In my job, I see hundreds of dogs every day and thousands of dogs every month. Each is special. Each is unique. And each is very important to someone out there. Every so often I try to reflect on dogs I've met at work that have changed my life and I hope I made a good impression on theirs. This is Midas. And Midas definitely falls into that category of life changers for me. Midas is an 11 year old Rottador with a foot deformity and a bite history. He was the first "managers only" dog I was taught to work with before my promotion. After years of study and hands on work, it is my belief that dogs are never "bad". A dog will always do what it thinks is best and how we receive that behavior is up to us. Midas acts the way he does because somewhere someone has given him a reason not to trust, a reason to be afraid. Midas taught me that often a dog will show aggression out of fear, out of the inability to communicate their fear, and the inability to understand they have nothing to fear in a given situation. This way of thinking was such a game changer for me. The moment I leaned down and let him sniff me and make the decision for himself that I was safe, was the moment I knew I would never take a dog's trust in me for granted. Thanks for believing in me, buddy, like I will always believe in you.
