Living with Toodles

Hi everyone. We're all ok. The wild dog that attacked us was just a big puppy who wanted to play. Toodles reacted like he was a rabid wolf hell-bent on eating her alive and swelled up like an angry cat. Cracked me up. Hope you had a merry Christmas, a fun New Year's Eve, and a relaxing week in between. Toodles and I have really enjoyed the holiday break. Anneedabus and Daddy stayed home to play with us for two weeks. It was exactly what we wanted--the best gift ever!

Anneedabus is my best friend in the world. Except for a quick trip to South Carolina to visit his family and a night in Atlanta with his sister for a Lady Gaga concert he's been home the entire time. It's been great!!! We've played games, walked all over Athens, taken long naps and gone for car rides. I wish he could be home all the time.

I love Daddy, too. He takes care of me when Anneedabus isn't home. We were a lot closer before Toodles came along. I understand. Toodles keeps him pretty busy. She is more than a little high maintenance. Daddy can't handle her by himself--Anneedabus has to help. Daddy says it's a good thing I'm such a good boy. I guess that's one way of looking at it. The other would be to just accept that Toodles is a brat and send her to Reform school.

Toodles is a full grown dog with a bit of a mean streak. She walks all over Daddy and Anneedabus. They let her get by with murder because she's so tiny and cute. She looks and acts like a puppy when she's really just a bad girl--like the girl in that Orphan movie. She knows exactly what she's doing. She chewed up one piece from the exact middle of the puzzle Anneedabus and Daddy worked on all week. Honest! You can't make this stuff up.

She'll go sketchy on you at the drop of a hat. Daddy says it's her pancreas. She sticks her tail between her legs and scampers to Daddy. She'll sit in his lap for the next hour or two or six, shivering every now and then--for attention if you ask me. Pancreas my butt.

She knows better than to mess with me. Took her a while to catch on. She's a slow learner--even slower than Daddy. I still have to remind her that other than her squirrel, all the toys and chew sticks are mine.

You're probably thinking I need to practice sharing. Nope. Tried that. You know the sheep Toodles got me for Christmas to replace the one she destroyed? She's already ripped it apart. Same with both the toys Buggs gave us for Christmas. She also chewed up two rugs and a sofa cushion and ripped holes in several towels, throws, and blankets. I hate to think of the damage Toodles could do if she was ever left alone for more than five minutes. Like I said, she's high maintenance.

Even so, I love her. When her pancreas isn't bothering her and she's not tearing stuff up or clinging to her Daddy and she's not too tired, Toodles is a lot of fun. When she's in the mood to play she is up for anything. She runs almost as fast as I do and takes my open field tackles like a wide receiver in the NFL. We have a great time wrestling, chasing each other, and playing tug of war or keep away. Life would be pretty boring without her.

Sooner or later, Toodles will get into something a good dog would leave alone. It's her nature--who she is. When she goes too far I find Daddy and sit at his feet until she gets caught. Now I don't get blamed for the damage. You do what you have to do.