Socialization Rant

So, I've always been very pleased with Buddy's people skills. He listens to what I tell him, he'll sit, and he'll accept petting from strangers. He always ducks his head a little bit, but I don't blame him. Most of the people he meets have worse socialization skills than he does. All in all it's wonderful.

I'm not here to complain about him, which you may or may not have guessed. I'm here to complain about the people. Why do people see someone walking their dog and assume it's completely okay to come up do whatever you want? People grabbing at him, pushing him around. It's like they think because he's a medium sized dog who they all seem to think is a golden retriever (???) they can do absolutely anything.

It's starting to take a toll on his confidence. He's becoming more skittish around strange people, and I'm certainly becoming more of a "cold bitch" according to the people I tell to keep their grubby hands off my dog. I really don't care what they think, though. I just want them to stop terrorizing my dog!

I'm seriously considering getting one of those "Do Not Pet" leashes and collars for him. As much as I enjoy healthy socialization between him and strangers for the help it provides, I'm getting so pissed off about people who act like they've never seen a dog before in their lives.

Alright, end rant. Well, except for one last point.

Seriously??

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