All the Dogs

​I’ve decided to write this blog post about a favorite subject of mine: dogs.

Greek Dogs
Let me take a moment to talk about the dogs in Greece: they are so well behaved! 

When taking a stroll down to the boardwalk, many of the dogs aren’t on leashes. They simply follow their owners and listen to commands. Imagine! Dogs that actually listen to their owners!!! The dogs here also don’t attack each other or the many stray dogs that roam around. 

Recently, I saw a dog waiting outside of a boutique. He was peering into the open door of the store, but didn’t enter the shop to follow his owner. It wasn’t even tied up! His leash was hanging from his neck as he patiently waited for his mom or dad to come back to him!

When we were on Crete, I saw a stray dog do something similar. This dog came up to the open door of the restaurant and peered inside. He didn’t come inside, even when he saw the waitress carrying a bucket of food. Instead, he waited patiently until the woman had placed a paper placemat on the ground and deposited leftover food onto it before digging in. A stray!!

A Sad Reality
Speaking of stray dogs, a group of my friends and I have started naming the stray dogs of Thessaloniki. There are a tragically large number of strays in Greece. For the most part they seem friendly.
 
Personally, I have refrained from petting any of the dogs because I promised the travel nurse at Iowa State that I wouldn’t after refusing to get a rabies vaccine before leaving for Europe. (That woman told some very convincing horror stories!)  
 
The dogs are cute and seem happy enough, but I often times wish that I could take them all home with me. 

My Dog
​Perhaps the reason that I’m so shocked by the dogs here is because the little guy I left at home is nicknamed ‘Wretched’ for a number of reasons. He runs away if the gate is open, chew up shoes, eats things he’s not supposed to, and never listens to a single thing out of any of the family’s mouths.

My dog’s real name is Finnegan. He’s adorable and loves to cuddle and lick your face – when he wants to – and he sleeps with a teddy bear at night. His other nickname is ‘Precious,’ it’s mostly (only) used when referring to when he’s asleep.  
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Yeah, I know. It’s actually our fault that he’s a terror. ‘Bad pet owners’ not ‘bad dogs’ blah blah, but who can resist this face?

​It’s only been a month, but I'll admit, I miss the little guy. 

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Coming up Next Week: I'm headed to Istanbul with a few friends!

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I do not own the meme above