Dog meets neighbor: it ends poorly

Well, I've done it. I have a neighbor who truly, vehemently hates my dog and probably me. You see, my yard is directly across from Dufresne's entrance. This means a lot of foot traffic/hoof traffic. I also have almost 2 acres of un-fenced land for my dogs to play on.

Clara is deaf, so playtime for her means she is on a very, very long rope and sort of walks and trots and sniffs stuff. She doesn't really run per se, she doesn't play fetch or want to catch stuff.  She does frolic and its kinda adorable. She'll play tug 'o war with Clancy too.

Now, Clancy is a nutcase. He needs to run. He has pretty good recall, but if he happens to see a dog walking by he will run over and want to play. I call him back and he comes home. Normally, I try to keep him waaaaay on the other side of the yard where he can't see anyone walking around. But, as life has shown us, things don't always work as we'd hoped. This means that Neighbor Lady has unintentionally met Clancy three times in the past year and 3 months. And each time she meets him, she reacts as though he is eating her child's legs off. He could care less about the kid in the stroller... he is in it for her black lab. He runs over like a maniac, riles her dog up, barks and then runs back home. The entire episode lasts about 30 seconds. N.L. screams. She screams, she cusses, and she is scary. She is in such a state that she actually frightens everyone in our house. And I don't scare easy folks: I've been in a bar fight.

Most recently, N.L. was walking by with her husband, pushing her stroller and Black Lab dog was with them. Sure enough Clancy heard them and bolted.  Totally my fault, I had tossed his stick too far to the other side of the yard and he saw them.  He ran, I followed and called him home.  I don't think he was near them for 2 seconds... but sure enough the shrill howl of NL started.

Its the ugliest sound.  It really is.  I cannot imagine life with this woman.  I would remain in a state of constant fear of bringing that torturous shriek out of the bowels of her body.  Seriously, its eardrum busting, fingernail screech on a blackboard.  Peg Bundy's "Aaallllll" sounds like Streisand compared to this.  Clancy instantly BOLTED back into the yard upon hearing her and then me call him.  I followed him to put him inside.  NL and NM (the husband) I assume have left because the birds started returning to their perches in the trees.  The world righted itself and all was well again.

But no, I was wrong.

Around the corner of the house comes NM.  He looks unhappy (Who wouldn't be?  He was thisclose to her bellowing).  He and I have a little conversation, I apologize, he threatens to call the police.

I say, "Well, you can do what you feel you need to do. There is no leash law in Granby, he needs to be under voice control and he clearly is because as soon as I call him he comes back."

He disagrees, I let it ride.

Now, after a moment like that I tend to obsess.  I obsess over what I said, what I didn't say, what I WANTED to say.  Personally, I feel its completely ridiculous and being blown waaaaaay out of control.  On the other hand, I could totally see their point of view and understand why they would be annoyed.  But annoyed doesn't really merit that level of screech does it?  I mean, its not like he's setting fire to anyone or punching her in her stupid face.  I digress....

The whole event is more like a Clancy hit-n-run:  He runs over,  I call him, he comes home.  They walk/scream away. 

Lots of people meet Clancy and precious few scream like he has ripped their fingernails from their beds.  Am I crazy or is this chick going a bit overboard here?  I mean what would she say to the police if she called them?

NL:  Hi, Police?  I need you to come to Taylor Street immediately!  A golden retriever just RAN over to me and he tried to,  he tried to, he... he tried to PLAY with my dog!!  And then, and then he barked and he, he, got my dog all excited!  It was HORRIBLE/!!! THAT F#$#%#@ING DOG WAS NEAR ME!  HE ALMOST, HE ALMOST TOUCHED ME!! And then! His owner had the nerve to just call him home!  Can you imagine?  I NEED YOU TO ARREST HER! AND HER HYPER, SKUNKY DOG! AAAHHHHH!"

GPD:  "click."

And scene.