calliecritturs
Posted : 11/1/2006 9:05:07 PM
I thot this was pretty funny for all the wrong reasons. It was annoying as heck but ... I realize I'm the local stick-in-the-mud.
Howdy -- so Ok, I don't usually "do" Halloween for a lot of reasons, but last night was the first time I got THIS particular major culture shock.
I had a vet appt for Billy last night (at this point he's having too much fun so I can drop back on the number of visits -- we've weaned him almost off the pred and next we start weaning off the Atopica - he's DOING SO GOOD).
I think I wound up at a Halloween party for DOGS rather than the vet?? No .. it WAS the vet, but my stars ... let's just say Billy and I were NOT dressed for the event. (this was the holistic vet -- how do you do acupuncture on a dog in a costume?? hmmm??)
Some gal had her little dog - about the size of a small poodle with long white hair (but it wasn't a Maltese - had to be a mix of some sort) dressed as a PINK BALLERINA!!!
Seriously.
She came in and deposited the dog on a chair and the dog (not on a leash *sheesh*) jumped down and came up to Billy. Now he LIKES "little" girl dogs in particular and he was all excited to see this one, and the woman squealed and picked her up talking baby talk to her all the way (yuck). I told her Billy was friendly but aparently this little female is NOT always friendly (go figure with a human who dresses her like a freakin ballerina but who won't let her walk on the floor?? I'd be in a ratty mood too!!!)
Next out comes this woman with 3 little dogs. Now I know this woman and her dogs always are leashed and behave pretty well, given 1 or 2 of the 3 are always fosters that she takes excellent care of. She's got one old one of the three that is pretty fragile and he wasn't 'dressed up' but the OTHER TWO were. The little male min pin was dressed like "Superman" and the other one was dressed like a "Ladybug". Oh brother!! I'm in trouble.
Well then the ballerina decides she's lost control over the entire situation and SHE starts this vicious growl at all 4 dogs on the floor. (Can we set up the dog to be 'dominant' and out of control putting it on a high seat with NO leash over 4 other dogs on the floor all leashed??) The receptionist looks at me and says "Gee -- would you like to go to a room??? C'mon Billy!!"
Billy was glad to get the heck outa Dodge - he knows the other 3 dogs and is buddies with at least 2 of them (the old one isn't usually on the floor -- this is the first time I think I've even seen him on is feet - he's doing well but he's been quite sick), but when Miss Ballerina starts with her vicious female dog routine, Billy looked up at me as much as to say 'Mom, I don't know what SHE's getting ugly for but LET'S GET OUTA HERE!!'
I don't mind putting shirts on them when it gets cold, or putting decorated shirts on them for holidays when we go to pet therapy because it looks cheerful. But dressing my dog up for Halloween? I can see why it's fun, but the humans generally don't seem to have their own logic in place to compensate - the humans are in 'fun' or 'silly' mode and the dogs unfortuatnely are left to reap the consequences in this case.
I mean, shoot -- when my dog interacts with ANY buddy at the vets the first words out of my mouth are always "Remember, guys ... not everbuddy at the vets FEELS good -- so be gentle and be nice!" (and yeah, I say that a lot)
The mental picture of that little UNLEASHED female standing on the "chair" with her human not even trying to STOP the behavior (well she said 'Oh, Callie don't be bossy!' -- and yes, the dog's name WAS Callie *gulping for air*) -- that image of her growling like she was gonna bite someone's head off of that pink nightmare holding FOUR dogs "at bay" and a room full of humans??? How many things could I count 'wrong' in that picture? *sigh*
(Dang I probably just blew my "nice lady who tries to be helpful" image all to smithereens didn't I?)