Dogs and the City.

Yesterday, Will and I took the dogs downtown for their daily outing. We hopped on the No. 2 (dogs are allowed on Metro buses as long as they pay full fare) and got off at Third and Bell to stop at Regrade Park, one of our favorite off-leash areas. We let the Weims run around a bit and then walked them a few blocks to Westlake Center. They’re in a class right now preparing to test for their Canine Good Citizen certification, so the more exposure they get to crowds, handicapped people, homeless freaks, loud noises, etc., the better prepared they’ll be.

That went well; we were stopped a lot so both boys got lots of practice letting people pet them, walking on a loose leash, etc. So, we decided to head back home. We started walking toward the bus stop at Third and Virginia, right near Macy’s. There was a large flock of pigeons scattered across the sidewalk as we got to the corner. Oslo immediately took interest and starting pointing the birds. He then lunged a little to the right, flushing the group of pigeons on that side. I pulled him back, telling him “easy!”. He came back to my side but then immediately lunged to the left, jumping up and pulling me right along with him, almost into the street. As I pulled him back again, these guys behind me started laughing and cheering. I looked down at Oslo and saw what they were reacting to: he had caught a pigeon in mid-air! My German bird dog, pointing, flushing, and hunting right there in downtown Seattle! It was pretty amazing, Oslo’s first bird, urban as it was.

Anyway, Will took him gently by the muzzle and made him release the pigeon, who seemed relatively unharmed as he flew away, except for a pronounced crumpling of his tail feathers. Poor bird!