Who says you can’t teach an old dog new tricks? Tashi, an aging Labrador Retriever belonging to Karen Dimetrosky and her eleven year old daughter Maddie, has learned to use a wooden ramp that bridges the front steps at their Boulder, Colorado home. Before the ramp, Tashi’s family had to carry the heavy dog up and down the steps.
But their United States Letter Carrier, Jeff Kramer, could see that the family—especially Karen and Maddie—were struggling with the dog’s weight. And he knew just what to do.
Kramer watched the women strain to lug Tashi’s weight up and down the steps every day. Having recently lost an old dog, he knew that something he had at home could make their lives a lot easier.
Kramer’s old dog had used a ramp to help him get up and down the stairs at the Kramer house for a long time before he finally crossed the rainbow bridge. Since the Letter Carrier knew how much it benefited his own dog, he figured it might help Tashi, too.
So one day, Kramer delivered the wood from the ramp to the Dimetrosky’s house to build a ramp for their precious pet. Unfortunately, as Maddie said, “my parents are so unhandy!” That’s when Kramer decided to spend his day off going the extra mile. He rebuilt the ramp for them.
Soon, Tashi could go up and down all by herself, and was there to greet her Letter Carrier friend when he brought the mail.
In 2016, dog attacks against postal employees reached 6,755—200 more than the year before. “Even good dogs have bad days,” said U.S. Postal Service Safety Director Linda DeCarlo in Los Angeles.
But statistics don’t stop Jeff Kramer! He says what we want is a happy animal, and he hopes his ramp will help Tashi maybe live a little longer. Imagine that! “Yeah,” he said. “A mailman that likes dogs. Go figure!”
You’ll enjoy watching this story of a different kind of Good Samaritan. Then show it to your friends!