Walk like a dog

Much less drama on today's walk, we didn't walk the same walk as yesterday either,  it probably helped that I changed my route and avoided those posers on New Bern. I had been avoiding my own neighborhood  form months because of the presences of dogs, more specifically, unleashed dogs, my new paranoia. In all the years Dogger and I have been walking down these blocks, we have been bothered by only two dogs ever - right up until  recently, when we meet a new unleashed dog almost every time we go outside.

Dogger never seemed too put out but I was left hyperventilated and horrified by what could have happened. Dogger doesn't want to meet new dogs,  Dogger prefers her friends to be of the two legged variety and frankly, she believes herself too good for these four legged interlopers. People are more her speed. In our perfect world the dog parks would be Dogger Parks and she would be just for her and her two legged friends. The parks would be full of people for her to play with and charm and everybody would  be happy.

In the past, we both saw leashed dogs as being more or less okay, but now, any dog makes me uncomfortable and I turn the other direction. I don't think Dogger would have a problem with a dog on a leash being in the same place as herself, but I  do. All dogs are potentially off leash - weak leashes, broken collars, people too stupid to move away when asked... They all pose a potential threat.

If I can't shake this soon, Dogger will be taking her walks in my back yard. I do however have great hopes for the winter. I have convinced myself that once it gets cold that  all the leash-less dogs will disappear. I don't know why I am clinging to this fantasy but I just know that this is true.

My guess is that the last time we got set upon by dogs it was because the owner was chatting with a friend with his front door open and   his dogs just ran right out into the street. If it was cold, I doubt he would have been standing there with his door hanging open. I hope.