Bambi and his best friend Mango

Every evening around six Bambi drags me to the park near the pier in Lipa Noi, and every evening there is a golden retriever called Mango waiting by the bench. I do not know who is the boss between them but it is definitely not me.

At first Bambi was scared of everything. He would hide behind my legs and growl at the big dogs. Marshmallow, my other poodle, does not care about anyone. He just sniffs the grass and walks away like an old uncle. So I thought Bambi would stay lonely for a while.

Then one day a lady named Pim brought Mango to the park and let him off the leash near the path. Bambi came out from behind my legs and ran straight at him. I was ready to grab the leash. But they just sniffed each other, did a little play bow, and then they were chasing around the tree for twenty minutes. Pim and I sat on the bench and laughed.

Now it is almost a routine. Mango waits by the same bench, Bambi pulls, and they run in the sand area until they are too tired to walk. Marshmallow sits with me and watches them. Sometimes Pim brings a ball, sometimes she brings water and a bowl, which I appreciate a lot because the heat in the afternoon here is brutal.

Last week Mango got a small cut on his paw from a broken shell and Bambi kept standing next to him, licking his face, not letting anyone else come close. Pim said he is a good friend. I said he is a good dog. We both agreed.

The thing that surprised me most is how much better Bambi walks now. He used to pull me everywhere and bark at bicycles. Now he is calmer because he has someone to look for when we arrive. Dogs need friends, I guess. Maybe we need them too.

Small tip if your dog is shy: go to the same park at the same time every day. Let them see the same faces over and over. It took about three weeks for Bambi to stop hiding.

Anyway, Bambi is asleep on the sofa right now with his tail in my face. Typical.