When a stray comes to camp in your yard and you already have one or more dogs, it can change the whole pack in a good or bad way. Last week I heard about a female stray, and when I received the photos I thought she looked about five to six weeks pregnant. More photos showed that her breasts were starting to puff.

She is either having a false pregnancy or she is expecting pups. I was told she had been there for several weeks. Now that I felt she may be expecting, the property owner said he was coming home to shoot her.

Every photo of the dog shows a sweet demeanor. Her eyes are soft and her ears planted in a submissive position.

I have tried to get the property owner’s name, but the person calling me is a third party to the conversation. It is conversation through a friend of hers who knows the property owner. No one wants to share the property owner’s numbe,. So I can’t get more information on the dog’s behavior or if they would keep the dog if I was able to get financial help to get her spayed.

Yes, I would spay a dog five to six weeks pregnant, and all my readers should think the same way in this awful economy.

Who keeps a female pup and doesn’t have the sense to spay her before she becomes breeding age? Answer is a lot of people.

I just don’t get it. Why keep a female if you have no plans to spay? Especially if she is a mutt.

So often, as in this case, those people who get or keep a female don’t plan ahead. Then when she gets bred, and she will get bred, they dump her.

I heard on Sunday night that the property owner’s two dogs have been edgy with each other since she arrived. So I suspect his dogs are not fixed either and probably are two males. I don’t know if his dogs breed her or if she came there bred.

If there were problems between the dogs why wait for weeks to ask for help and quickly threaten to shoot her when we just got photos to post?

Why isn’t anyone telling us who the people are that are dumping all these dogs? Someone knows each dog we post. Yet seldom a word is heard about who is doing it.

Dogs held for other rescues (2):

• Two Aussie/Great Pyrenees type mix pups that were abandoned in Bollinger County, now age 8 months.

Return to owner (0), placed in other rescues or foster (11) or adopted (1).

• Female purebred pit with 10 purebred puppies from Wappapello Lake area were taken by the Cape Girardeau Wednesday.

• Home found for stray black with white pup from northern Bollinger County.

Dogs with erlichia or heartworm (0), special needs (0), or euthanized (0):

• None.

Lost, found, and pets needing homes:

• Five-six adult cats need homes from Advance MO.

• Several dogs listed on our Facebook page also on the two Bollinger County “What’s Happening” pages, that are found or missing. IF you don’t have FB call us so we can try to match lost pets.

Miscellaneous and contact info:

We were caring for 18 dogs and pups at our home on June 30. If you have a stray camping out in the yard, don’t wait. Call us at (573) 722-3035 or cell (573) 321-0050.

MARILYN NEVILLE is director of Bollinger County Stray Project.