Role As Town’S Greeter, Wag A Perfect Fit For This Old Salt

Most small towns have their village character, and Harrison is no exception.

Practically any day, if you drive or walk down Harrison’s main street you will spot him either in front of Bev’s, a local craft and gift shop, or Pete Nikolaus’ Steam Boat Trader.

On nice afternoons, he lounges on the sidewalk, comfortable in the shade of the building. Or, if the day is particularly hot, he might hang out in the gutter. It’s cooler there. Besides, from either spot he can keep an eye on everything that goes on in his home town.

His given name is Salt, but he is better known to locals simply as “Dog.”

Shop owner Bev Reinhardt said Dog, a lab and chow mix, was born to her daughter Cindy’s female lab about seven years ago.

“Back then, he was just a fuzzy little ball of fur,” Reinhardt said. “Originally Dog had a brother named Pepper and the pair, Salt and Pepper, belonged to Pete Nikolaus.”

Pepper disappeared, leaving Salt a solo act.

So how did Salt come to be known as Dog?

Reinhardt explained that people started calling the honey-colored canine a number of different names and finally just to make things simple, everyone started calling him Dog. The name stuck.

Dog likes everybody. He saunters slowly in front of the two stores, wagging his tail, accepting pats and greetings from almost everyone who passes by.

“Hi, Dog,” they say, stroking the broad head of the animal who stands hip high. Dog responds with a wag and what could pass for a smile. If anyone has the time to sit on the bench in front of Bev’s glass display window, that person probably will find that Dog has settled down companionably at his feet.

“He adopts everybody,” Nikolaus said. “The lady who drives for Federal Express brings him dog biscuits.”

Harrison resident Glenna Ross often brings Dog special tasty tidbits, and Ron Eliot frequently stops by to take him for a walk. Other times, when Dog isn’t on duty as unofficial town greeter, you might catch sight of him riding around town in the back of Ken Reinhardt’s pickup truck supervising a run to the county dump or some other equally important destination.

Despite a local leash law, Dog never is tied up.

“He doesn’t roam or go into the middle of the street. He seems to know where he belongs,” Reinhardt said.

Nor is he a barker. But despite his good disposition, he is capable of a growl guaranteed to get anyone’s attention. Nikolaus found this out firsthand one dark night. In warm weather Dog sleeps behind the closed doors in the storage area between Bev’s and The Steamboat Trader. In cold weather he sleeps on a soft rug in the back of Reinhardt’s shop. Just as he is the unofficial greeter, he is the unofficial guard dog.

Nikolaus recalls that he had to return to the building late one night. Walking very quietly without speaking, he unlocked the door, only to be stopped cold by a businesslike growl. Dog was on the job and taking no chances.

But Nikolaus is quick to defend Dog’s temperament. “He has the finest disposition around kids. He lays down and they sit on him. He’s even let a kitten play with his tail.”

Nikolaus admits that Dog used to have one bad habit. When small children came by with ice cream cones from the local ice cream store, Dog would bump them just right to knock the cone out of their hands. He doesn’t do that now, perhaps because he doesn’t have to. Maybe his manners have improved or he is satisfied just to wait because some people now buy him whole cones.

Whose dog is Dog? Reinhardt says “He’s Pete’s dog.”

But Nikolaus laughs, shakes his head and points a finger at Reinhardt. “I say, `See Mama,’ and Dog goes right to her.”

Being the town’s fixture makes Dog somewhat of a celebrity - so much so that his admirers, which include both locals and the summer tourists, can now buy a customized T-shirt or sweat shirt at Bev’s.

On the front of the shirt Reinhardt has reproduced a snapshot of Dog sitting in his usual spot in front of the two shops. The logo, in large, block letters, reads “DOG.”

“Harrison, Idaho” appears in much smaller script just under the picture.