The company I work for has an open door policy. Too open that even dogs are allowed to come to work.
In fact on my first day in the office while my Vice President took me around, introducing me to everyone, I met a huge black Standard Poodle named Kramer. He was our Chief Financial Officer’s pet who got in the habit of coming to work with his master. Kramer always came to pay us a visit and on such occasions, he always did his thing, wandering down the hallways in his quiet, house-broken manner. He didn’t bother anyone, but everyone didn’t leave him alone. Someone always comes near him to give him a neck rub or a body pet. On a few occasions, someone dropped whatever he was doing to play catch ball with the dog.
I grew very fond of Kramer although on our first encounter, I can’t lie that the dog gave me a scare. You see, Kramer is about six feet tall when he’s standing up which makes me look like a midget beside him, But he is the gentlest, most refined dog I’ve ever met! A few years later, he was put to sleep due to some kind of stomach ailment. He was like my CFO’s family member and Kramer’s passing I’m sure made the old guy sad. My colleagues and I wrote sympathy notes on a Hallmark card where I confessed to shedding a few tears over the dog's demise.
A few months later, a Kramer look-alike, much younger and more energetic, came to visit the office. The dog’s name is Newman (you can tell that the CFO is a “Seinfeld” fan) and, obviously, the CFO’s new member of his family. Newman picked up where Kramer left off, coming to visit the office whenever his busy doggie schedule would allow. Usually, he came to visit after his doggie salon appointment and everyone just loved to fondle his shiny fur! One time he even sat with his master in a meeting. Just like Kramer, this dog loves his freedom and enjoys navigating the hallways. Everytime I hear metal clicking, I know that Newman isn’t far away!
In the beginning, Newman would arrive at the office and leave through the company elevator. One day the CFO's wife came to pick him up. Mrs. CFO never rides the elevator when she's in our premises, always opting to walk up and down our 28-step staircase. She urged Newman to walk down the stairs with her, but her encouragement was met with a loud and grumpy bark. Many visits later, the dog was able to overcome his fear of those stairs. He showed off by walking down the staircase to accompany me when I went down to pick up something. The dog was such a gentleman, trying to match my pace. I couldn't help but be impressed!
I can't forget one incident during Newman's visit. It must have been his third time in the office. Newman paused for the longest time at the corner of the wall facing my work station and stared at me at an angle. I felt like the dog was sizing me up! After that incident, our bonding became effortless. He would sit when I told him to… and shake my hand when I said “Shake.”
One day Newman came to our office wearing a white T-shirt and at another time, a lamp shade around his neck. He wasn’t making a dog fashion statement, but due to an injury he had to wear something to keep him from scratching a stitched wound on his side. That cramped Newman’s style, but he had to to put up with it for a while.
Yesterday he came to say hello. At some point during the visit, we heard him barking in one of the vacant offices. There was an electrician working at that time and because Newman wasn’t familiar with the guy in blue, the dog decided to put the man in his place. You see, Newman knows everyone in the office by their scent and anything that smells alien sends this dog into panic mode.
There have been other dogs, big and small and of other breeds, that have come to work with their masters, but Newman remains my best dog friend. With him and his predecessor, Kramer, it’s always been love at first sniff. I have a sneaky feeling that Newman and Kramer and I might have been soul canines in another lifetime.
