for the dogs!

This blog is going to be about dogs.  More specifically the homeless dogs running on the streets.  Bulgaria has it's share and then some...and some and some and then some.  Since they don't belong to anyone in particular they depend on the kindness of people to feed them and more than a couple are VERY thin.  I have some that "live" around my apartment and my neighbors' apartments.  I feed them whenever I can and the couple who lives close feeds them too.  I just had visitors from the states and they had been to the Ukraine and they said there were never dogs running around there and they were never seen.  We have LOTS!  There is one in particular that caught my eye when I first arrived.  Her name is Sara and she, and every other dog here, loves to chase cars, donkey carts, and any other vehicle that moves!  Because of that she has been hit countless times.  She is the definition of persistance and perseverance!  She walks everywhere the other dogs do by using her front 2 legs and her hind legs just kind of dangle.   It's very sad but it's also very cute at the same time.  The fact that she only has 2 legs doesn't stop her from doing anything!  If the other dogs see a strange dog and go to investigate, she's right there...only a tad bit behind them!  I've even see her start a fight with another dog!  You would think she would stop chasing cars after getting hit but NO!  Now the cute part.  She's not mine but she's mine.  She follows me EVERYWHERE: the store, the post office, school, and even the Kindergarten!  I have to prop the door shut when I go to the Kindergarten because she will follow me inside, she's done that before.  She would let me pet her for hours and is such a pretty dog.  THe other day I was in front of my apartment and had stopped petting her and was ready to go upstairs BUT Sara had other ideas!  She pulled on the corner of my heavy jacket with her mouth as if to say "where do you think you're going?"  I have to say that's a first.   My neighbors have told me she will sit at the bottom of my apartment building and she knows, somehow, when I'm going somewhere.  She was doing so much better and could even put pressure on one of her back legs but must've gotten hit again because now she can't even put the smallest bit of pressure on them.  There are about 5 dogs that regularly hang around at the base of our apartments and they are all such pretty dogs!  I'm learning all sorts of things about the eating habits of dogs, how they can "sense" food in the wind and how bread is a favorite.  There seems to be an order of who gets to eat too that I haven't figured out yet.  Sometimes I'll buy some bread and start feeding them and one of the dogs, Gina, sniffs it and walks away.  One of my neighbors told me she only wants fresh bread and if it's the least bit old she won't eat it.  Talk about picky!!!  I've enclosed a picture and you can see for yourself!  One more thing.  They love to "sing" along with the call to prayer!  Love and hugs from me!!