Conclusion?

The Washtenaw County Animal Control officer contacted me yesterday with an update.  The officer visited the dog’s home, and it indeed has a broken leg.  The dog is licensed and is up-to-date with his shots; seems the only thing the dog was missing was a leash.  She informed me that she had told the owners that a leash was law, so they’d better start obeying.  She also told them that they knew she had someone as a lookout for the situation.  Enter yours truly.

So, when I ran by today, there was no evidence of a dog, but I suspect that has something to do with a broken leg.  I won’t lie, though – I was a bit nervous as a I passed by the house.  No one is ever thrilled to have their activity, be it illegal or not, reported.  I half-expected the woman of the house to launch herself out the door and start a rant about how dare I report her and her poor injured dog, it was my fault anyway what with the running and the jogging and the working out in front of her unleashed, ferocious, but beautiful pet.  Nothing happened, of course, though I do suspect there will be a day in which I’ll pass by and the family will be out and about – they might not talk to me, but some mutters and dirty looks are entirely possible.  Of course, they probably have no idea who really did the reporting, but they have one of two guesses.  An educated guess would tell them that the runner who was already fed up with their dog constantly charging her did the reporting.

I’m not saying they will get verbally abusive, but if they do, I can do nothing but shrug my shoulders and tell them that the law clearly states its terms.  If I see the dog unleashed and it approaches me–a broken leg might not convince the mutt to stay put–I will make another report.  My personal plans don’t have me being in the area for much longer, but part of my reasoning in making the report was for the safety of the jogger or walker or bike rider who might get hit by a car because the car swerves to avoid the charging dog.  So while I’m here, I’ll watch the house.

Has the dog/running drama ended?  Veamos, dijo un ciego.