Usually, when I see a dog that I'm walking towards without an owner, I immediately walk onto the other side of the road. When I saw this dog coming towards me, I did the same.
What I didn't know was that there was a lady on that side of the road and the dog had followed behind me. As I walked towards her, she tried to get my attention and said that she was afraid of dogs.
I saw that the dog wasn't aggressive at all and I encouraged her to keep walking as there was a man walking a short distance behind me. She kept walking but was very fearful and then I just kept walking thinking that the dog was going on his own way.
I walked up to a major intersection and saw that there were no cars coming, so I walked across the road and was so surprised to see the dog crossing besides me. It was a medium sized dog with a heavy duty chain around it's neck.
I'm not sure of the breed of the dog but it looked like a pit bull cross. It looked like it had been well cared for with no scars or abrasions and just started walking with me a little in the front and sometimes smelling the poles and bushes along the way.
I thought after a few minutes that it would leave or go it's own way but it seemed to be happy to just stroll along with me as I first started at a fast pace to get me warmed up and then took it easy as I walked up an incline.
Believe it or not, it continued to follow me for the full hour walk and I changed my usual route to accommodate it as I thought that it would be best for me to take it back to where we had first met, just in case the owner was looking for it.
Along the way, I saw the dog walk up to a young man who looked like he'd just been dropped off by a work colleague with all his clothes in one hand. He walked around the car and the dog followed him. I could tell that he was scared and so I reassured him that the dog seemed okay and to continue. I called the dog to "come here" and he left the man and followed me as we continued to walk.
When we were just about back home, a saw an older couple walking and the woman had an umbrella. The dog approached her and she feigned to hit the dog, they asked of whose dog it was and I explained that it was following me and that I didn't know who it belonged to. I told the dog to come with me and we continued walking.
When I hit home, I decided to go in for a shower and thought I'd lost the dog as it had run ahead of me. The next thing I know, is that it's whining outside the front door and banging on the door. I tell my youngest the story and she goes and wants to play with the dog. I go to see them playing like they're old friends and she gives it some water too.
I wonder if it's micro-chipped and that the owner might be looking for it or wondering what's happened to it (having lost dogs before and looking all over for it in the past). So I called our local SPCA (Society for the Protection of Cruelty to Animals) and they put us to the dog control department.
This story does have a good ending as when the dog control guy came to pick up the dog, the dog was micro-chipped and he was able to identify who the dog owner was. The dog wanted to jump into the van so it was no problem for him. He identified the dog as a frequent roamer and would have a talk with the owner to ensure the safety of all involved.
Wow! just another Sunday stroll, with a dog, and look what it brings (a lot of smiles)...
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