Oct
22
“I like your dog.”
“Awwww…”
“Cute dog!”
“WEINER DOG!!!”
Taking a tiny adorable dachshund for a walk in public is a real experience, let me tell you. There is, as I can personally attest to, a certain percentage of people who are strongly affected by the presence of a certain type of dog. I myself become a simpering mess when I come across corgis, basset hounds, weens, Frenchies, Yorkies, chunky/elderly Labs, and frankly any dog that I find to be irresistible, so I get it. It is a feeling that cannot be helped! There is often an overwhelming desire to announce the breed out loud — “Corgi!!” — as though verbal identification awards extra Dog Appreciation Points.
On average, it’s very difficult to walk Mabel without receiving a LOT of attention from passersby, either for her cuteness or for the simple reason that she is as visually quirky/amusing as a balloon animal at the end of the leash as she scurries along.
Many people smile, some will say things, and every now and then someone is just overcome and asks to pet her. My favorite recent interaction happened on a bridge on the river path when I passed a group of extremely stoned Young People and one guy with half-lidded eyes said, “Oh dude, a WEINER DOG!” in a tone that implied his flabbers were indeed deeply gasted. He asked to pet her and we obliged, and he did so before turning to his friends and sharing his approval: “Sick.”
Some people make a noise like “Aww” or “Ohh” and mostly those are the sort of sounds you make when you see something endearing but sometimes they are sympathetic sounds! A bit like aww, look at God’s failed creation. I think it is in reaction to her little legs motoring her along, she does sort of give the impression that an undue amount of effort is needed with the millipede-esque scampering.
All in all, it is nearly impossible to be an invisible person with Mabel. It’s true that the attention is mainly aimed in her direction, but many people do interact with me in a way that reminds me of being a young mom. Especially when they talk to her but seem to expect a response: “Oh my GOSH you’re so cute, just look at you, how old are you?” Or just “Cute dog!” which I hear often and I feel just like I did when people said that about my babies, like “thanks!” is the obvious response and yet it feels as though I am taking credit for someone else’s accomplishment?
I can definitely feel a little challenged by this newfound sense of being an attraction. Middle age gets you used to fading out of the male gaze and often out of view altogether, depending on the demographics you’re in, and being a Ween Owner brings on a brand new spotlight. Just when I’d become accustomed to being nearly invisible, now it’s like LOOK AT ME AND MY STRANGELY-SHAPED ANIMAL COMPANION!! Sometimes I just want to be on a walk and be sealed off from the world like a pillbug, which is how I feel when I’m by myself with headphones, but Mabel’s presence demands openness. It asks me to acknowledge and interact with others, on the spot, without me vetting the situation and determining whether or not I want to.
That can be hard! But it can also be kind of lovely. There is something wonderful about bringing delight or at least amusement/interest to people as we walk along. There is something fortifying about small low-stakes interactions with all kinds of strangers, like I don’t know what all we agree or disagree on but at this brief moment in time we are connected, thanks to a pint-sized sausage critter.
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