ANYONE WHO SPENDS TIME with a dog comes to learn its wonderful personality “oddities.” It is quite probable that this experience works both ways.
Although Watson was bigger than any other pet in our house by a factor of four, he consistently exercised caution, if not full-blown doubt, about things he had no experience with, especially if it involved unusual noises. And sometimes, even experience didn’t count.
Our family is made up of well-rounded pet aficionados. We have fish, too, you see. Awhile back, our two goldfish outgrew their 5gallon tank, which was housed in my daughter’s bedroom. So we decided to upscale to a 16-gallon tank, which sat at Watson’s eye level. Given enough time, certain fish—like goldfish—will grow into their surroundings. Ours grew to about 8 inches long. Each. Watson saw them every day, but invariably he’d act as if they were aliens transported off of the starship USS Enterprise.
Every morning, Watson would trot into his youngest person’s bedroom to greet her. Once in the room, he’d scan for anything that might warrant concern on his part. Each time, he’d walk over to the face of the tank and peer in. Each time, the fish would swim to the front to greet Watson. And he’d always back away. For us, it was like watching the same short video every morning.
See the headline? “Nemo Takes On Watson and Wins!” Yet, every day, Watson would face down his Nemo.
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