Poor Dog, Poor Car

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dbvolfan

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Apr 21, 2006
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Location
Richmond, KY
I feel awful, yet at the same time I am relieved that my family is safe.

While coming home from Nashville last night after celebrating my daughters 1st birthday, we were 75 miles or so miles from home when a Pyriennes or some kind of 100lb+ dog jumped out in front of me while I was doing 65 mph or so. I was in the passing lane and had a car on my right so I couldnt swerve...even then, I wouldnt have been able to miss it, as it happend so fast.

Anyway, I hit it square on. I Immediately noticed that my power steering had failed and there was some scraping noise coming from the right wheel well but everything else seemed OK. No CEL's or funny smells. At this point it is 11pm and for those of you who have travelled the Cumberland Pkwy, you know there is ~14-23 miles between exits and NOTHING out there. According to the GPS we were 20+ miles from an exit, the car seemed OK, and I had no cell phone service so we decided to limp on...I checked the front of the car out and it was pitch black...all I could see was that the front bumper was gone and that was about it.

So we are limping along, counting the GPS miles down and then a few miles later both my Check Oil and Transmission Lights come on and within a few seconds the whole thing seized up. Luckily, while sitting there trying to figure out what to do next, a sherriff pulled up to help us. Got us a tow truck to have our car towed to a Mazda dealer in Somerset, called his friend who managed the WalMart to see if he could drop us off there with our dog and let us wait inside while our neighbors drove 60 miles from Richmond to pick us up.

When the tow truck driver showed up we lit up the botom of the car and the radiator was pushed back and flattend against the engine, the oil and transmission pans appeared to be sheared off as well as the oil filter. Plenty of other missing and damaged parts. I personally think it is done..the engine and transmission fried as a result of losing the fluid so fast. I hope not but at least we made it home.

Many thanks go out to the Russell County and Somerset PD who helped us out and the Night Manager at WalMart who opened up the lawn and garden side of the store so we could sit in there with our 1yr old and dog while we waited to be picked up. Finally got home ~2am this morning.

All I know is that had I been on the bike, I'd be dead now.....really makes you think about those (big)dogs/deer.

 
Sorry to hear you had a Road Kill. ALWAYS carry an dependable flashlight (& know where it is) in every vehicle. I am surprised you didn't smell the anti freeze when you got out. Glad you are all safe. Sounds like you have an expensive replacement in order. TJ

 
I feel awful, yet at the same time I am relieved that my family is safe.
While coming home from Nashville last night after celebrating my daughters 1st birthday, we were 75 miles or so miles from home when a Pyriennes or some kind of 100lb+ dog jumped out in front of me while I was doing 65 mph or so.

what color was it? if it was white, and as big as you say, then likely a great pyrenees. if it was tricolor, then likely a bernese mountain dog (or possibly saint bernard, but they have larger heads and frames); and if all black, all brown, or mostly those with some white, then possibly a newfoundland. assuming it was a long-haired dog (altho st. bernards can be shorthair)...

 
db,

Glad you're OK.

You should have stopped at this cafe before driving on....

.

yFtMtn042907aa.jpg


 
I am leaning towards it being a Great Pyrianees. Several people I spoke to at the WalMart where we waited to be picked up by our friends mentioned theat they use them quite often out here on the farms for killing coyotes, foxes or anything else that might harm their livestock. One guy told me he has two that weigh 140lbs each. It appeared to be white or very light/tan colored with short hair. Defintely not a Saint Bernard or anything like that.

Based on the preliminary report from the Mazda dealer it isnt looking good and it appears I found one of those 140 lb ones. They are going to look at the internals in more detail tomorrow but it appears likely we will be car shopping in the near future. It's amazing a dog could total a car but when you figure 140lbs is a decent size deer. On a side note, I told my wife one way to avoid being trapped like this in the middle of no where would be to trailer the FJR on long trips so we always had the "back-up". She didnt laugh. :)

 
Glad you and your family are ok. You can replace a vehicle, but your family is not something you can replace. I am ESPECIALLY glad that you wern't on your cycle.

 
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