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DRAFT - inspired by a trip to a park after brunch this winter (and another one a few years ago) in Turkey

A Dog's Guide to Strays

One of the things I learned from strays is, humans who will stop for socializing are hard to come by. Even those who come to parks to relax will usually remain alone or with packmates. Collared dogs learn to ignore strays, too; their human often tugs at their leash, preventing them from getting to know dogs without collar. Which is curious as the same human will let others (even strangers) touch the dog, and allow socialization with other collared dogs. A good majority won't even have time to do that; they're just passing. Humans have a schedule to meet, they are very organized.

Stray dogs are very organized, as well.

They will often be scattered among the streets of a block, or across a park, in loose but coordinated packs. I played with a few strays at a park who said they formed a surveillance network, where each dog had a custom code to report different type of "anomaly". When I asked what they called an "anomaly", they told me it was anything that stood out from the walking humans they were used to: humans running, human puppies bothering dogs, humans on two-wheeled vessels, humans on two-wheeled noisy vessels, collared dogs, cats... Crossing that information with each reporting dog's location, they could track any anomaly through their turf. As time passed, they had identified patterns; hours of the day when humans brought food, time of the year when more wheeled vessels arrived, even areas where visitors were friendlier. The old Alpha Bitch, with her diseased body and graying fur full of bugs, was respected as a brilliant tactician. Her frail tail stood proud as she explained her methods and, on our next visit with my humans, her pack's achievements. She took me to a spot where, she told me, her guardians had chased away a shady human stealing others' belongings; they had received more attention and food for a few days afterwards.

[Work In Progress]