To an old dog and her owner - an apology

ranchodeluxe said:
Well,I never miss the opportunity to scratch the ears of any dog,let alone an old one, and don't feel that feigned modesty after the fact,is sincere.It's simply begging for others to tell you how cool you are so you can feel better about the fact that you acted like an ass.Firstly,he should have asked the dog's owner IF he wanted help instead of interjecting himself without being asked.The man may have been happy to let his old dog look for that bird all day.Clearly the man was interacting with a dog that has alot more hunts behind her,than in front and he interrupted that interaction,unsolicited.I guarantee you that under the same circumstances,if it were me and you ruined my hunt with your swagger(ego),your new hero would have walked away with his ears ringing.I don't feel the need to tell him how cool he is. y'all can carry on with that while I head to the local shelter for my weekly visit.Remember that you all took the opportunity to judge him as well.I just happen to judge his actions differently and yes I find his actions,before and after,disingeuous.
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I know this doesn't come across as a popular opinion, but I catch myself agreeing with rancho.

Saying your sorry on a forum does seem a bit insincere ( but maybe its not).

I don't think you are wrong to walk with a swagger brought on by the pride of your dog, but that seems to be what you regret. Maybe I missed it, but I think the apology should be for sending your dog after another mans bird. Old or young its not your place to think he needs your help. He might of been perfectly fine with letting his dog look for that bird for the rest of the day.

Now just to be clear, I'm not saying or suggesting that your a bad guy, but I am saying that I would have been PISSED OFF if some guy sent his dog to pick up my dogs bird, ESPECIALLY if it was going to be one of her last hunts.

I would like to thank you for the post because it does make you reflect on just how special every minute we have with our four legged family members really is.
 
First of all, thanks to all for your comments (yep, all of them). Nothing in there has made me feel that any need to defend my post. Of course, that's easy to say since the vast majority seem to have appreciated the post and understood what I was trying to portray. But also, I don't worry too much about different opinions on things - just a part of life (perhaps more so on forums like these). Sometimes it's as simple as someone not quite seeing what I was trying to get across, or outright disagreeing with the idea of it. Either way, no problem. However, there have been a few mentions that my help was unsolicited interference in another man’s hunt and that I should have been sent away with my ears ringing. I happen to agree that unsolicited interference in another man’s hunt is wrong, so I re-read my post and feel I should clarify that point. In re-reading it, I see that I did not make it clear that I DID have a chat with the other hunter about helping to find his bird *before* sending my dog down the bank. So, the reason that I only wrote about feeling bad about my "swagger" is that I did not provide unsolicited help in finding the bird. The conversation went something like “He got away from you eh (yep, we actually DO say ‘eh’ a lot!)? Been there. Want some help?”. The reply “Sure, but I think he might be long gone”. Sorry of that oversight – I hadn’t thought it would come across that I just ran up and sent my dog into the cover without a chat, given that I had made specific mention of waiting against the oak tree so as “not to interfere”.
I hesitate to respond much to the idea that it is insincere/disingenuous to post and apology on a forum, except to say this:
-I had an experience while pheasant hunting.
-It meant something to me.
-I thought it might mean something to other pheasant hunters.
-I thought that recounting my experience in that form (a letter) would be an interesting change from the way these things are usually posted (i.e. “Hey guys. THIS happened. What do you think?”).
-I don't really think that I was seeking absolution for my "sins" - just sharing an experience with like-minded folk. I'm glad that most of you enjoyed it.
Thanks again for all the comments.
Cheers,
-Croc (aka M. Theresa) ;)
 
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crockett said:
First of all, thanks to all for your comments (yep, all of them). Nothing in there has made me feel that any need to defend my post. Of course, that's easy to say since the vast majority seem to have appreciated the post and understood what I was trying to portray. But also, I don't worry too much about different opinions on things - just a part of life (perhaps more so on forums like these). Sometimes it's as simple as someone not quite seeing what I was trying to get across, or outright disagreeing with the idea of it. Either way, no problem. However, there have been a few mentions that my help was unsolicited interference in another man’s hunt and that I should have been sent away with my ears ringing. I happen to agree that unsolicited interference in another man’s hunt is wrong, so I re-read my post and feel I should clarify that point. In re-reading it, I see that I did not make it clear that I DID have a chat with the other hunter about helping to find his bird *before* sending my dog down the bank. So, the reason that I only wrote about feeling bad about my "swagger" is that I did not provide unsolicited help in finding the bird. The conversation went something like “He got away from you eh (yep, we actually DO say ‘eh’ a lot!)? Been there. Want some help?”. The reply “Sure, but I think he might be long gone”. Sorry of that oversight – I hadn’t thought it would come across that I just ran up and sent my dog into the cover without a chat, given that I had made specific mention of waiting against the oak tree so as “not to interfere”.
I hesitate to respond much to the idea that it is insincere/disingenuous to post and apology on a forum, except to say this:
-I had an experience while pheasant hunting.
-It meant something to me.
-I thought it might mean something to other pheasant hunters.
-I thought that recounting my experience in that form (a letter) would be an interesting change from the way these things are usually posted (i.e. “Hey guys. THIS happened. What do you think?”).
-I don't really think that I was seeking absolution for my "sins" - just sharing and experience with like-minded folk. I'm glad that most of you enjoyed it.
Thanks again for all the comments.
Cheers,
-Croc (aka M. Theresa) ;)
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OK that makes more sense! Forget everything I just wrote, having a chat with the guy before hand makes all the difference. No hard feelings, I'd gladly hunt with you any time.

Again thanks for posting I went home the other day, after reading your post, and scratched my 12 year old german shepherds ear( and head and belly and back) a lot longer than usual and he sure did enjoy it.
 
Croc,

Glad to hear you chime in. What you did seemed clear to me immediately. And that is what these forums are for. I really enjoyed it. Although, enjoy might not be the right word, either...appreciated, is probably more accurate. And the fact that it was still bothering you days later, enough to do a public mea culpa (keeping with the M. Theresa theme :D), just said to me that you "got it."

And that will probably be my final word on the subject.

Good luck, and good hunting.
 
ranchodeluxe said:
...When you put it out there,you may have to deal with my opinion.That's all it is,you are free to decide that it's wrong.
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I reckon that decision ship sailed directly after your first post.
Subsequent attempts at explanation or analogy notwithstanding.
"Dealing with it" applies to everyone.
My last word as well....probably.
 
crockett said:
First of all, thanks to all for your comments (yep, all of them). Nothing in there has made me feel that any need to defend my post. Of course, that's easy to say since the vast majority seem to have appreciated the post and understood what I was trying to portray. But also, I don't worry too much about different opinions on things - just a part of life (perhaps more so on forums like these). Sometimes it's as simple as someone not quite seeing what I was trying to get across, or outright disagreeing with the idea of it. Either way, no problem. However, there have been a few mentions that my help was unsolicited interference in another man’s hunt and that I should have been sent away with my ears ringing. I happen to agree that unsolicited interference in another man’s hunt is wrong, so I re-read my post and feel I should clarify that point. In re-reading it, I see that I did not make it clear that I DID have a chat with the other hunter about helping to find his bird *before* sending my dog down the bank. So, the reason that I only wrote about feeling bad about my "swagger" is that I did not provide unsolicited help in finding the bird. The conversation went something like “He got away from you eh (yep, we actually DO say ‘eh’ a lot!)? Been there. Want some help?”. The reply “Sure, but I think he might be long gone”. Sorry of that oversight – I hadn’t thought it would come across that I just ran up and sent my dog into the cover without a chat, given that I had made specific mention of waiting against the oak tree so as “not to interfere”.
I hesitate to respond much to the idea that it is insincere/disingenuous to post and apology on a forum, except to say this:
-I had an experience while pheasant hunting.
-It meant something to me.
-I thought it might mean something to other pheasant hunters.
-I thought that recounting my experience in that form (a letter) would be an interesting change from the way these things are usually posted (i.e. “Hey guys. THIS happened. What do you think?”).
-I don't really think that I was seeking absolution for my "sins" - just sharing and experience with like-minded folk. I'm glad that most of you enjoyed it.
Thanks again for all the comments.
Cheers,
-Croc (aka M. Theresa) ;)
Click to expand...

very insightful post, thanks for sharing, as most here can benefit from your experience.
 
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