Well Chris, Bentley and I were almost home from a glorious walk that included several sprinklers (the Lady girl had her walk earlier, so don't feel like she got short-changed) when we saw a small chihuahua barreling towards us from across the road. It was like time slowed down and I had an out-of-body experience.
I just knew that dog was not going to stop when she hit the road, and there were cars and motorcycles. I saw the car coming too fast, and Chris went to run out, holding up his hands for the car to stop, and the car came in between me and the dog and I couldn't see her and I just knew she'd gotten hit and I screamed and covered my face. In retrospect I am very impressed with how Bentley handled himself when he saw me lose control like that. He must've just stood there because I don't even remember him pulling. Either that or the adrenaline that was overhauling my body cancelled out any pressure I was feeling from the leash, kind of like when people lift cars off of people, and I had super-human strength.
I was sure she was hit, but thank God the dog stopped in time, or the car stopped in time, and the motorcycles coming from the other way stopped in time. We effectively had a road block. The guy was calling to his dog and apologizing to all of the drivers and I was just beside myself. I see off leash dogs all the time and I HATE it. I don't care how well trained you think your dog is, or whether it has off leash training or not, there is a LEASH LAW in Mount Pleasant, and you need to abide by it! Yeah, your dog may be friendly, but guess what? Other dogs aren't, so why aren't you worried about the other dogs? And there are cars, and rabbits, and busy roads, and big trucks, and other dogs walking on the other side of the road minding their own business.
So finally the guy got to his dog and picked her up (she'd run from Chris' efforts to catch her) and that's when I really lost it. "PUT YOUR DOG ON A LEASH!" I screamed across at him. I think Chris thought I was going to go postal on the guy, he tried to get me to turn and head the other way, toward the apartment. The idiot looked relieved and ashamed, and I hope to God he learned his lesson. I hope to God. He said something to the effect of, "I didn't know she'd come after you're dog, I'm sorry," and I was like, "Well, now you know! Put her on a leash!!" He turned to walk the other way and I realized I'd really been screaming at him like a derranged lunatic because my heart was pounding, and adrenaline was still rushing through my body. "I'm glad she's okay," I yelled across the street in a more human-sounding voice.
And then I started to crash from the adrenaline. And then I decided to write about it cathartically. So there you go. PUT YOUR DOGS ON LEASHES, YOU MORONS! FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS GOOD IN THE WORLD. I WILL FIND YOU.
