A Day In The Life . . .
This story, about a scruffy little stray, is a wonderful testament to how dogs can enrich our personal and professional lives.
Judge
I manage a small community in an older part of the city. It’s not the best part of town but having lived onsite for nearly fifteen years, it’s home.
One drizzly morning, I came across a small dog hovering next to one of the cars parked near my office. The trembling creature was frightened and soaking wet. Upon further inspection, I noticed his back leg was badly bleeding.
I wrapped the animal up and took him to a nearby vet. Fortunately, the dog’s injury wasn’t too serious and before I knew it, I was heading back to my office with the scruffy creature in tow.
Over the next few days, as he healed, I started calling him Little Dog. He hadn’t been wearing a collar when I’d found him and the vet had told me he wasn’t micro-chipped. I’d posted Lost Dog signs throughout the community but no one came to get him. It appeared Little Dog was destined to be my dog.
As weeks passed, Little Dog and I formed a close bond and my residents also loved him. The friendly mutt would sleep in his bed near my desk and follow me dutifully around the property every time I went out.
Then Danger Arrived
About a month after finding Little Dog, two rough-looking men walked into my office and sank themselves into the guest chairs across from me. Very rudely, they demanded I show them a two-bedroom apartment. I got the impression they were high on something because their behavior seemed very agitated and aggressive.
When I told them we had no vacancies, one of the guys said in a threatening tone, “Oh, I bet you can find us a vacancy. Maybe you should look again.”
Sensing my distress, Little Dog began growling softly. Trying to keep the tension in the room from escalating, I stood and gently ordered him to calm down.
Suddenly, instead of quieting, Little Dog began barking furiously and baring his teeth at the men. I have to admit, for a small creature, he was looked quite menacing!
Over the dog’s racket, I explained to the men that the property was very small and we were one hundred percent occupied. Mercifully, they accepted this and stood to leave, but not before one of them slammed his hand down hard on my desk and made a derogatory comment.
As soon as they were out the door, I locked it and slumped back down in my chair. Before I knew it, Little Dog was in my lap, licking my face as if to let me know we were safe.
A Great Judge of Character
Later that day, our onsite police officer popped into my office. I shared the earlier encounter with him and how it had shaken me up.
The officer frowned as I described the men and told me that it matched the description of some criminals who’d been robbing nearby convenience stores. In one instance a clerk had been shot and was seriously wounded. “Sounds like you had angels watching over you today,” the policeman remarked. “Guys like that can be unpredictable.”
“It wasn’t angels,” I assured him, pointing to Little Dog who was asleep in his bed. “It was due to this one being such an excellent judge of character.”
It was at that moment Little Dog received a new name. We were inseparable for nearly twelve years until he went to Doggy Heaven. My true and faithful friend, “Judge” would always let me know whenever he didn’t care for someone. His remarkable intuition was never wrong!
From the book “I Have a Complex, But I’m Managing It!”, stories from property managers compiled by Monica E. Simmons.
Monica E. Simmons, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for JDC Enterprises, LLC, has worked in the multi-family industry in several different capacities since 1987. She is a published author whose books include; I Have A Complex, But I’m Managing It!, It Happened in The Hill Country, 30-Love and it’s sequel, Match Point.
Contact her at: Monica@TheVendorGuide.com
