It IS really funny (not haha) that they seem to know something is off when the kids have masks on. There was this one little boy in particular. He was probably 6 or 7 years old. He was dressed as Batman, so not scary, but you could only see his eyes. His mom asked if they could pet the dogs. I said sure (not realizing what would happen), well Fletch jumped at this kid, from my arms, barking and snapping like a mad man! Poor kid jumped back and stared at him. I realized that it might be the mask so I said to the kid to lift his mask so Fletch could see his face, he did, and Fletch was back to his normal happy loving pet me self. The poor kid was so timid! I felt so bad. His mom was saying how the dog didn't recognize him as a person and he was scary to the dog with his mask, he was protecting his mommy, etc.. she was so nice about it! After that every kid who asked to pet the dogs, I asked them to lift their mask because he's afraid of them. They all did w/o a problem, so that was good!
__________________ “Petting, scratching, and cuddling a dog could be as soothing to the mind and heart as deep meditation and almost as good for the soul as prayer.” ― Dean Koontz |