Dogs of Brussels – The story of Baloo’s visit to Brussels Park

Dogs of Brussels is an article series about dogs who are spending their day in Brussels. Every dog has a special story and here is the first one.

My name is Baloo, my breed is Shiba Inu, and I moved to Belgium from Eastern Europe when I was a puppy. Shibas have become a very popular breed and some people don’t take care of us as they should, but luckily I don’t have any health problems. Today has been a warm and sunny day and that is why I am sitting on a bench right next to the fountain in Brussels Park.

There are a lot of monuments here and buildings such as this fountain designed with a neoclassical style by Gilles-Barnabé Guimard and Joachim Zinner. My owner tells me that this is the biggest park in Brussels city center and it’s located right next to the Royal Palace of Brussels. Also, this park was created more than two hundred years ago, sometime between 1777-1783. I wish I could smell something back from those years. It’s a joyful Sunday, lots of people in the city today.

Once a month we come to Brussels Park to spend Community Day. Today we have tried to find Pokémons, and that’s perfect, because that means a long walking day. Pokémons and myself have a similar background because my breed is originally from Japan. If I notice that my owner is about to take me for a walk, I run around and wag my tail. Wouldn’t you?

I live in Orbais, close to Perwez, which is also a beautiful city. Unfortunately, those were some of the cities which were bombed in Belgium during the Second World War. It is only about 40 kilometres from Brussels, in the southeastern part of Wallonia, so we speak French there. Close to our home is a lovely forest, Bois des Rêves, which means the wood of dreams. That is usually my favourite place to go for a walk.

My owner, Florent Germain, is a nice guy and he is thinking about adopting another dog so I could have company as well. I get every day my favorite chicken biscuits and at the same time, I make Mr. Germain one of the happiest persons in the world. Okay, I have also witnessed my owner’s very bad temper. Just a few nights before I puked on his bed. Apparently it wasn’t such a pleasant surprise.

When we come to Brussels not everything goes as planned. The first time I got on a tram, I saw an annoying dog there. Probably not an expat but an angry local dog who kept eye contact with me the whole route. It was tram number eight. When I finally jumped out of the tram on Rue de Bailly, in Ixelles, the dog came after me. The owner didn’t realize what was happening, or didn’t care, and stayed on the tram. It was scary because my owner had to put his feet between the doors to stop the tram. Otherwise that dog would have been strangled by its leash. Luckily that didn’t happen to the dog, even if I didn’t like him. So be careful with the trams in Brussels and mind the local dogs, as well as their owners who get easily distracted.

I don’t have so many dog friends because I am not used to random dogs. Probably because my first owners liked to keep me always on my own. I am socializing now with other dogs and this kind of community days in Brussels is the best opportunity to practice my social skills.

Barkly regards.

Be prepared for a doggy romance between Emma and her Labrador friend next time.