I had an interesting conversation with a coworker yesterday. We were at Gateway Transit Center, a super busy crossroads of humanity, light rail, and buses. On the other end of the platform there were some transit police with a working dog. My coworker saw the high energy of the dog and immediately commented that it was ill behaved for a dog in public. I then tried to explain that a police dog is not a service dog and should not be held to the same standard. It was interesting because I find that he, like so many other people, is ignorant of the many roles that can be filled by dogs and the range of behavior that is acceptable depending on their role.

Most people are used to dogs as pets. Good dogs should walk nicely on a leash in public, come when called, drop things when told, not bite anyone, and not soil the carpets. There are some people’s pets that fail on one or all of the above, but these are universally recognized traits of good dogs. Pets are usually treated as member of the family, if not a favorite child. It makes sense because they tend to operate on the level of a 3-5 year old for life. They just need structure and rules and play and love to be happy like the eternal optimists they are.

Then there are working dogs. Everyone can recognize a Seeing Eye Dog when they see one. More and more people are using dogs to provide services for them. The legitimate ones are highly trained to perform behaviors that are not naturally occurring, whether it is leading a handler through hazards or calming a panic attack. Police dogs can either sniff out illegal items or give an officer a longer reach when dealing with more dangerous people. Livestock Guardian dogs bond with their livestock more than their people. Hunting dogs tap into their natural instincts to provide a method of eliminating vermin without putting poison into the food chain. Each category of working dog has a different ideal temperament and many of them would not make ideal pets. Herding breeds, for example, are well known for nipping at heels, even of their family. That violates a huge rule for proper pet behavior. Don’t bite! Some dogs are just not happy unless they are given a job and if they don’t have one they might make one up.

My dogs are mostly pets. Probably 95% of the time they just laze around the house or wrestle or run crazy out in the yard. There are four of them, and they each have distinct personalities. Three of them are almost 12 years old while the other is 4. Two of them would like to work. The other two would learn if I had the time to teach them.

Freddy is kind of the old man of the pack. He came to us as an Australian Shepherd mix, but he looks like a Golden Retriever dipped in chocolate. We call him the stoner dog because he’s so chill. He lounges around almost everywhere he goes. Children can climb all over him with no fear. I thought about training him as a therapy dog when he was young because of his great personality. Now he patrols the property. If he turns into a fur missile the boys usually follow with the .22 because he might be after a coyote. He would probably be a great Guardian dog if not for his age.

Bruno is our German Shepherd mix. He’s a bit of a special case since he obsesses over his toys. I’ve used him to herd goats a couple of times, though he had no idea that’s what he was doing. I just threw the ball to the area I wanted the goats to leave and they avoided his intensity. What really gets him excited is rats. He would make a great ratter if he could calm down enough to focus.

Angel was my brother’s dog. She came to us when he got divorced and moved into an apartment. She’s a herding dog through and through. She runs the others in circles, nipping and barking. I haven’t allowed her in with the goats though, because she doesn’t listen to directions and has the attention span of a gnat. We call her the frou-frou anime girl because she flounces everywhere.

And then there is Clay. He’s the youngster of the pack. He has decided that his place is at my side forever. He actively tries to block the others from sharing my attention and guards me from all threats, even if it might be just a bird flying overhead. He also believes he is a ratter. I have many stories about all my dogs, but Clay tends to top them all. To my knowledge he has only ever killed one small rat, but is determined to kill more. My entire yard is filled with trenches from his rodent hunts. I need to figure out how to smooth it out again. But it’s hard to be mad at him or any of the dogs. Their lives are so short and full of enthusiasm. They bring joy even if that enthusiasm cannot be fully directed towards useful endeavors.

I’m sure I’ll write a lot about my dogs in the days to come. They are a big part of my life and I have many opinions about them. But this is a good enough start. I might ramble on to much, but that’s okay if nobody’s reading. I’ll get it out of my system and by the time anybody pays attention I’ll be better at keeping it simple. Maybe. After all, I’ll still be me.