The Golden Visitor

So, I was playing tennis this afternoon at a friend's neighborhood courts...Two courts adjacent to a large field (perfect for bringing the dog to play). Towards the end of the first set, a beautiful golden retriever (probably 1-2 years old) came RUNNING across the field right up to the courts. I didn't see an owner ANYWHERE around. The dog was trying to get to the tennis balls on the court. We played a couple of points...with the dog running a long the fence chasing the balls we hit.

I HAD to stop and check the tags (he had a collar and tag) and called the number. The dog was REAL sweet and obviously was very transfixed on the tennis ball. I said sit (he sat) and I knew this dog was lost. I finally got the number (he was very wiggly) and called...

him: "hello"
me: um, do you have a dog?
Him: um,
me: a dog named blue?
HIm: he got off of his chain?
Me: yeah, he's at the tennis courts
Him: okay, be right there.

I got the dog into the fence so he wouldn't run off and played a little fetch with the dog while we waited for the owner. HE LOVED the tennis ball. He was obviously VERY ENERGETIC. He was pretty hot and worn out...so I had him in a sit. The owner came out of the trail and waved. She had to cross the ENTIRE field to get to us. I had her dog in a sit, watching me patiently for the whole two minutes while she crossed the field (with another dog playing in the field). When she got closer, she looked very confused and was like "is THAT BLUE?" I could tell she was surprised that her dog was behaving so well, for a STRANGER even. I got a chuckle out of that.

Apparently, he broke the chain and went for a joy run. too bad, he's a gorgeous dog and will probably get out again. I wish I had gotten a picture