Off the leash

Have you ever had a dog come flying up to you out of nowhere?

Then the dog proceeds to bounce around you energetically until finally the owner catches up with their pet.

Then the conversation is always the same. A quick apology and a rolling of the eyes or a ‘bad boy’ in a baby voice and then the owner and dog are on their way again.

I think an assumption a lot of dog owners make is that the world is full of dog lovers or at least if the dog does annoy someone it can be solved with a quick apology.

But what if the ‘traumatised by dogs’ support group is meeting in the same park you’ve just let Spot roam free in?

I grant you a public park is not a great location for this type of a group to meet but the point is valid.

Alternatively what if a child develops a paralysing phobia because a loose dog chased them for their sandwich?

What if an unleashed dog races up to a tortured by dogs former prisoner of war and sends the human into catatonic shock and back to months of therapy?

I’m exaggerating for effect but it’s something I’ve noticed recently.

There seems to be a ‘Ah sure what could go wrong?’ kind of attitude towards letting dogs off the leash.