Prince and the Construction Crew

Last summer, the city in which we live decided that some of the pipes under the sidewalk needed to be refitted (or replaced).  They subsequently sent out a crew of workers to dig them up and refit them...and the majority of the time, they worked in extremely close proximity to our house.

Prince and his big boy stick (branch?)

Being the friendly fellow that he is, Prince was delighted with all of the new company, and would bounce over to greet them each time they happened to pass by.  Not surprisingly, the crew was a lot less happy to see him.  Each time they walked by, they would cast rapid, uneasy glances in his direction, and then look at us as if seeking reassurance.  The foreman, especially, seemed acutely aware of the danger.

"He doesn't realize he could just step over that fence, does he?" he asked one day, as he passed by with a member of his crew.

"He's actually very friendly," I said...and received the usual highly skeptical look.

Then came the balmy summer afternoon when I took Prince on a walk through the park...and emerged from it to find 20 of the crew members directly in the path that we had to take home. Trying not to alarm them, I approached as slowly as possible...until one of them saw us coming and shouted a warning.

A special smile

"He's really very friendly," I said to the foreman, who gave me another disbelieving look before he slowly and gingerly offered his hand to Prince.  When Prince sniffed and then licked it, he stared at him in astonishment.

"He really is friendly," he said, in wonder.  He then directed us immediately toward the crew, several members of which were on their hands and knees on the sidewalk.

"Bite them right there," he told Prince, pointing at their backsides.  All of them immediately sat down.

"He's really very friendly," I repeated, but none of the rest of them seemed to believe me.  After passing through their midst, Prince and I reached the final obstacle...a man with a large truck parked directly on the sidewalk, who flung himself back in fear as we reached him.

"He's very friendly," I said again.

He, too, put out his hand...and then slowly smiled as Prince licked it.  "He's sure isn't like most German Shepherds I've met," he told me.

"Well, no," I admitted.  Because, of course, Prince isn't.

But sometimes that really is a good thing!