I noticed that once I had children, other people’s children suddenly showed up on my Mommy-worry radar. You can hear the prolonged cry on the playground of a child who skinned their knee and needs help, and you can instantly spot the wide-eyed terror of a child lost in a store. You become aware of other children like you just weren’t before when you have kids.
It’s the same thing with my dog. Now that I have a dog, I can’t believe how many dogs live on our street. Did everyone suddenly just get a dog? Nope. I just didn’t really notice them before. Now, I’m aware of dogs everywhere. Kind of like when you’re pregnant, suddenly you spot every pregnant woman in a ten-mile radius.
Now, when I’m out taking a walk, I worry about the dogs barking while no one’s home. Are they ok? Hungry? Thirsty? Lonely? There’s not much I can do about it as I walk by. If a neighbor consistently left a dog outside to bark all day, I’d politely inquire and make certain they were providing adequate water. But this weekend my mommy-doggy radar picked up a real distress call. And I froze. My heart hurts just remembering it.
It was day three of our street wide garage sale, and I sat in my garage working on my computer while people perused what we had left out in our driveway. I wasn’t paying people much attention as they came and went. The crowd was light, but people were walking around, the day was sunny and warm and I had a project to finish up. I was in my own little work world, really.
That’s when I heard a car pull up and park in front of our house. I saw two older people get out, while their little dog yipped away in the car. The old woman wobbled on her cane up the driveway, while the older man scowled at the car.
“I’m gonna give her a few good smacks,” he said. And he went back to the car and I could hear him hit the dog several times. She stopped barking. The woman didn’t even take notice. The older couple wandered into my driveway.
Did he really just do that? I wondered. Really? With all these people around like it was no big deal? It was no heat of the moment anger, just an everyday way to quiet the dog.
My heart was in my throat. That poor little dog. As I sit here typing, I can’t believe I didn’t set down my work and rush out and yell at him. That’s what I would have thought I’d do, especially now that I have a dog.
But I sat there, frozen and uncertain about what I even could do. Was it my place to tell him not to whack his dog? Was it my place to tell him he was a mean idiot? He was at a distance and wouldn’t have heard me even if an instant reaction slipped from my lips. I would have had to march out and challenge him. (Please keep in mind that years ago, before we had kids, when my husband and I thought we heard someone in the house, he jumped out of bed to investigate, and my involuntary instinct was to hide under the covers. Seriously. I freeze in a crisis, which is only helpful if trying to avoid detection by a Tyrannosaurus Rex, as I learned from Jurassic Park.)
Scolding a mean dog owner seems a lot more likely when you’re just contemplating the situation, not confronting it. I’ve seen parents hit their kids in public, and I felt the same kind of conflict. Is it really my place to call someone out for rough handling of their pets and children? Tears welled in my eyes as I wondered what to do; and as I realized I wasn’t doing anything.
The man did a quick glance over of my tables and shuffled off to the next sale. He didn’t get close enough to talk to, and even now I’m not sure what I would have said.
Jerk? That wasn’t nice? Don’t bring your dog with you if you don’t want it to bark? How would you like it if I’d hit you? Sorry, I’m not going to let YOU buy any of my junk?
I kept thinking about that little dog the rest of the day, and wondered if she loved her owner despite his rough treatment, or if she cowered in fear. Was he mean to her often? Was he nice to her sometimes?
When the sale was over, I went inside and wrapped my arms around Hershey, and thought about the animals that are on the receiving end of a violent hand more often than a loving one. Once you bring a pet into your life, be prepared to worry about other animals. Be prepared for enhanced pet radar. I was not. As I hugged Hershey, I promised myself next time, I’d say something. I just hope there isn’t a next time.
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Have you missed any of the articles in this series?
If so, you can find them at:
The Bringing Up Puppy Series page.
Related posts:
- Bringing Up Puppy Series – Two Steps Back
- Bringing Up Puppy Series – The Crazies
- Bringing Up Puppy Series – Two Months in – Hows the Cat Girl Doing?
- Bringing Up Puppy Series – So Big
- Bringing Up Puppy Series – Lost
