Thursday, March 22, 2012

Guide Dogs Behaving Badly

Today I got treed by a guide dog on the T.

I have a friend visiting me in Boston. We took the subway up to the Commons (the park) today. When we boarded, I noticed a guide dog sitting under his owner's seat. He was very good for the half hour we spent traveling a mile (Oh, MBTA). Then we pulled into Park Street Station. (NB my friend and I ended up separately by a few people, so she saw the following situation from a distance).

The doors on the train open on both sides at this station, and I went right, heading toward the door near the driver so if my cane got stuck or something the train wouldn't try to go with me hanging half way out of it (I think about these things). The man with the dog headed the opposite way. It took a moment for the doors to open, putting me up against the dog.

I am TERRIFIED of strange dogs. But not guide-dogs, in general, because they are not supposed to bother people.

This one bothered. He started out sniffing me. He nudged the cane, which I don't begrudge--I often think strange dogs mistake it for a stick. Then started licking my leg.

LICKING my leg.

I squirmed in the opposite direction, twisting around the pole I was hanging on to (context is everything) practically ending up on the lap of the nice lady next to me. To get my leg out of his reach, I lifted in onto the seat. He opened his mouth, and I really thought he might eat me. (Okay, he was yawning, whatever). Finally the woman on my other side petted him to get him to leave me alone. The doors opened, and my friend listened to me have a panic attack.

Now, I know the woman shouldn't have petted a working guide dog, and that's why I didn't try to do this to distract him--oh, no let's face it I'd never have touched him--but the owner wasn't holding the harness. This is why I think Fido thought it okay to get all up in my business, he wasn't being signaled that he was on duty. My friend pointed out, he had a choke collar. So, that's not a thing you expect to see on a guide dog.

Also, she said it looked like I was going to climb up on the chair. Like a badger climbing a tree to get away from this guide dogs' ancestors. (Do German shepherds hunt?)

I am all for guide dogs in public. His owner was genuinely blind, so it wasn't a fake service dog. But this should not have been a thing that happened.

I got treed like a badger, by a guide dog on the T.

Everything is wrong with that sentence except the prepositions. Everything.

1 comment:

  1. That dog is so cute and well-behaved. The owner must have been brought him to the dog boarding in Long Island from time to time.

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