“dropped me into the mud one time when I was wearing white wool slacks and a butter yellow blazer!”
OK, I hate to say it but that made me laugh. Not at you, but with you! LOL
My big mistake was thinking that my new, young, rather wild, Golden would have the same temperment of my previous, 15 year old, disabled dog! I had him at work the first week we owned him and I took him outside, behind the plant, on a long leash. (bad idea)
I sat down on the bench of the picnic table and gently rolled a tennis ball towards him. This young, healthy male took off like a rocket; and I tried to hold him back with the 25 foot leash, to no avail. I was in a panic because there was no fence behind the plant, and the nearest attraction was a school yard (also with no fence and children playing) across the street.
He pulled me right off my feet and into the muddy grass. But, I hung on because I was afraid that I’d lose him if he ran over to see the kids. I brought him inside and signed him up for obedience training a half hour later.
Obedience training was the best investment in a dog that I ever made. And the cleaners fixed up my clothes as good as new.