We such bros.
Dog Lesson The First
I’ve had Charlie for two weeks. He is the sweetest, gentlest little guy, and he’s intensely bonded with me. He’s never lived as a domestic dog in a city environment before, and he’s had to get used to some city dog conventions, like walking on a leash and heading to the dog park. He’s very polite with other dogs he meets, but just doesn’t seem all that interested in playing with them. He just sticks very close to me. He can sometimes be overly protective over me, but he is not an aggressor. I think, with time, he’ll be more sociable—once he realizes that he doesn’t have to always be so attentive, and that I’ll still be there for him to come home to.
Tonight, we went to the off-leash dog park by my house. There were a lot of bigger dogs out playing, romping around. And one of the dogs took an interest in Charlie, did the polite sniff and check, and then tried to dominate him. He mounted Charlie, and then Charlie wiggled away and growled him off, and then this other dog started barking at him. And then other dogs started barking at him. The other dogs seemed to gang up on him. So Charlie started to run.
I ran after him, and he only got about a block away, and he came back to me when I called his name. Then I clipped on his lead and we went back to the dog park because I wanted him to know, “No, we are not afraid of the other dogs. No, we will come back and stand our ground.” I left him on his leash so he could feel me there, and he was very good and let one of the other owners pet him for a long time. Even though it was not a fun experience, I think it was a good one. He seemed calmer once we came back to the park, seemed happier to spend time with someone else, and was not fazed by the other dogs.
I am so proud of you, Charlie. You were a good sport in a scary situation, and I want you to know that when things get rough, you don’t have to run away, because we’re a team.
