|
THE LOST DOGS OF NAVAJO NATION
The dog limps across the busy state highway, barely avoiding a string of speeding cars, rib cage visible through her short brown coat. Her front left paw is mangled, and she drags it along while padding her way toward the roadside brush. From her distended nipples, she clearly has puppies. Is she returning to feed them? Are they even still alive?
Two minutes later, another dog trots across the highway from one gas station convenience store to another — just as scrawny, just as hungry, just as desperate for ... food? Affection? A home? It's not uncommon to see wandering dogs in various states of neglect when you're driving through Kayenta, Ariz. The town is part of the Navajo Nation, a 27,000-square-mile expanse stretching across Utah, Arizona and New Mexico. Like most reservation cities, it's impoverished, with an unemployment rate as high as 30 percent, and people don't have much money to spend on themselves, much less their pets. Read more by clicking here or download the full PDF below. |