A black dog went missing from a farm outside Rayton after intruders had shots fired at them on April 17.
The dog named Spikkels was reported missing on April 19, and her owners were gravely concerned.
However, in a surprising turn, Spikkels returned home unharmed on April 20.
Although she did not reveal where she was for those few days, her owners were relieved and grateful to have her back.
Why is Spikkels no ordinary mutt? Willie Schmidt told Streeknuus the tale.
“I believe it was a Wednesday about seven years ago at about 11:00. I was working in my workshop when suddenly I heard the most unearthly sound. Never before had I heard such a sound. My 1.5kg brain could not place that weird sound. No way I could identify it at all.”
According to Schmidt, he first thought aliens had landed, so he ventured outside to see if he could locate the origin of the noise.
When he approached the sound emanating from the fence around the property, he spotted a big, black mass of bone lying motionless on the ground, with tiny moans coming from it.
He picked ‘it’ up and took ‘it’ to the house.
The puppy, which turned out to be female, was in bad shape. According to Schmidt, she could barely stand on her own.
“I gave her all the food and milk she could consume. In her eyelids, I could see she had tick bite fever. She had a backside soiled with diarrhoea. So off to the vet we went.
“With all the necessary medications and some vitamins, her condition improved.”
Back at home, Schmidt resumed work in the workshop and named the pup BoB – short for Bag of Bones, thinking he would later find a more suitable name.
BoB followed Schmidt everywhere, and her new sleeping spot was at his feet.
She refused to leave his side while he worked. When Schmidt moved from one spot to another, she followed him and peacefully lay at his feet. He took a photo of an emaciated BoB for future reference.
Schmidt, a confessed weirdo who said he was born on the wrong side of the hospital, decided BoB needed a unique, distinctive name that people would not easily forget.
So Spikkels was born (Sport, to his friends in Europe). He did not want anyone to forget her name, he exclaimed.
Spikkels’ condition and health improved, and the floppy puppy grew splendidly. In three weeks, Christina the Foxie faced tough competition for any toys or playthings.
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“A week later, Spikkels killed and devoured a cow during the night, and in the morning, all that remained was this one big bone.
“We had three other dogs, but no one was allowed near that bone. Within a week, the bone disappeared. This is obviously pure fiction,” Schmidt laughed.
The sheep also adore Spikkels, a dark companion they welcomed as one of their own. Spikkels has become a beloved favourite of theirs.
Spikkels is an amiable and affectionate dog who co-exists peacefully with even the cats. A non-aggressive dog by nature, Spikkels is generous enough to share her food with a sheep if necessary.
It is customary for her to perform guard duty all night. She is not aggressive but gentle and not a watchdog. Except when it comes to jackals.
“The homecoming was very emotional for everyone.”
