Sometimes having a dog is as much about other dogs as it is about your own. Being a dog parent introduces you to other dog parents and to a whole world of dog-dom. And that can be very entertaining.

Today A.J. went to daycare. Most days when I pick him up the person who checks us out will tell me what A.J. did that day, or have some little anecdote about him. Today his anecdote was about the dog that checked out before us.

The man in line in front of me was talking to the daycare worker. I wasn’t paying much attention, but I heard that his dog was a large puppy who seemed to be in the “I’m much bigger than I think I am” stage of puppy growth. They brought the puppy out – a very adorable little Golden Retriever.

After they left, the daycare worker said “I have to tell you what just happened.”

“When I went to check him out and he told me which dog was his, I thought ‘that can’t be your dog.’ But then I realized the guy had an Australian accent.”

It turned out that someone had put that Golden Retriever into the system as an Australian Shepherd, because, well, what other kind of dog would an Australian have?