Dogs and Their People

Recently, I moved from one doggy community, to one even more profoundly so.  I mean mine had been a vacationers’ paradise, but with a twist that took a while for me to notice.   Many who travel to this part of the world (Hilton Head Island, SC) do so because their dogs are also welcome here.  On countless mornings, strangers walking the beaches in the morning hours (before 10 AM and after 5 PM) meet and greet with the help of their dogs. 

In the off-season (between Labor Day of one year and Memorial Day of the next), dogs are welcome on the beach all day long.  It is almost as common here for people to bring their dogs to restaurants as it seemed in Europe when I visited there.  Everyone is looking for a restaurant with outdoor seating, which implies to many that pets will be permitted.  But the clincher is when you see water bowls conveniently located around the eatery.  Dogs are welcome, and their people, too.

But now, I see people taking dogs for walks in strollers, and in golf carts.  One good thing I have observed is about the golf carts, they stopped and walked their dogs—actually leaving the cart.  Have I seen anyone take their dogs out of their strollers?  Not that I can recall.  People, do you remember what you are walking your dog for?

Today I watched three people who appeared to be walking their dog together.  It was a man with two girlfriends

Don’t get the wrong idea here; he and the dog shared a leash, that’s true. 

But being behind him meant nothing at all to the other two.

As was easy to see, the girlfriends paid him no mind.

They were talking and walking many paces behind.

I think they were friends, though they could have been neighbors

But clearly just one of them carried the fruits of their labors,

I’m sure one was getting the straightest of poop,

I just couldn’t tell which had provided the scoop,

Two bags she did carry, with what had been scooped,

Each with a fresh load that the dog had just pooped.

During the walk filled with startings and stoppings

The man with the leash wasn’t leading at all,

Nor were the two girlfriends, who carried the droppings,

Of that hound, their real leader, the king standing tall.

(It happens sometimes, I just break out in rhyme
I’ll soon be over it, just a matter of time)