It's amazing how exhausting a couple of hours standing on a concrete floor saying "It's a Briard, a chien de berger de Brie, which is to say a French sheepdog first brought to North America by Thomas Jefferson, because they so impressed him with their herding ability when he was ambassador to France. In Europe, they're still used for their traditional purpose, and also as police dogs and home companions. The breed almost died out during the World Wars, when they were used as sentries and also by medics to help identify and recover wounded soldiers. There are images of dogs strongly resembling the Briard on tapestries dating back to the time of Charlemagne. This particular dog is a seven-year-old male; the black bitch over there is his daughter and the red one is his half-sister. The pale tawny one is the black one's half-sister on the mother's side. Yes, you may pet him; the breed standard calls for the dog to be reserved with strangers but confident, and he's quite friendly." can be.
Today, I plan to take the dog for a walk along the Laurel Marsh Trail to enjoy the foliage, work on the devil ponies, and not talk to another living human until TBRE comes home.