As a Labrador swam by me out to sea his owner said I hope he doesn't meet a seal

Summary

Before the outbreak of the pandemic, when my partner and I had started going for regular swims in the sea, I was heading out from the shore one day when I was overtaken by a dog. It was a Labrador, and it paid no attention to me as it swam past, seemingly intent on visiting the Isle of Man. Though not a dog lover, I was concerned about its welfare and when another swimmer came up from behind me, a human this time, I shared my concern. That dog, I said, pointing my nose towards the horizon, is going very far out. “Ah yeah,” the man replied, casually; “That’s Arthur. I hope he doesn’t meet a seal.”Later, back on shore, I learned why the man hoped Arthur would not encounter a seal. There was a match on TV that afternoon (it was mid-morning) and if Arthur found a seal to play with, the man, whose dog it was, would be in danger of missing the kick-off. When he met a buddy to play with, Arthur, it seemed, could stay in the water for quite some time.Some months later I had the good fortune of seeing Arthur and a seal playing together. They faced one another, the ends of their similarly shaped snouts a few feet apart, then swam forward, like two jousters heading towards each other in a developing gallop. Just as they were about to clash snouts, the seal would disappear below the surface, and Arthur would find his snout facing nothing but salty air. A quick turn would reveal to Arthur that the seal was now behind him, and that they were both already in position, snout towards snout, ready for another go. They looked like two good friends having the craic.When the pandemic arrived, and sea swimming was put on pause, our household added a pup to our number - Lenny the lockdown Labrador. We would take him to a local park for a gathering of newly minted dog owners, who would stand in a circle and watch their pups tumble over one another. One or two families had sheepdog-type mutts, and it was noticeable how these stayed away from the other pups, keeping a wary eye. Whenever a fe...