A Stubborn Dog

Drake is a loving dog. Drake is a social dog. Drake is an entertaining dog. And…Drake is a stubborn dog. No, make that a very stubborn dog. Whew!

Our old dog Oz used to get fixed on specific smells. She'd find something that really appealed to her and she'd lock her legs to keep inhaling it. Drake will do that sometimes, but he'll also lock his legs when he's not interested in walking farther. When he wants to turn left rather than right. And sometimes—and this is hardest to deal with—for no apparent reason at all.

We'll be walking along the street, even crossing it, and suddenly he'll put on the brakes. We're there on the yellow line, right square in the middle of the road, and he's decided he wants to stop. He doesn't smell anything (at least, he doesn't bend down to smell anything on the road, and I can't see his nostrils working in the air). He doesn't seem tired. He just locks his legs.

And I'm left with the choice of dragging him across the street, to get him out of traffic, or trying to coax him before the next car comes.

It's not fun.
Greg