You're walking home and notice a loose dog near a family, so you give a quiet, calm warning without causing alarm.

I was walking home on a quiet sidewalk when I noticed a nervous dog near a parked car. The dog was off leash, and it kept running around near a bench.

A child started walking toward the car to pick up a ball. I saw the child's parent a few steps behind and said, "Hey, just a heads-up, there's a dog off leash over by that bench."

The child stopped, and the parent looked over. I kept my voice low and said, "You might want to stay left."

The parent said, "Oh, thanks. I didn't even see it." I pointed lightly toward the bench and said, "It doesn't seem aggressive, but it's moving around pretty fast."

The parent took the child by the hand and moved to the left side of the sidewalk. I added, "I just didn't want us getting too close."

A moment later, someone came out of a nearby building and called the dog. I said, "Looks like the owner's heading over now."

The parent thanked me again. I walked around the other side of the street and felt calm because I gave a quiet warning without shouting or making the dog more nervous.