Mulli of the MidWest

Mulligan and Pennie's courtesy dog walking guide

Yes, I know, it seems truly against my nature to offer tips on courtesy. However, today, the defenses of the Mulligan Compound were breached! Pennie was right on it! Yes, that is against my nature as well, to compliment Pennie. Too much Cloud-Living, I suppose.

This nutty lady, who has walked by before displaying her general nuttiness, walked her Pug and her Golden Retriever right up into the 0.6 acres of the Mulligan Compound Suburban Front Yard! She completely bypassed the Six Foot "Courtesy Zone" and was practically to the front porch! At the same time, the Cable Man stopped by, and Pennie went out to Greet Him and Inform Him of Our Cable Problems. Mr. Cable Man was Courteous. He had his duly assigned photograph ID badge hanging about his neck, rang the bell politely, and gave a polite "Hello" greeting.

Pennie saw the agregious rudeness of this Nutty Lady and proceeded to inform Nutty Lady, by way of raised hair line, that she had best proceed OUT of the Mulligan Compound, and return to the Six Foot "Courtesy Zone." This Nutty Lad paid not attention!

Dad was most upset and proclaimed that if "something happened" he was not going to give this Nutty Lady any room for complaint for as a Grown Adult, she should Know Better than to bring her dogs so far into a yard. Then to just stand there and smirk when Pennie was clearly upset was Unforgiveable!

Mulligan and Pennie's Courtesy Dog Walking Guide

1. Six Foot Dog Leash: Keep your human on a six foot leash, no longer. This keeps your human on the sidewalk, or on the street, and allows the dog to investigate into the "Courtesy Zone." The "Courtesy Zone" is considered to be Six Feet plus the length of the human's pulled arm. The longer the Dog can pull, the longer the length of the "Courtesy Zone." By no means can this extend to the Front Porch of the house.

2. Some minor "Incursions" into the "Courtesy Zone" for a particularly good odor, are OK, but must be countered with a look of Embarrasment by the Human, followed by immediate return into the "Courtesy Zone." It is helpful if it makes the Human trip a little.

3. A dog and it's human are definitely out of the "Courtesy Zone" if:
a. The dog knows what the family is having for dinner, and is in fact eating the cast off vegetables given to it by one of the youngest family members.
b. The Human watches what the family is watching on TV, while the dog sniffs the yard.

4. If you want to snoop, then walk your human at 11:00 pm or later at night! Then you can sniff well inside the "courtesy zone" and your human can sniff out all the info they want about closet cleaning habits, wall-paper patterns, TV viewing, and other such things humans like to know about their neighbors.