It’s been a while since I shared a dog encounter story. Ya’ll know where I live, it’s not like they haven’t been happening, believe me, they have. It’s just sometimes I have to ‘percolate’ them for a bit. 🙂
DADO Capital of Connecticut
There’s a woman who lives on the street behind my house. She has a mini Schnauzer, “Bumper.” This dog barks like crazy when we pass the house, and when we pass her on a walk, she’s at the end of her leash, dragging her owner, and making all kinds of noises.
They live across the street from a house with two dogs in an e-fence and these dogs bark and run the yard, every time we pass. Every. Time. One day this woman complimented me on Delilah, because the two fools were barking like crazy, and Delilah sailed by like nothing was happening. During that conversation, the woman told me she had chosen her dog because it was a ‘guard dog,’ and would warn her if someone was around. I can attest to the fact the dog barks, whether it’s on a lead outside, or sitting in the window. I can also verify, that the woman never checks to see what the dog is barking at. Not sure what the purpose of getting a dog that barks is, if you are not, in fact, going to check on that barking dog….but I digress.
Last week, Delilah and I were taking our afternoon walk, when I saw the woman coming out of her yard with her dog.
I immediately stopped, so I could determine which way she was headed. If she had gone the way we were heading, I would have hung back and let her get ahead of me, then continued on our way. But, instead, she came out of the yard and headed straight towards us, so I turned around and popped into a side street.
As she passed the entrance to the street, she thought it would be a good opportunity to talk to me. I kept Delilah at a safe distance, while Bumper huffed, and puffed, and pulled on the leash, and the woman spoke about the storm we’d just had, and it looks like one of her Arborvitae took a hit, and the first thing she did after getting power back on was make a cup of coffee, and her dog just wanted to meet my dog, and on and on and on.
Dear dog, Make. It. Stop.
Finally, she went on her way. I knew we were going to end up meeting again, and now my priority became, getting us to a ‘safe’ house, while we waited for them to pass.
Lucky for us, we made it our neighbor’s house, and Delilah and I popped into their driveway to wait for Bumper and his mom to pass.
Except they didn’t.
No, no, Bumper’s mom decided (once again) that she’d stop and chat with me. Mind, Delilah is being SO good throughout both encounters. While Bumper, is still on the end of her leash, only this time, she’s dragging her mom closer and closer to us.
Then the mom says, “Can they meet?”
My response was strong and firm, “No.”
Then I went on to explain that sometimes Delilah is snarky, especially on leash. (Side not, why? Why do I feel like I have to explain to someone why my dog can’t meet theirs? Why?)
Now, if someone told me no, I’d be like, “Okay. See ya,” and I’d be on my way.
But not this woman, no she kept right on chatting, and then, when she finally started walking away from us, she saw a HUGE snowman the kids next door had made, and had to shout back at me to see if I had seen it, and to ooh and ahh over it.
Chatty Cathy.
I wanted a diaper. Then I wanted to poop it.
How do you handle such encounters?
I wonder that about some people too. Like what about “No” do they not understand?! It’s one little word. Maybe they’re just so lonely, alone in this world, that they have literally no one to talk to other than neighbors and total strangers? Maybe they’re starved for human contact? I don’t know, but it makes me wonder. As for feeling the need to explain why? I feel that way, too, at times.
I have no clue. I pass her in her yard all the time, and she hardly looks up. I do know she is divorced, so maybe she is lonely.
Many people without much dog experience or desire to work with and understand their dogs don’t understand. They have never had a bad experience and have no idea what it is like. Bailie and Madison want to meet everyone, and Mom can hardly hold them back when another dog approaches, but she would never say “I want them to meet your dog”. The more it happens, the more my sisters understand they can’t play with every dog they see. I’m not keen on others, so I keep my distance on my own.
Agreed. There are some dogs that just don’t like other dogs, for whatever reason. What if my dog is aggressive, and your little dog gets in her face and your dog gets hurt? Those are always the questions I think about when being approached by another dog.
I really don’t understand those type of people at all. Merlin’s my flirty social boy and i’m the introvert that he owns.
I like the people who ask for permission and the ones with small bitey dogs that do the right thing and avoid us. But then there’s the ones with retractable leashes and the ones that know their dogs aggressive yet shoves their dog in my dogs face anyway. Like they forgot their dog doesn’t like other dogs or something.
Retractable leashes and small dogs. Those are the other things that really rile me up. Do people not do research at all?
I can’t believe she didn’t catch on to the fact that you were trying to avoid her! Some people are just totally clueless, and they probably shouldn’t even have dogs.
That’s funny about the guard dog….what’s the point if you don’t even look at what they’re barking at? Luke barks a lot, but I always go to see what he’s barking at. If it’s someone walking by, I get him to come in the house. Who wants to listen to that when they’re on a nice walk? It’s just common courtesy, but I guess that’s what’s lacking in our world today.
I was thinking the same thing! Why isn’t she getting this? I keep moving farther and farther away. Sigh. I do the same with my dogs. I don’t let them bark incessantly at something, whether it be at home or on a walk. And I think you hit the nail on the head, we have become the “me” society and there is no common courtesy anymore. 🙁
People….This is why we prefer being hermits in the desert.
Yup. Sometimes pooping your diaper really is the answer.
Yeah, it happens to us all the time. And usually on a dock where if something goes wrong, someone is likely to end up taking a swim.
I can only be thankful that Honey is close to bullet proof. Or I’d be sitting in a corner somewhere wearing a jacket whose sleeves fasten in the front.
Maybe you need a DADO medal you can pass out on your walks with a link to a post when you’re writing about why someone deserves it. That would probably end it. 🙂
I don’t think Bumper is good company, sounds like she is pretty lonely. I’m still giggling at the diaper though!
LOL, I’m so sorry, Jodi. I can’t. help. but. laugh. at your neighborhood Chatty Cathy who clearly has a damn causing in the Mile High City!!! Argh. Why is it stupid multiplies? This morning I even said not terribly under my breath, “stupid cow” with a woman and her barking, psycho dog (since I gave up swearing for Lent, that was the only pejorative I could come up instead of my usual sailor talk). Luckily my ‘magic pocket’ of treats was full so I could distract Elsa, but I always resent it when I have to go out of my way to account for these clueless cretins. Grrrrr
Happy trails in the land of DADO.
Gah. Clearly Chatty Cathy has a damn COUSIN! Inadvertently left the cousin part off. I was getting all worked up again just thinking of that stupid cow! 😇
Oh my gosh! I can sympathize! Do you ever just want to scream at them. “WTF is WRONG with you?” LOL
Yay Delilah for being such a good girl! That’s wonderful! At least the woman asked if they could meet–most of the time, people just try to let their dogs meet Barley even when I’m physically putting myself between their dog and Barley and I have to try to drag Barley away before the other dog finds a way around me. I’m so glad that Delilah handled the situation so well!
THAT was what kept me from losing it, at least she asked. And when she sees me and she doesn’t have her dog, she always asks if she can pet my dog.
When we had dogs, we’d pretend we didn’t hear the person talking and kept on walking. It certainly didn’t earn us any brownie points with the neighbors but…. that fact never bothered us in the least. 🙂 Happy trails. ~Andrea
THAT is a really nice way to avoid it.