[zimmer]

I took the dogs (Zimmer, and his little sister Loki) out today for a walk around the neighborhood about 4 as I know not many people/other dogs are about. I was trekking on down the sidewalk, when out of the corner of my eye I see a yellow blur come shooting out of a yard, a blur which happened to be another dog. I didn't really think anything of it at first other than, "oh, I hope they realize their dog is out of the yard" before I realized the dog was now bounding toward the dogs and I. I stopped, took tight hold of both leashes and proceeded to walk the other way. When I looked back, the dog had stopped in the middle of street and was looking back at a guy who had just turned around the corner, talking on the phone all the while. He was whistling at the dog, but did the dog return to him? No.

I turned back around, kept on walking, and before I knew it, I saw the yellow dog come up behind Loki, which earned a yelp of surprise from her, followed by a small, puppy growl. Within a second, the yellow dog tried to mount Loki, which caused Zimmer to tense up and before I knew it, they were fighting (him and the yellow dog). The dog's owner finally ran over (still on the phone, mind you) and pulled his dog away, slapping it in the face repeatedly and yelling, "you idiot! You stupid dog!" as the dog continued to lunge for Zimmer. I pulled my dogs away quickly, and once I was a safe distance away, I checked Zim for injuries and reassured both of them that they were okay, it was all fine, everyone was going to be okay, etc.

Zimmer is fine, albeit following Loki around like her shadow. Loki is alright, too, although she keeps tensing whenever I run my hands over her hips to scratch her in, what once was, her favorite spot.

I'm just at my wits end with these dog owners... I've run into so many of them in this neighborhood, and while I know they're everywhere, it's disheartening that I can't safely walk my dogs down the sidewalk without having to look over my shoulder 24/7. Also, I feel terrible for that yellow dog - clearly his owner doesn't have the time to train him (or put a leash on him, for that matter), which I'm sure was a factor in his behavior.