By Linda Elissalde
“In a perfect world, all dogs would have a home, and all homes would have a dog.”
It isn’t a perfect world and probably never has been perfect. However, there are moments of perfection. Our beach has been beautiful during these winter months. The beach is swept clean. Tide is way out. Sandbars create new walking spaces, and the Gulf glitters in the sunshine. Mornings are pretty nearly perfect as long as you bundle up a bit.
One of the pleasures of early morning strolling on pristine sand is seeing numbers of dogs taking their human friends out for a walk. They are a most diversified group of canines. Some are pure breeds; Others are cross breeds, and some are, “What kind of dog is that?” breeds. It makes no difference. These animals love the person with them, and that person is proud of their pup. The majority of people follow our leash ordinance. However, pets don’t necessarily follow all rules. Dogs do not mask, observe social distancing, nor wash their paws frequently. That is unless they choose to wash them in salt water.
Dog behavior is varied. A few quietly trot beside their owners. There are others who try to chase cars and carts or tangle up the feet of passing runners. Most select visiting with fellow four-footed friends who speak Woof. Many a human has been dragged across the sand because Fido wishes to talk with Rover. (I have never know any pet named Fido or Rover.) Our pooch Emma wants to bark with everyone. Even though she is only 55 pounds, she pulls like a husky in the Iditarod.
Little dogs behave as if they were Great Danes. Our dog acts as if she were the size of a Dachshund. It does not matter. All speak Dog. One of our “Wave Hello” friends on the beach is Dave with his tiny puppy. Dave follows the principle that every dog should have a home, and Landon is the smallest he has adopted. That small creature fears nothing. We whisper to Dave that we let Emma run around in circles if no one is around. Dave might let Landon have moments of freedom too. Of course, that is only when the coast is clear.
A winter morning walk on Crystal Beach is a joy for dogs. How can you tell? Just look at those big smiles and wagging tails! For those moments their world is a perfect world.
[January-18-2021]
Posted in 
I love this! And, of course, we love Emma.
This is a lovely article, thanks for sharing. Makes me think of the Netflix docu-series “Dogs”. It’s so good. A must-see for dog lovers. Have tissue nearby though!