Coming home late at night is a virtual obstacle course, as you weave in and around (and sometimes over) mounds of fur enjoying the warmth of the pavement in the cool evening.
They're known as the Godfather of the Road, and they have the uncanny ability to move out of the way of your car at the last possible second (most of the time).
When they're awoken by your headlights or the sound of your engine, they may look up. If they do, you're bound to get the "who the h$ll are you" look, as if to say, I can't believe this human is going to make me stand up and move out of the way. Most couldn't be bothered and you end up slamming your brakes or swerving at the last moment into a lamp post or some old lady pushing a cart of spring rolls.
You see, in Thailand dogs may be man's best friend - the same as the rest of the world, but here, the relationship is based on different terms. Unlike America, where people generally adopt stray dogs. In Thailand, stray dogs adopt people - that is, if you are deemed worthy enough.
And that was the case with Stewart, his wife, and their new pharmacy, Happy Drugs. Soon after it was opened, a benevolent stray decided that Stewart and Happy Drugs were deserving of its presence and moved in.
Excited to be adopted, Stewart invited me over to Happy Drugs for a formal introduction to his new beneficiary - Happy Dog
Happy dog is old, but still willing to look after a young British lad and his Thai wife.
Happy Dog only listens to half of everything you say, but as Stewart says, when it goes in one ear, at least it stays there.
He also has a silver Mohawk. I believe it's natural, but could have been the work of some drunk motorcycle taxi drivers. We'll see in a few weeks.
Happy Dog has some flea, tick and mange problem and will never enjoy the gentle pet of a human hand, but what self-respecting dog would ever wish to be coddled or caressed by a hairless ape anyway.
Happy Dog rarely smiles, but the joy of adopting humans and giving them the companionship they need to fill the gaps in their mundane lives provides a satisfaction that can never be measured or expressed with a simple, mangle-toothed grin.
For Happy Dog, life's good deeds are mainly unappreciated and even unnoticed, but as a lesson to humans and what we aspire to be, it's comforting to know that in our mixed up, screwed up world - even at the lowest levels of society, in the most absurd situations or set of circumstances, true altruism does exist.
By the way, this picture is in focus.
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