Stray dogs

In my neighborhood in Quito, most of the dogs on the street aren't technically strays, because they have owners and somewhere to stay at night, but they are free to run around where ever they want.  I'm familiar with most of the dogs near my house.  I know where they live, and sometimes they'll be many blocks away from home.  Just today, one followed me for 15 minutes and then took off even farther from his house.  I think that these free-roaming dogs are used more for protection from intruders at night rather than for companionship.   Occasionally I'll see a stray in our neighborhood.  They're easy to spot because they're usually really timid and look very scared because they get harassed by the local dog population and are out of their territory.