[Dailydrool] Non-dog lovers

[dpmcquade at verizon.net]

I do not understand why some folks just do not like dogs. It's a complete mystery to me--and to my dogs, I might add. I can understand if a dog hater had a fearful experience with dogs, but I don't think most non-dog people do. And when I was maybe three years old, I was knocked over by a large dog, and it never stopped me from loving dogs. When I was older, we had a large dog that I adored.

Jane often wants to go visit a neighbor of ours who has made it pretty clear she's no dog lover--when she takes her kids to school, she walks on the opposite side of the street, if I have the dogs out. I'll bet her kids will be dog haters too. I am always explaining to Jane, "Some people just don't like dogs. I know it's hard to understand, Jane--I don't understand it myself." 'Tis a puzzlement.

I simply keep my hounds away from the non-dog lovers. Unhappily we have a few people on the street complain when we walk our dogs and let them do their business on the (perfectly legal for poop) area between the sidewalk and curb. It doesn't matter if you pick it up, they act as if you'd left toxic waste on their property. (Maybe we need to refer back to the discussion on people who are afraid dogs give them germs here.) I'm not saying anyone should leave poop all over, but for Pete's sake, I took as much as possible off their property. Would they like me to hose it down? Are they going to put diapers on the squirrels next? (Nutley has lots of squirrels, and I haven't seen anyone doing anything about squirrel poop--or the considerable amount of poop my neighbors' cats leave in my yard, and I'll bet it's not just left in my yard, either.) Just because an animal is at the other end of a leash from a human, people feel they have the right to complain.

If there were a dog community, I'd probably move there in a moment. But then there'd be absolutely no chance that these folks would ever like a dog, so maybe it's just as well that we have (polite) contact with them. At least the dog dislikers don't park their cars across our narrow street from my driveway, when we have stacks of snow and ice to deal with, so I can't get out of the driveway. Don't know if that set of neighbors likes my hounds or not--I just stay away from the whole brood.
Pam, food slave to the three Dashing Bassets, who unhappily are not always viewed positively on this street, probably because they think we have "too many dogs." Would someone with a double-digit pack like to move in for a week or so, so these folks can see what a lot of dogs really is? (Just kidding.)