By Chuck Woodbury
ROADSIDE JOURNAL
Here’s a story from the PR folks at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. It’s about a dog named Maria.
Most of us, I believe, when we think of game wardens, we think about guys who come by when we’re fishing to ask to see our licenses. That’s pretty much what my experience has been through the years.
But as you can tell, in this very heartwarming story, game wardens do a lot more. Here is the story of Maria, a very lucky dog!
The story goes…
A landowner called Texas game wardens when a group of quail hunters requested assistance rescuing a dog that had fallen into an abandoned grain silo–turned well. The dog, Maria, had chased a wounded bird through thick brush when she disappeared from her owner’s sight. After searching, the owner found the dog trapped 50 feet below.
Two game wardens arrived on the scene with hundreds of feet of rope, a wire dog kennel and the know-how to build a pulley hoist system. Wardens baited the kennel with recently harvested quail and slowly lowered it down to Maria.
With some encouragement from her owner, the dog was coerced to enter the kennel. Wardens carefully lifted her out of the well and into her owner’s loving arms. Upon inspection, she appeared unharmed and fully alert, with all four limbs fully functional.
Emergency responders, the dog owner, several fellow quail hunters and the landowner’s family were amazed how situation unfolded. The owner transported Maria home and scheduled her for a follow-up with a veterinarian for precautionary measures.
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One of our favorite TV shows is “Lone Star Law”, which is a show about Texas Game Wardens. They just seem like a great bunch of people who are fair in their dealings with the public.