This morning, Tawny wandered out of the back yard through an open gate. It was closed when I checked. The landscapers scrambling around beoootifying my itsy yard must have opened it in between check and release. I saw movement out my side window that alerted me something was up.
Tawny got out.
Any of you who have a reactive dog know the gut punch those words can deliver. Tawny reacted to everything — people (worse with males), dogs, cats — with lunging, snapping, snarling etc. aka full display.
The male workers were right there. My stupid neighbors let their cats roam. Disaster???
Ahhhh, no. As I kicked off my slippers to head for the back, I saw Tawny walk up to a worker, tail wagging happily, and he bent over and stroked her on the head (previous snapping trigger). By the time I got to the back door, he had ushered her back into the yard and closed the gate. Tawny sniffed, squatted and peed, then saw me, wagged and looked like she was saying “Hey Ma, what are you doing out here?”
I smiled, I laughed, and I realized I had actually expected her to act that way. Because we have done our work. And it worked. Oh, what a feeling.
We have done our work. Have you?
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