There is this strange (or not so strange) inclination of some pets especially dogs which have a tendency to go on the defensive when some people appear. This has happened to me sometime ago in my rural village. A pet dog from a certain homestead used to be all over me as a puppy. But with time, this morphed into a morbid hatred without any prompt on my part. I assumed that it was just the normal playfulness of the now bigger dog only to realize that it was serious when it almost bit me. I have also seen dogs in my uncle's develop a morbid fear of him without fail. I was intrigued and I decided to investigate the predisposing factors for this with respect to him. I realized that it was his tone of voice which is usually loud and bellicose. I didn't realize that dogs can decipher one's character, tendencies and idiosyncracies. For example, my mother usually could not suffer their playful pestering when she was busy with chores around the house and view learnt to keep a healthy distance. Another dog which is now dead used to have a morbid fear and hatred for someone wearing colour black despite the fact that it was black in colour.
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