The late winter sun was low in the Northern California sky that evening when I set out on my daily walk with my 3 year old rescued greyhound, Latte. It wasn't cold, but there was enough nip in the early evening air that I decided to keep us warm by heading up into the hilly neighborhood next to us. On our way back, someone called out "Hey Latte!" from one of the homes we were passing. The neighbor was a man named Ken whom I met several months before at a local dog park, who had a Rhodesian Ridgeback puppy named Tuli. Now Tuli, standing next to Ken, was full grown, and at 105 pounds was 50% bigger than Latte. And he was aggressive. As we approached up the driveway to say hello, we were greeted with deep growls, barking, and pacing back and forth from the former puppy.

Taking a Neutral Stand

I was inclined to say a quick hello and keep on walking, but Ken wanted to talk, and I was curious to see how Latte would handle the interaction. So we stayed. Ken would let Tuli approach Latte, who was on leash next to me. Here's what I noticed.

As Tuli was growling and barking, Latte was alert: tail out, ears cocked. At the same time, he seemed relaxed. He wasn't submissive to Tuli's aggression, nor was he snarling back, and threatening to engage. He seemed aware and patient. He was non-reactive.

Then Tuli came around Latte's right flank, and put his front paw up on Latte's back. Latte exploded, and in a flash had pinned Tuli next to the garage door. Both Ken and I pulled the dogs apart quickly, and Ken's wife took Tuli into the house. Ken and I chatted a little bit longer, then Latte and I walked the rest of the way home.

Powerful Meditation Lessons from the Dog

As the sun set, I reflected on the experience we just had. In the face of extremely threatening behavior from a younger and bigger rival, Latte displayed no attitude. He was neutral, and paying attention, completely in the moment. But when the other dog started to attack, Latte burst into action and successfully defended himself. Once the threat was removed, he was back to being relaxed and neutral: he wasn't snarling as Tuli was led away.

I thanked Latte for demonstrating right action, and for teaching me by example how to deal with challenges, and how to be present in each moment. I'm thinking about having Latte teach a course for world leaders...