the Dog Whisper

There is a fellow who stops by the patisserie almost everyday. He is accompanied by a pack of dogs: a huge pack of dogs.

His routine is always the same. He stands by the bench, faces his companions and says, very quietly, “Lay down.” Almost in unison the entire group lays down and gets comfortable. There are a couple of outliers who needed extra coaching which involves repeating the command along with the a subtle hand signal. It is always the new members to the pack, who haven’t quite gotten all the rules, who need the extra attention.

Then they all lay in the sun and take a break from their busy morning of walking, sniffing, and peeing. As they lay quietly together, some using others as pillows, the Dog Whisper, which is what everyone calls him, takes the water dish that is set out by the folks at the patisserie, and offers it to each dog individually. Each waits his turn patiently and gets a long cold drink.

I’ve been watching this guy with his ever-growing tribe for almost a year. They are held together by an intricate spider web of leashes which gives each dog the space he needs while keeping them all intimately connected to their shepard. A gentle tug here and a slight pressure there and the swarm of dogs delicately navigates its way down the street. It is a ballet.

Technical Note:   This is one of the first photos that I’ve taken with my new Samsung Note 10.1 tablet. It is like taking pictures with a dinner plate, but the results are satisfactory for snapshots. There simply times when I don’t want to carry my camera and yet don’t want to miss those spontaneous moments.

I got the tablet because I want to take may online research reading with me rather than be chained to my computer. I decided not to get a smartphone because the display area is too small to comfortably read long newspaper articles or reports with graphics.

I am just scratching the surface of this device and I’m already hooked.

 

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