We had a disturbing, even haunting walk with Maria and Zinnia this afternoon. We were on a path we don’t bring Bud or Fate on because they each get excited when they see other dogs. I just don’t think it’s a good idea for them, neither does Maria. We take them into the woods where there are no people or dogs.

Zinnia is another story.

We went on a nearby trail near a lake where people often walk their dogs, especially on weekends. I am wary of groups of dog walkers, there is almost always someone who wants their dog to have a good experience and won’t accept that the dog shouldn’t be out with other dogs.

I’ve never been a fan of dog playgroups, I think they are much more for the people than the dogs, and adult dogs really don’t need playgroups. Adult people need playgroups for their dogs. Strangers – even friends – and their dogs are just not predictable.

As we walked Zinnia down the path we noticed a man off to our left cutting a fallen tree for wood in the woods. He had a huge but young and boisterous lab puppy with him, and I could see from a distance how much the two enjoyed being together.

You know the type, one of those huge and goofy dogs that love to leap on people and play with dogs.

Ahead of us were a man and a woman each holding one large and one medium furry dog on long leashes. I could see right away that something was wrong.

They were far from us, but the couple shortened their leashes and took their dogs off the path and as far into the woods as they could get to avoid us.

When people are that anxious to avoid a puppy like Zinnia, my alarm bells go off. Either the dogs are aggressive and they are protecting Zinnia, or the dogs are phobic and terrified of other dogs.

We passed by everyone.

The huge Lab didn’t seem to see us out in the woods, although I kept an eye on him, and the man walking the two dogs ahead of us not only took them well off the path but he was sitting on the ground beside them holding both dogs tightly to his chest, so they couldn’t move.

He appeared to be very anxious and was taking every possible precaution. I got the message.

Something was off.

They looked more frightened than dangerous to me, although sometimes the two are connected.

I’ve seen and heard so many tough stories about dogs getting attacked or frightened or injured in parks, most often they are dogs who just should not be out in public with other dogs, especially in open and without confinement.

I just don’t trust everybody with a dog, so I always leash my dog up and keep them with me until I know what’s going on. Very few dogs are well trained and many dog lovers live in denial.

We forgot these dogs and walked peacefully up the path – the sightlines are long so I have plenty of time to leash Zinnia up when I see people or dogs.

We heard a commotion behind us, and I saw one of the two furry dogs racing up the path towards us. She had somehow pulled the leash out of her person’s hands and was barreling towards us. The man was behind her, running, shouting commands.

He seemed to be in a panic also.

The man was running after his dog, shouting “beware of the dog!, beware of the dog!,” so I picked Zinnia up and held her, assuming he was warning us that the dog was coming after her. But that was not the case.

We then saw the owner of the big black Lab running after them, the man was running slowly, out of breath and the big dog was on a leash.

I wasn’t sure what to do.

The man was warning us, it seemed, so I moved off to the side with Zinnia as the dog bore down on us. I was ready to protect Zinnia.

The runaway dog (I think it was she)  was clearly in a panic, dragging her leash behind her. She was very fast. She didn’t even glance at us, she tore past us, she was heading straight down the path and towards a curve that led to a busy highway.

So now I was confused. Which dog were we supposed to be aware of? The runaway didn’t even glance at us, and the big Lap puppy seemed very friendly.

The man followed, running as fast as he could, cursing and yelling “that dog attacked my dog!” as he rushed past us. He was clearly referring to the Lab.

His dog was in an awful fright and was not responding to calls or shouts or commands and was almost instantly out of sight. I had this awful feeling she would run out into the busy road and keep going until something stopped her.

The man with the Lab – older and deeply upset – came jogging more slowly up to us. His big dog was an enthusiastic Lab mix, big and out of control, but clearly friendly. Zinnia barked and growled at him, but the dog was eager to play, not fight.

“I should have kept him on a leash,” said the older man, “I feel terrible. When he ran over to this dog, the dog just freaked and pulled the leash off the man and took off.”

By now, the first man was out of sight. The dog had clearly made it out to the road and taken off to the North. The man had followed her, still running. His wife had remained behind with the other dog.

The man with the Lab wanted to help, but couldn’t keep up and didn’t know what to do.

I felt helpless.

I would have tried to stop the running dog by stepping on the leash and grabbing it but the runaway dog’s owner had kept shouting “beware of the dog,” and I’m not sure which dog he meant.

But this is life in the country. People let their dogs run loose all the time. Some of them shouldn’t.

He clearly thought the Lab was attacking his dog, and the dog was moving so quickly I doubt I could have stopped her.

As we reconstructed it, the Lab saw the dog and ran out to see her, and she freaked. The dog’s owner assumed the Lab was attacking her – people are often afraid of big black dogs, he was angry as he ran past us.

Maria also felt we had little choice but to try to protect Zinnia from a danger that probably wasn’t real.

We got into our car and drove up and down the road trying to find the runaway dog and her owner, but we couldn’t see anything and came home. I found the scene disturbing, even haunting.

The poor dog was in a dreadful panic, I could imagine her running into the woods for miles and miles. If she ran in that road for too long, I doubt she would have survived. And there are deep and dark woods all along the way. And plenty of coyotes.

The man with the Lab was very upset and wanted to help. But the runaway dog was long gone. I told him things happened, he shouldn’t feel bad. His happy puppy came rushing over to play, the dog was so unaware that there was any trouble at all.

I don’t want to second guess anyone. Of course, the big Lab should have been on a leash if he was going to be sitting along a busy path for a long time. But we all make mistakes, and the dog was clearly not aggressive. And after watching the frightened dog in her panic, I knew this was a dog I would never take out on a path like that. Too many things can happen.

I would build a fence and let her run inside of it. I want my dogs to be out in the world, but I understand that so many people love their dogs so much they simply can’t deprive them of the experiences they want them to have.

I wish that weren’t true, but I know it is, so my idea is to keep my dogs out of those situations. Radical acceptance, people are people, dog lovers are dog lovers.

But living in denial can kill dogs. I hope this dog was found by someone and got home. I’ve been thinking of her all afternoon and into the evening.

Zinnia is a grounded dog, she is sometimes wary of strange dogs, but always comes to me when called. I work on that every day. If she didn’t, she would never be on that path.

I can’t judge people I don’t know, it is so easy to be judgmental. I make mistakes all the time.  I am haunted by the image of that dog running and running as if she would never stop.

I know how upset I would be if Zinnia or Bud or Fate were running through the woods like that at dusk when the sun is just about to set.

And I doubt I will ever know what really happened. Tonight, I think I’ll light a candle for her.