On Valentine’s Day I wasn’t expecting to get any hearts, leastof all from a police dog named Felix.

Nevertheless, Brookhaven Police K-9 Officer Clint Earls’four-legged partner gave me a heart-shaped bite mark in an accidentWednesday during a publicity stunt for the United States PoliceCanine Association regional competition that starts today at thecity airport.

To promote the event, Earls suggested the “newspaper man” suitup to be the decoy in a picture of Felix in action. Thinking itwould be an exciting opportunity, I cheerfully went along andagreed to meet the duo at the airport Wednesday afternoon.

Before leaving the office, I told some co-workers I was going tobe bitten by a dog. At the airport, I said to Felix: “Hi, I’m Mattand I’ll be your chew toy today.”

Never did I expect those jokes to turn out to be so painfullyliteral.

In preparing for the photo, Earls explained what would behappening while I put on the heavy pants to protect my legs and thelarge padded sleeve for my left arm that Felix was to bite in thedemonstration. Once properly attired, I walked like an oversizedOompa-Loompa to the canine obstacle course.

Near the course, Earls put Felix in place as I moved into myassigned position. Earls came to me and instructed me to raise myhands.

I raised my hands as instructed, but I also shifted to face theofficer.

Little shift. Big mistake.

Felix must have interpreted my shift as an act of aggression andbolted to defend his partner.

Earls caught the movement out of the corner of his eye andnudged the dog off target. The dog flew by me, although nipping myright arm during his split-second leap.

In a remarkable display, Earls’ voice commands had the animal onthe ground and under control before I even knew I was hurt.

I felt a slight stinging sensation in my arm around the triceps.Removing my jacket – which surprisingly was not ripped during theattack – revealed an estimated three-inch by four-inch gash.

“We got to go to the emergency room,” Earls said.

Co-workers Tammie Brewer and Sarah Holcombe, who had taggedalong to see the display, and Therese Apel, who was there to takethe picture, escorted me back to airport office before Earlscarried me to the hospital.

Earls apologized profusely on the way to the hospital and in theER.

I assured him I was all right and that I realized “stuffhappens.” And I told him he’s likely to receive a fair amount ofribbing from his opponents during this weekend’s competition.

In the emergency room, Dr. Kevin Hubbard joked that someone washaving “a doggone bad day.” Earls didn’t think the comment was allthat funny.

As for me, I was laid back as Hubbard put 14 stitches in my arm.He probably could have stopped at 13, but there’s that bad luckthing associated with that number.

Earls was great throughout the ordeal and all my co-workers werevery supportive when I returned to the office later in the day.

With the “heart” given to me by Felix safely stitched up, Earlsdropped by the office Thursday afternoon to check on me and topresent me with another heart.

This one was of the purple variety, stitched along with my nameon one of the T-shirts for this weekend’s competition. I can nowsay I’ve earned a Purple Heart.

Everyone realizes the situation could have been a lot worse -but it wasn’t thanks to Earls’ quick reaction. For any criminalsout there who may encounter a police canine, I’d advise you to dowhat the officer says because the alternative is no fun at all.

As for any future publicity stunts where my participation isrequested, I may ask for stunt double for the dangerous parts.

Write to Matt Coleman at P.O. Box 551, Brookhaven MS 39602,or send e-mail to mcoleman@dailyleader.com.