Update on Mr. T {and Lady Mu}, and us (see part 1 here). While I write, they are recuperating, as seen above, from our quick pee break on the first day of summer heat.

Yesterday, I watched an old episode of Cesar Millan’s Dog Whisperer. (And yes, I know he and his methods are not everyone’s favourites, but I still find him remarkable in many ways.) The first story was about a gorgeous Dogo Argentino. Something struck the chord in that story.

Neither Mu or Tee are 100 lbs hunter breeds, but both of them have had their challenges: The one with extreme timidness, the other with hyperactive dominance. There have been moments I’ve been scared and frustrated and mad (mostly at myself) and puzzled (see the earlier post).

CM ends the segment with a note on how we can bring balance to our lives with dogs. They force us to face our anger, or fear, or possessiveness, or laziness, or…

I think that’s spot on. I’m sure that dogs can have problems of their own, but they are in search of balance much more naturally, intuitively, and constantly, than we humans are. They are also more aware of the environment and its direct effect on their well-being.

I’ve had this experience before, with yoga. After several minutes in Downward Facing Dog pose — with the instructions from the teacher that we should stay there for a quarter of an hour — I started to experience the same aggravation, impatience, and sense of not being treated justly (yes…) that I often did at work.

Clearly, our patterns translate from the office to stretching to dog training.

So Mr. T can bring us back to a more balanced state: The hubby can take a bigger role in taking the leadership of the pack, and especially Tee (as Lady Mu has always been my dog); I can start to worry less about my dad, my job( and current -lessness), Mu and Tee, the world peace, and so on.

So, as much a cliche as it is: Who’s being rescued?