Dogs That Jump Up; Putting It In Perspective
Among dogs, jumping up and sniffing butts are social greetings. In light of that fact, I’m forever grateful that human social etiquette entails a simple handshake. I did meet one person to whom this rule did not seem to apply. And, it all happened on live TV!
I was doing a promotional television interview on a local morning news show. The reporter was an unreserved, exceedingly animated fellow, the human equivalent of a 5-month-old Labrador puppy on a caffeine overdose. We were doing several live feeds over a 3-hour period. Before each feed, we’d talk briefly about the question that would be asked and I’d plan my expert answer. I was quite proud, maybe even a bit cocky, feeling that I’d presented myself like a leading authority on dog behavior. I hadn’t done much live TV and had nightmares the previous night about making some terrible gaffe, looking like a colossal idiot.
The reporter, whose name was Dan, inquired about training dogs not to jump up on people. Then the cameraman counted down in preparation to go live for our last feed. 5-4-3-2-1, and he points as he rolls the camera. Dan began his talk with a hypothetical situation about dogs that jump up. He asserted how annoying and embarrassing an out-of-control dog can be.
He said, “It would be like if I saw you on the street and…” Then, as I looked into his eyes, just like looking into a young pup’s eyes, I could see what was about to happen. In horror, I thought, “Oh no, he’s not really going to…” Then on live TV, in front of God and my mother, this man lunged toward me and proceeded to drape himself over me!
When the camera cut, I collected myself and said to him, “You don’t know how close you came to getting my knee in your chest (or a lower area of the anatomy)! I’d never do that to a dog, but I’m not that forgiving with humans!”
Given the choice, I’d rather be jumped on by a sixty-four puppies with muddy paws than one overzealous TV reporter. And thanks to Dan, for not making me look like a colossal idiot!