The Leader, The Led

It's a chill ill wind that batters
the defences of man and beast
alike on this bleakly miserable
winter day with its icy gales.
The man is large and looks robust,
though he is also elderly and walks
slowly, with cane firmly held.
His little companion a mere
notional mote of a dog,
whose slender legs and delicate feet
convey it swiftly over the frozen
ground. An ear-muffed cap and
rough jacket ensures icy fingers of
wind do not penetrate the man's
defences. As for the tiny dog,
bristling with bridled energy it is
constantly on the alert for challenges
to its guard duty in protection of its
companion, hackles rising at the
appearance of others walking
the forest trail and answering to 
the impudence of squirrels by the
need to uphold its terrier-breed 
honour, ferociously running them
up the safety of tree trunks,
generating the warmth of duty bound.