I found Scott Sanders’ passport on 15th Ave today near Spring street. Know him? Spoglia at gmail dot com.

I have a beautiful 6mo old puppy I take with me whenever I can. She’s got long legs and needs a lot of exercise, so we walk a lot on my days off. I would love to run errands with her, but I know that she can be pretty excitable. She may decide to jump up on someone. She may try to steal some kid’s stuffed animal. So I don’t. I only run errands with her when I am with another person who is willing to stay outside and keep my pup from doing things she shouldn’t. I work hard at being a responsible dog-owner. My dog is well-socialized and loves both people and dogs. If a dog indicates in any way that it does not appreciate her presence (by snarling at her or barking or growling), she runs. She’s really good at taking the hint.

We were just walking by Healeo and there was a light red Siberian Husky (I think) tied up outside. As we passed, my dog and this dog touched noses and sniffed each other a tiny bit, then this dog lunged at my pup and bit her shoulder. (it wasn’t a play bite) My dog yelped and leaped back. No blood was drawn. No injury sustained. But that dog gave no warning growl, snarl, or bark, it went straight for biting. This is the kind of behavior you should be aware of from your dog. If you do know you dog will do this, it is your responsibility to protect passersby and their pets from that behavior. You could sit outside on the beautiful, sunny day so that you can keep a closer eye on your dog. You could tie your dog closer to the bike rack so that it has room to sit, stand, and lie down, but not lunge and bite.

If your dog, which is tied up outside a business while you are inside, bites my dog as we walk by, the *very least* you could do is apologize. Asking me how I know who was bitten and who did the biting is ridiculous. Telling me I need to calm down may be true (in this case was true), but it is not helpful. You are responsible for your dog’s behavior. If your dog bit my dog, the steps you have taken to control it are insufficient. Try harder.