A Dog's Life

This was in a restaurant in Paraty. This dog followed us on our hike too.
These pups are at a restaurant on the beach in Gauruja after it closed for the day. I think they had the lunch scraps.

On any given day, I can look out my window and see a dog (or 20). Some are being walked on a leash by the "maid", some are in a large dog bouquet being walked by a service, and some are actually being exercised by their owners. And then there are many that are just wandering around freely, sniffing and marking as they go. They're loose, they're stray, and they're everywhere. The Dog Catcher would be working overtime for sure.

Strangely enough, these dogs don't seem to bother anyone. They don't bother me. My petless kids think it's great that there are random dogs to play with. They hang out at the beach, at outdoor restaurants, and neighborhood parks. People pet them, feed them, and generally just let them be. I've never witnessed anyone kick at them, poke them or treat them unkindly in any way. In fact, many people feed them from their plates. Could this explain their non-agressive nature and general acceptance on the street? When in Buenos Aires, we even saw a homeless man, sitting on the curb, while three dogs slept on his mattress with their food bowls all lined up in a row. I guarantee those dogs got a meal before he did.

Do I think it's right for dogs to inhabit the landscape like squirrels and birds? No, but I think that human beings are responsible for the problem in the first place and that treating these living creatures with kindness has at least kept a pack of vicious dogs from running the streets. These dogs seem happy and content. And none of them are tied to a tree barking their heads off. Until I see differently, I'm happy and content to let them live a dog's life, sleeping, running, and looking for that next bone.