My fiancé and I enjoy going out on walks around the neighborhood, and we've since started bringing the dog along. A few weeks ago, we got our miniature pinscher Ozzie a new leash. It's one of those retractable, fancy types that allows the dog to sort of roam off at his own pace, but it can also be shortened to the point that the little guy has to stand at our heals for safety. We are quite impressed with the ease of it, and best of all, Ozzie really loves it! He's never felt so free on a leash before. He can run as fast as he wants, well, for about 15 feet at a time, and venture out into bushes to mark his territory more frequently. What more can a little dog ask for, right?
The elementary school by our place recently put in a new baseball field, track and large grassy area, which has since become a local hangout for nearby dogs and their owners. We have started taking Ozzie over there more often to give him a chance to run amuck and to try and make new friends. The leg stretching part always works out great, however Ozzie has proven to be quite the snob when it comes to canine interaction. He allows the other dogs to conduct their initial sniff of him and he will occasionally sniff back, but when it comes down to it he has very little interest in them. What's more strange is that he's more geared toward making friends with the humans that he meets. He won't give chase to the dogs when they zip by trying to entice him to play, but if the owners call out for him, he's all over that.
I'm not quite sure what to make of Ozzie's dog park behavior. Either he really is just a snob and prefers not to associate himself with poorly groomed dogs (can't blame him for that, really), or he's a flat out breedist - what I've coined as the dog world's version of a racist. The latter, regrettably, might actually be the case based on how he acts at the park. On the rare occasion that he gets to visit with Auntie Coco, also a min pin, he's perfectly happy to chase and play with her all day. But, put him in a room with another breed and you'll quickly sense that he is unsure about the situation. Perhaps he just needs time to get used to other dogs; he may have a soft spot for pooches in there somewhere. Who knows?
Whatever the real case may be, Ozzie still needs to get out and go to the park once in a while. Maybe one day he'll give in and let us worry about whether or not he has found suitable playmates there. If not, we'll just have to accept that Ozzie is special and lives only for human companionship...
