There are other beings on the Earth

This weekend, I had to work.  "Work" for me involved putting on waders and hiking to several sites to do water sampling.  These samples are sent to the lab for water quality analyses.  As long as the work gets done on time, I can choose my own schedule.  Because of this freedom and the fact that I usually choose a day when the sun is shining brightly and the temperature is moderate, it's all quite marvelous.  This is why my job pays so very, very little. 

I was at the 12th site of 20.  It was mid-day, the sun was shining brightly, and I was filling out my last form for this site when I heard a dog barking and growling in the distance.  Down the hill, near my truck, I could see an older man walking his (unleashed) dog and a middle-aged woman sauntering with her three (all unleashed) dogs, one of whom was being aggressive.

This area is town-owned open space property saved from development by some quick thinking on both the town's and the developer's parts -- and the fact that this is where the wetlands are and really no building can occur here without some costly jostling.  It's big, open, meadow-ed, forested, wetland-ed, and river-ed.  A really gorgeous spot...if you like that sort of thing.  The only rule is that dogs must be on leash and the owners must pick up after their dogs.

This one, solitary, rule is routinely ignored by nearly everyone who sets foot on this property.

Just an hour before, when I exited the truck, I was accosted by a Great Dane whose owner sheepishly said something like, "He's so friendly!" as he jogged after his dog who had left two muddy paw prints on my chest and a spray of dog drool down my cheek.  

Now, back down the hill, the man was frantically trying to keep this growling dog off his small terrier who, despite its diminutive size, was giving the larger, heavier, more aggressive dog the "ok #@*, bring it on" look.  The woman, meanwhile, was strolling over, calling to her dog, "Here Trusty, good dog, good dog."  Now, I'm no canine behaviorist, but even I know that telling your dog that s/he is being "good" when s/he is about to take out another animal, is asinine.  But she did.

I stood in awe and watched as the older man caught up to his (unleashed) dog, scooped it up, and walked off giving the woman a cold, hard stare.  She called her dog again and miraculously, it gave up on the man holding the squirming terrier.  I don't think she even stopped walking the entire time.  She deftly avoided the pile her other dog left on the trail.  Did I even think that she would pick it up?  I mean, the town only provides several stations where bags and deposits are welcome. 

I felt the ire rising, and mentally squashed it down, finally finding my pen in my waders, and heading to the truck for the next site.  Of course, you knew that the Clueless Dog Owner's Aggressive Dog was going to see me didn't you?

Up the hill it came barreling toward me.  It stood squarely in my path and barked, then growled when I attempted to move around it.  The Clueless One came up behind it and called it over.  "Shouldn't your dog be on leash?!" I said.  "What?" she replied as if I was the dog dung she had left down the path.  "This dog should be on lead!" I stated, more firmly now as the dog eyed the part of my throat he desired most.  "I'm just taking them for a swim," she said a bit uncertainly.  I'm sure there was steam exiting every pore of my body.

She walked on with her pack, leaving me ticked off with humanity.  As I took another incredulous look over my shoulder, another one of the pack was depositing a second gift for the trail.  She was up ahead, clueless.

In case you're reading this and you agree with Clueless, here are several reasons why you're wrong:

1)  Open space is for everyone, not just you.  Your dog may be friendly with you, but s/he may be a raving lunatic to someone else.  S/he may attack another person or another dog.  S/he may frighten another person, another dog, or a child.  S/he may kill another person or dog.  If you won't leash your dog because it's the right thing to do, leash your dog because it's the law.

2)  A woman I know is coming off a year of pain because some moron had two untrained, unleashed mastiffs in his yard.  They saw her and her dog across the street taking a walk, ran across the street, and attacked them.  She has limited mobility and huge vet and medical bills; her dog is now afraid of other dogs; and the owner of the mastiffs is being sued. Would you like that to happen to you?

3)  You should pick up your dog's waste.  Dog waste pollutes the water supply, kills fish, encourages harmful bacteria, spreads parasites.  It's a disgusting pain in the ass to step in.  It's not fun to smell or look at.  If you don't want to pick up dog waste, don't get a dog. A plastic plant is just the thing for you.  If you don't want to pick up your dog's waste because it's the right thing to do, do it because it's the law. 

4)  If you think dogs need to "run free".  Fence your yard and knock yourself out.  "Free" running dogs hurt others, can get killed by cars, other dogs, or can be killed by ingesting something it shouldn't be eating.  Free running dogs can be injured by other animals.

5)  If you own a dog, train your dog properly.  Telling your space cadet that it is a "good dog" while it is growling, snarling, or doing something else inappropriate is reinforcing negative behaviour.  Can't afford a dog training class?  Go to the library and read a dog training book.  Learn!

6)  Yes, I do pick up after my own dogs.  And yes, I keep my dogs on leash.  Is it a pain in the ass?  Yes, it is.  But, it's the right thing to do, it's the law, and there are other beings on this earth besides me.  Plus, I hate plastic plants.