All of us at Bridgeport Visitors Center/Connect-Bridgeport are dog lovers and either currently or formerly had them as part of our families. My dog Skye sometimes comes to the office, loves my coworkers and likes to help greet those who stop by.

 

Other dogs in our CVB/Connect-Bridgeport family are Chris’s dog Ollie and Cassie’s dog Willow, a Norwegian Elkhound.

 

On a recent Friday morning, I heard the hooves on the wooden floors and Jeff vocalizing a greeting in his “doggie” voice. I was surprised to hear that because I hadn’t brought Skye to work that day, but when I turned around, the mystery was solved. I saw a Norwegian Elkhound and joined Jeff in talking to her. Cassie heard us making over Willow and she immediately came out of her office which is upstairs in our building. She looked over rail, saw us and the dog, and asked, “How did Willow get here?”

 

We all looked at each other and began sharing our logic for the situation. We decided one of Cassie’s daughters had to be on their way in and that Willow had snuck in the door when Jeff and I entered. But upon second glance, Cassie made a discovery. The dog wasn’t Willow. It looked like her, but as a doggie parent she knew it wasn’t her. She came downstairs and we all took a closer look at our visiting pet. He was wearing a collar with his name, "Chuck," as well as a phone number, on it.

 

Cassie proceeded to call the phone number, only to discover that the owner was her longtime friend. Chuck had traveled several blocks and had for some reason decided to visit us. We joked that he saw the Visitors Center sign on the door and thought it was the perfect place for a rest and a drink of water.

 

His owner promptly picked him up, telling us he is a little escape artist and often finds his way out of his yard.

 

It was a confusing and surreal incident, and one we still talk about. 

 

I hadn’t really thought about writing about it, but hey, it’s National Dog Day and those of us who are dog lovers know how much these special creatures mean to us; those who are in our lives daily and those who just stop by for a brief visit.