the vet visit went, if the owner was confirmed via the rabies tag, and most importantly how Missy is doing today! Also would love to hear more about the rescue, Missy's reaction to being found etc...

Paula wrote:It never ceases to amaze me how fast this community mobilizes when things hit the fan. Everyone who risked their own safety on Missy's behalf, both the group that found her and those who went looking earlier, you're wonderful people and I'd be honored to buy any of you a beer at a future happy hour. It's unfortunate for Missy that her owner didn't know he had such a strong resource available earlier.

MountainHiker wrote:

hootchiesmom wrote:

hootchiesmom wrote:Hoping we can bring this back to Missy, how the vet visit went, if the owner was confirmed via the rabies tag, and most importantly how Missy is doing today! Also would love to hear more about the rescue, Missy's reaction to being found etc...

I am not a hiker, live some 1200 + miles from you, but I am a GSD lover, all I want to know is PLEASE how Missy is doing today!!! Have all of the rescuers abandoned this thread?