Dogster

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Oh no - not a little sister!!

I do not play well with others

My world has been turned upside down and I'm not a happy puppy.

First came the little sister. I don't mind playing with her, but I only want to do it on MY terms. And I certainly don't want her playing with any of my toys (or hers, either). And I won't have her going where I don't want her to go. I like to lie at either the top or bottom of the stairs so I can keep her trapped wherever I want her to be. If she tries to get past me, I scold her and I bite her. And then I wonder why she is so hesitant to play with me when I do feel like playing.

And now my boxer cousins have come to live with me. I like my girl cousin, Falon, A LOT. But her big brother isn't my friend. I yell at him, just like I do to my sister, whenever I don't want him to move around where I am. But he gets angry when I bite him and he tries to bite me back. Lucky for me, he has really big, soft lips and very small, rounded teeth, so all he can do is pull my fur. I, on the other hand, keep putting little holes in his head.

I do seem to be getting yelled at - a lot. My mom is not happy with my actions but she doesn't seem to know how to correct the problem. I wish we could all get along happily. If any of you out there have any suggestions, I'm sure my mom would love to hear them.

I thought she wouldn't stay

Wow.....it's been a whole year since D'Ogee came to my house. I'd like to say she's a nuisance, but I have to admit she's become my pack buddy. Mom tried letting her go play next door (they were thinking of letting "D" try out a new home) but neither of us thought that was a good idea. We sat on our respective decks and just cried for one another. So here we are, a year later. Mom says she couldn't part with her now. When she took us for our immunizations last month, she got "D" microchipped. I guess it's final now - she's here forever.

D'Ogee has taught me lots of tricks this year. I used to lead a very "proper" existence. Now I know how to surf the counters and raid the garbage in every room. Best of all she showed me just how comfortable it can be to sleep between my humans. That's one crowded bed when Dad is home!!

We all have a new schedule in place this year. Mom went back to work but my boxer cousins come to visit one day a week. What a great play date we have. I'm in LOVE with my girl cousin, Falon. Her big brother, Sam, always yells at me when I try to play with her. Falon and D'Ogee play the most and the best. But they let me get in on the fun, too. Sam and I even play together every now and then. He's teaching me to play tug-of-war. Sometimes I even try to use that knowledge now when I play with D'Ogee.

I had to have a tooth pulled a few weeks ago. I was chewing on one of my really hard bones and fractured a top molar. It didn't hurt me but my face swelled all up and the doctor said he'd have to remove the injured tooth. Until I could return to the doctor's, I had to take pills. I HATE taking medicine. But the doctor told Mom about "Pill Pockets" and she got some for me. Now I LOVE taking my medicine.

When the appointment day came, Mom left me at the doctor's office. They were very nice to me there. I was a little scared while I waited, but then I got to take a nap and when I woke up, Mom came right over to get me. She said I had pearly whites like a puppy again (they cleaned my teeth while I was sleeping). I got to eat lots more pill pockets for the next week and Mom had to put warm water on my food but now I'm good as new.

Life is good!

Now I have to share

Mom and Dad had this hair-brained idea that I was lonely now that Mom has returned to work so they got me a little sister. I had actually met her once over the summer and I really liked playing with her -- on HER turf. So Mom thought I'd like having her around permanently. But things are different now that she's come to live in MY house. I really don't like sharing my toys with her. She takes my teddy bears outside!! And she gets a bowl of food that she won't share with me -- she GROWLS at me. I eat mine up really fast now and she eats hers so slowly. I'd like to help her out but she doesn't want me anywhere near her bowl. I've never had another dog try to boss me around. And I've never had to let anyone else play with any of my toys before. Sometimes I get so angry and jealous that I actually fight with her. Then Mom gets mad and yells at both of us. Sometimes she even uses the penny can. Uh oh!! Oh yeah, this little sister's name is D'ogee. Say that one out loud....D...O...G. She came with the name. How silly is that! Mom keeps saying she's not sure this is working out. I don't know what that means exactly. But Mom is always pleased when I let D'ogee snuggle up on my bed with me. Once D tried using me for a pillow. I wasn't quite sure what that was all about but then I tried using her for a pillow too and it's not so bad. She is soft and warm and fuzzy.