The Dog Days of Summer Does NOT Mean It Is Hot Outside!!Week 1 of half-marathon training is in the books!If you think your three dogs will not jump a canal and run into the busy street to chase a walker, you are wrong. If you think your little dog can be unconfined in your yard and charge toward me and my dog without consequence, again, you are wrong. :( I had an eventful, trying week of walking training.
Tom and I will be participating in the Run the Cape half-marathon at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on November 11. I will be walking it, no running for this girl. This past week marked 12-weeks out and the official first week of training. Because I have chronic knee issues, I started a couple weeks ago so I could spend extra time in training. Last Saturday was 4 miles and yesterday (Saturday) was 6 miles. Hopefully the weeks ahead will be much more uneventful than this past week. Dog Day #1: A week ago Saturday, as I was 3/4 of the way through my 4 mile walk, three very energetic and angry sounding dogs raced through their unfenced yard toward me. Two of them jumped the deep canal ditch and proceeded to bark, growl, and taunt me down Pine Street, a busy two-lane road. All the while this was happening, their owner was yelling at them to come back and attempting to yell to me that they wouldn’t hurt me. I am quite certain she did not believe her own words as the dogs continued to advance toward me unless I was frantically waving my stick and yelling at them while quickly walking backward down the street. Heart rate monitor reading post dog incident…165 bpm - that’s adrenaline! The dog days continued on Wednesday morning while Lulu (our Pit/Lab mix) and I were out for our regularly scheduled walk in the neighborhood. A bit of background on Lulu - she was a rescue and came with a mostly unknown past. What is certain, is that she does not tolerate other dogs that are unrestrained. We can walk past houses where dogs bark at us and run within their fenced yard and Lulu is unfazed. However, a dog unrestrained is bad news. I saw the little pipsqueak dog from a half a block away running freely under its owner’s heels as they dropped of the trash can. At that point Lulu and I stopped and waited. The owner and dog then returned to their property, so Lulu and I advanced cautiously. We were about 20 feet from their driveway, and I could see through the trees that the dog was still running around the driveway, so again we waited. Then finally I saw the little dog within a chain-link fenced yard. I was relieved so we could continue our trek. As we passed by the house, the little dog ran to the fence within the yard and began barking wildly at us, the owner looked over from the corner he was standing in, and Lulu and I continued on. In what seemed like a split second, that little 5 pound yapper tore out of the yard right toward Lulu. Now, my dog is 63 pounds, seems like ALL muscle, and then match that with the adrenaline of being charged at by a fur ball with gnarly teeth and you have a recipe for disaster. The next thing I know I am face-planted on the dirt road, hear the dreaded sound of dogs fighting, and felt my leash arm being pulled as the leash started to unravel from my grip. The leash had been very short for control and was wrapped around my hand multiple times. As I felt it beginning to give way, I gripped it even harder. I knew I could not let her get away to reach that dog. (In that moment, I was thankful for the grip strength training I had accomplished in the gym) In the next seconds, I realized Lulu was no longer pulling or aggressively pursuing that dog but she was standing still and looking at me. As I rolled to begin to get upright, my eyes met the little pipsqueak dog’s teeth and it barking and growling at me. Again, my trusty stick would keep it at bay but by this time I was majorly ticked off! The owner could be heard calling the dog but made no physical effort to come and retrieve the nuisance. I really do not even think he was aware I had been on the ground. That demon dog stalked us for a half a block, all the while growling and barking like it was Cujo. We continue walking, me going backwards to avoid being bitten from behind, while the owner could be heard calling for it to return home. Do people really think their crazed hounds are going to be obedient at these times? Poor Lulu walked the rest of the way home as if she was in trouble. I think it shocked her a bit seeing me on the ground, and she wasn’t quite sure what would happen. The consequence of other people’s irresponsibility for me was a bruised and skinned up knee and hip and a very sore back and neck. Lulu and I decided to take the next day off from training to nurse our emotional state and my bruises. We were able to get back in the saddle on Friday and met with no resistance from unrestrained dogs. Thankfulness! I can’t help but be filled with gratitude for the ability I have to wake up each day and be physically active. It is important in so many ways to use and strengthen our bodies, taking care of ourselves each day. I know these dog encounters could have been a whole lot worse, but thankful for only what they were. Yesterday’s “long walk” was 6 miles and I decided to hit River Rd for the jaunt. What a beautiful and uneventful walk. Back on track next week as we get a step closer to being able to “Run the Cape”!
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