It must be 3 o’clock. The low growl emanates from the bottom of her throat, eyes locked on something at her usual post. As soon as his feet hit our property, the deep resonating bark echoes through the house as the hackles rise on her back. The standoff lasts maybe 30 seconds to a minute before he quickly cuts across the grass, exiting behind the tall bushes out of her eyesight. She continues to wait for another minute to see if he dares to rechallenge her, but alas, he is gone for the day. Door visitors don’t tend to stay for very long.
Some days she is caught off guard. The pitter-patter of her feet bolt to the front door, and the wag of her tail is fierce. Is she happy or ready to fight? Is it the uniform? Perhaps it is a game. Or maybe a threat...the same person arrives every day, doesn’t say a word, touches our home, and then leaves. The audacity! Some days she catches him across the street, and she waits with her anticipating low growls. Warning him that she knows he’s coming this way.
The mailmen always know the dogs on their route. In fact, he knows the dog better than he knows us. One day we approached the mailman to give him some information on the residents in the home. When we pointed out the house, he replied, “Oh, the one with the shepherd?” If the door is open, he won’t even approach the house without making sure she is secured. I don’t blame him for ensuring a safe scene. During one of our afternoon walks, we came across the mailman. Typically Athena ignores people during the walk, but her eyes locked on. I corrected her behavior and continued to walk. Sneakily Athena glanced back one last time as if to say... “See you at 3 O’clock!”
See you on the bark side Mr. Mailman,
The Pawsitive Writer 🐾
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