more and more excited - he pounded his hands on the chair and stamped his feet.

I stepped forward and shielded Devon. Border Collies do not like sudden sudden movements.

Fans of this breed will tell you a lot of stories about the strange, unfriendly nature of their pets, about unsuccessful meetings with tourists, with lovers of cycling and skateboarding, and even with cars - any of these objects can be a trigger that turned on the shepherd instinct. And a shepherd dog chasing a noisy receding object is not safe, although in our presentation this spectacle is most popular.

In addition, there were dark pages in Devon's past, he is very excitable and unpredictable. True, the dog never showed aggression, but when I first took him, Devon was frightened of children and jumped up when someone unexpectedly touched him or took him by surprise. For two whole years, Carolyn and I worked hard to rid him of his hypersensitivity to sudden sounds and movements. And they succeeded in this - Devon became much calmer. However, I had no idea how he would react to a noisy, overly animated Joey.

Suddenly, Devon walked right up to the boy and, after a moment's hesitation, laid his head on his knees, and then climbed all over there.

Joey instantly calmed down, as if someone had flipped a switch. The teacher beamed, whispering something in the boy's ear, took his hand in hers and showed him how to stroke the dog. Two people from the crowd pointed their video cameras at Joey, as if they thought he was the next number of the performance. I moved closer, not really knowing how to behave.

Devon licked Joey's face. The boy laughed and squealed with pleasure. I gestured at them to Carolyn; she smiled.

Suddenly, Joey grabbed Devon and, tightly clasping him in his arms, began to repeat: “Mee-nee. Mee-nee.” Devon was petrified. I spoke to him in a low voice and took a step forward, but then stopped. If the tutor intervenes, or if I approach too hastily, we'll be in trouble. A what if Joey is careless? Devon might be scared.

I told Joey the name of the dog, and now he was chanting, “De-won. De-won ”- only he got “De-on, De-on”, and he pronounced the second syllable louder, almost shouting out. He по-прежнему стискивал Девона, как плюшевого медведя, — редкой собаке понравилось бы такое обращение, в особенности со стороны возбужденного незнакомца. However, after recovering from my surprise, I found that Devon behaved quite calmly.

As I walked onto the stage, Joey's teacher came up to me. Her face beamed with joy, “Joey has hardly spoken lately. During these months he had a hard time - he is new to us. Ему понравилась ваша dog. Do not you mind?"

So far I haven't had any reason to.

Devon, too, did not show concern and peacefully wagged his tail. It began to dawn on me that something extraordinary was happening before my very eyes. My working dog was doing a job that was unusual for her.

I can hardly explain this fact. Maybe Joey got food on his shirt. Maybe Devon decided to respond to the flow of love and attention emanating from the boy. Maybe he felt that the boy needed him. Whatever it was, both were completely delighted with each other.

The caregiver, with my help, explained to Joey that he must sit still and handle the dog with care, or Devon would leave. Joey barely paid any attention to me, but listened carefully to what Charlene whispered in his ear. He не хотел, чтобы Девон ушел, поэтому постепенно все больше успокаивался. And the dog was very calm. I did not notice any signs of aggression or fear: he did not flatten his ears, growl or bare his teeth. To be honest, he looked completely calm and lay curled up in the boy's lap.

Glancing with one eye at this unusual couple, left under the watchful eye of Charlene, I turned on the microphone and began to tell about the history of the shepherd's craft and the exploits of Carolyn McWilkey. My presentation lasted about half an hour, and all the while Joey held my dog ​​in his arms, and the dog sat quietly on his lap, gladly accepting attentions, although, as far as I knew, he had not had to deal with people who looked like moving and behaving like Joey.

Homer, who didn't give Joey a single glance, - however, like all the other spectators, - went to the starting position. Carolyn took the microphone and I opened the paddock gate and sent Homer to gather the sheep and then lead the flock around the lawn and the hill.

Turning to Joey, I saw that Devon had jumped to the ground—Charlene had persuaded Joey to let him go—and started walking around the rest of the kids from the same school, letting them pet him. However, as soon as Joey started shouting his name, Devon quickly came back, stood next to him and laid his head on the boy's lap. Joey clapped his hands and laughed. “De-he! De-he!" - I heard his voice even from the top of the hill, from where Homer and I drove the sheep, which were by no means burning with the desire to be again in the pen. When it was time to leave, Joey started screaming and crying until they put him in the van.

Charlene admitted that she had never seen Joey so talkative and animated, and asked if I could somehow bring Devon to their school while the memory of this meeting was still fresh in the boy's memory. Of course, I agreed; we exchanged phone numbers and email addresses.

Devon watched the departing wagon until it was out of sight. Homer was still sitting by the pen, glaring at the sheep. Before me were two working dogs, one of which was doing the work for which it was born by birth, the other was helping a seriously ill child - for reasons that I will probably never be able to comprehend - to communicate with the outside world. In other words, I received two examples of dog work - in the old and new sense of it.

A few months passed, and I returned to Montclair to see how my heroes were doing. What I learned only confirmed my initial conclusions: the stories of these dogs and their owners are nothing but a reflection of life itself.

The German Shepherd Rushmore, whom I met in Mills, was not needed after the owner remarried. Having supported her after the death of her husband, the dog became an obstacle on the way to new happiness. Kate De Land didn't want to risk it and gave Rushmore to a German Shepherd rescue team. He now lives with a new family near New Platz, New York. Kate is sure that he is all right, however, she was not interested.

Sandra Robinson continues to fight for her life. Relations with a programmer from Morristown did not work out for her - in her opinion, he was too helpless. Of course, she always dreamed of becoming a good mother, but not for an adult man. Now that she has realized the extent of her emotional problems, the origins of depression, loneliness, painful memories, the struggle continues with varying degrees of success. But she has made new friends, and she leaves the house more often. Ellie was an anchor for her, which she clung to in difficult times.

— Heа помогла мне выжить, — считает Сандра.

However, they are not all smooth sailing. Sandra said that her relationship with Ellie had reached the point where she began to feel some discomfort. Ellie has become too demanding and capricious. Atходится постоянно уделять ей внимание — играть в мяч или в другие игры. Sandra has almost no free time, she does not have time to read, sit at the computer, or watch the next episode of The Sopranos.

But the problem did not end there: Ellie, who had long been accustomed to cleanliness, began to urinate at home - on the carpet and even on the bed. Sandra decided that Ellie was doing this in retaliation for not getting the attention she deserved.

Sandra is trying to recover from a life crisis, meeting people, looking for a job. She wants the dog to understand her and behave accordingly.

I tried to warn Sandra. No one, even a loving mistress, will agree to endlessly endure an unscrupulous dog, especially if he believes that the dog does this out of spite. A dangerous situation was brewing - often people who are faced with such problems get rid of the dog or send it to a shelter.

Ellie, who had been moaned and lisped about almost every minute for months, suddenly became a source of trouble. And just as suddenly, Ellie's love ceased to seem selfless and perfect to Sandra. Now Sandra considered the dog a vicious and ungrateful creature.

Sandra increasingly saw Ellie as a human being for many reasons, chief among which was her unfulfilled dream of motherhood. As a result, the Spitz acquired a certain power over her. If Sandra left the house, it was because Ellie forced her to. If Sandra interrupted work, it was because Ellie wanted to play, and she could not refuse her. If she met anyone on the street, it was also thanks to Ellie.

Gradually, she began to attribute to the dog, in which she saw a devotee friend, - just about such a psychoanalyst Dorothy Burlingham wrote - more and more complex thoughts and urges.

During our conversations with Sandra, I was haunted by Dorothy's image of a vulnerable, resentful child cherishing the dream