My Story
Rincon
February 2009
Location: Tucson, Ariz.
Breed: German shorthaired pointer
Rosalind Bark and her husband Gregory Hodgins took a hike with their two German shorthaired pointers in the Santa Rita Mountains near Tucson in the morning when danger struck. Rincon ran further up the path while his sister Catalina fell behind to drink some water. As Rincon moved slightly out of Gregory’s sight for a few minutes, he heard yelping up ahead. Dashing up the trail, Gregory found their dog unmoving, with two adult javelinas ready to attack again.
Noticing that Rincon was not fleeing, Gregory began yelling to scare the creatures away. The javelinas, which apparently attacked Rincon in an effort to protect their young from perceived danger, dug their sharp tusks into the dog’s chin, hind area and left groin, leaving him immobile and badly bleeding.
In dire need of emergency care, the 65-pound Rincon was carried by his owner for an hour before they reached the car. The nearest emergency veterinary clinic was still about 45 minutes away. “I called my husband back to give him the location of the nearest emergency veterinary clinic,” says Rosalind. “I also prepared the emergency veterinarian for his arrival.”
Despite having to wait almost two hours for medical attention, Rincon’s treatment was a success. Luckily, no internal organs were ruptured and Rincon’s wounds were cleaned up and closed with sutures. “He’s healed nicely and is starting to go on short hikes again, but this time not in the Santa Rita Mountains,” Rosalind says.
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