Dogs…

My countrymen are dog lovers, no doubt about that!  Growing up I was very aware that my father had infinitely more patience when training his canine than he did when training me.

Consequently when I have a dog, I assign it to the place where dogs reside.  It is a beast and does not have a soul or a mind, it is below humans which are my children and hubs, albeit not too far below.  The dog is given a name, (like Rex or Rover or…Watson?) beyond that it is expected to know its place in the pecking order.  The dog we had while the children were being trained would never hear a word said against me, wrong me knowingly, hurt me either physically or emotionally or let his eye rove.  It was difficult to relegate him to his rightful position on the totem pole when he was constantly on my heels, gazing up at me with adoring eyes even when I was having a bad hair day, but for his sake I did.  Naturally there were occasional lapses in favouritism.

However, I never took him out to dinner with me.

Last night I was at a Mexican restaurant, a lovely place with an ambience that smothered the fact that a freeway was within spitting distance of the patio.

My enjoyment was somewhat shaken when a large man sitting opposite me put his feet up on his table.  I cast my eyes in the other direction along with his two companions.

This is how I came to see the threesome walk in with a miniature schnauser.  The outdoor patio lent itself to the presence of a dog as long as it kept his place under the table.  The waiter showed them to their table and removed the fourth chair.

As a wicked aside to my table I remarked,

“Why’s he taking that chair away, can’t he see they have a beloved dog?”

The waiter was called back, he replaced the chair and the dog was removed from the top of the table and placed in it.  He was obviously no stranger to this kind of treatment and sat up straight.  Drinks were ordered and one was placed in front of him for a happy family photo shoot!

In keeping my eyes off the soles of the feet gracing the table in front of me I couldn’t help but be privvy to this display of anthromorphism playing out before me.

When the paparazzi subsided he quietly lay down on his chair and went to sleep.

The floor was no place for this K9.

 

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