I’m in LA with Mom and we’ve been here for a week. We met a nice lady named Jai who invited us to her apartment courtyard for a playdate with her dog. Finally, I can run free in Santa Monica! The dog park here started checking dog tags and only allowing SM dogs to play there. But it’s ok, we love the long walks and plenty of landscaping for me to do my business.
Dad arrived yesterday. More to be updated later…
The weather was overcast in San Francisco, but every day is a sunny day when I have a playmate! The last time I saw Bruiser he was a little puppy. Now he’s a rambunctious teenager. When Auntie Helen first brought him over, we got into a bit of a mish mash, growling and barking, until we were separated. It was time to leave the house!
The humans spent a long time trying to get Bruiser in his harness. Not sure if they put it on right, but we headed out anyway. The weather was cold and drizzly, but we had a blast. When we got back, we hung out in the house for more play. We were confined to the kitchen and I REALLY wanted to go into the yard. But then I got distracted doing tricks for treats. Mom and Dad were impressed at how well-behaved I was. I came when called, even when Bruiser was boxing me.
Walks in Dad’s neighborhood are usually short and sweet, long enough for me to get my business done. Today during our morning walk, a white dog that looked like a husky ran across the street, without its leash or owner, and started jumping around to play with me. I had fun at first, but then Mom tied me to a pole to try and reach for the dog. The dog jumped away. Then the owner came running across the street.
His first attempts at catching the dog were futile. Then he tried grabbing the dog and collar. He got ahold of the dog, which started twisting violently. The dog got aggressive and bit the owner’s hand, leaving an inch long gash. Mom asked the owner if he had a leash. He went across the street.
The dog starting humping me. I did NOT like that at all. Mom saw the situation was going from bad to worse. So she untied me, dragged me across the street while the dog was humping me, and went to the open front door of the nearest house, which she assumed belonged to the owner. The dog followed. She called the owner but he wasn’t there. Then the owner came out. He didn’t seem to help at all, so Mom got the dog inside and closed the door. Then she knocked on the door again to see if the owner was ok. She told him that the dog should NOT be biting people and he should be taken to Animal Control. He was like ok ok, and closed the door. Then she called Animal Control to report the incident.
She was concerned that:
1) A dog that bites people was not properly contained
2) The dog may not have had his shots (the owner seemed irresponsible)
Forty-five minutes later, Animal Control calls Mom and tells her that the owner came to turn the dog in. She was relieved to know that he did the responsible thing. Now maybe the dog will be evaulated, properly trained, and find a more experienced owner.
Later that day, Mom and Dad stopped by Animal Control to get me a new license. She asked about the dog. It turns out that the owner had the dog put down! Or as Uncle Paul says, sent to the “farm”. The poor dog probably had very little training. Turns out he was an Akita, not a husky. That breed requires experience and committment. The report says the dog bit the owner and a dog. Mom talked to the Animal Control person, who said it was pretty bad for the dog to even bite his owner, especially at such a young age. The Akita was a year old and not neutered.
People should NOT be adopting dogs unless they know what they are getting into. The dog was beautiful, which is what probably attracted the owner to him. I hope the dog is happy on the farm. 
