There was once a large black and white homeless dog around Livingston who joined a lady on her early morning walk one day, and ended up staying part-time with her family for a year or so after that morning walk. The family wanted very much to claim the dog and give him a good home, but because he was such a “free spirit” and had been on his own most of his life, he would only stay there for a few days at a time and then disappear, only to reappear a few days later. He got the name “Big Dog” because of his large size. Big Dog was streetwise and knew the Town of Livingston very well. But the family who wanted to take him in soon discovered why he wouldn’t stay with them for very long at a time; he loved children, and there were none at their home. He could be found on school days at A.H. Roberts School when the children were out for recess. He was also a regular at the ballpark during baseball season. He loved to be with kids. He was so well acquainted with several other homeless dogs that he would, on occasion, bring them to the home of the family who tried their best to get him to stay permanently. One day, as the lady of this home returned from the grocery store and came around the car to unload the groceries, she found Big Dog napping in the garage, which was nothing unusual. And in the driveway stood another dog.
Big Dog got up and came to the lady, as if to explain that this dog was a friend of his. Although the lady had never in the past been afraid of dogs, for the first time she wondered if this might be a dog to be careful of. Her thoughts were that this was probably a very aggressive male dog that would definitely bite. She couldn’t have been more wrong on all counts! The dog turned out to be the most kind-hearted, loving, and humble female dog, and one that was more than willing for a family to adopt her. But something was wrong. She walked with a terrible limp. After observing her for a couple of days, making a place in the garage for her to sleep alongside Big Dog when he found time to stay around, the lady loaded the newcomer in the car for a trip to the vet. It was determined from the visit to the vet that the dog had been shot. The bullet shattered a joint in one leg, which might require amputation. The kind-hearted vet decided to give the dog some time before taking that step, and sure enough, the leg did improve somewhat with time. The dog was given the name Gypsy, and became a very important member of the family right away.
Shortly after settling in, it was obvious that Gypsy was going to be a mother, and a few weeks later, gave birth to 10 puppies. The family worried about how they would ever be able to keep the puppies safe since they lived on a very busy street in Livingston, and they could hardly believe their luck when it came time to give the puppies away, one
family wanted all 10 of them. Another trip to the vet took care of the problem of any more puppies. Life settled down and Gypsy shared her new home with the family and three cats, which later became five cats, all but one loving her dearly. About this time, Gypsy began to have seizures. Her doctor advised the family that she could possibly have had some sort of trauma to her head at some point in life, more than likely through abuse. It was obvious that someone had at one point tried to kill her since she carried the bullet in her leg as proof of that fact. She began then a routine of seizure medication to control the seizures. The family showered her with love and care, and spoiled her all they possibly could. She won the hearts of everyone who came in contact with her; even several who claimed to not even like dogs. Those big, warm brown eyes and her smiling face can melt the coldest hearts. And although she may have started her life in a bad situation, she couldn’t have had a better life after Big Dog brought her to this home.

As time went by, Gypsy developed arthritis, and as her caring and concerned vet advised, he had never seen such a bad case of arthritis as Gypsy has. She sometimes has to struggle to get up after she has been lying down. Gypsy stays inside most of the time now since she’s around 12 years old in human years, but she always lets her owners know when she needs to go out. On Saturday night, Dec. 15, she had gone outside to take care of her personal needs, and had come back to the front porch, which is her usual routine. And while she was waiting to go back inside, from somewhere nearby, someone, for whatever reason, Gypsy’s owners cannot understand, shot her. But she was very, very lucky; she didn’t die from this vicious attack and is now recovering at her home. Needless to say, her owners continue to love and care for her as always probably more so because of all that she’s been through during her life.
But the question remains: why? The police department believes it could have been a random drive-by shooting, not necessarily intending to hit the dog. But regardless, that was the end result. Just the night before Gypsy was the victim of this shooting, the door to a business on the square was shot through. And again the question: why?
The answer will probably never be known, but the purpose of this article is not intended to be wondered about; it is written with the hope that whoever did this senseless, thoughtless, and cruel deed reads Gypsy’s story and will think twice before doing such a thing again. Inflicting unnecessary pain and suffering on an innocent pet who brings such happiness to her family is uncalled for. If we only look around or listen to the news, such acts on a much, much larger scale are why our world is faced with the sorrow and grief that starts out with cold-hearted acts such as the one Gypsy had endured early in her life, and now once again.

It doesn’t need to happen.