Perils of Pet Ownership

[kate_nepveu]

Here's one of the perils of pet ownership they don't tell you about: what if your pet loves someone else better, and that someone else is out of town?

Well, just now at Chateau Steelypips, Emmy is lying stretched out on her side, head down on the floor, looking as abject as possible, and MOANING over and over.

I call her over to be petted and she ignores me. She'd rather just lie there and moan, as though that would magically produce Chad from across state lines.

(Since typing the initial words of this post, I have made the grave error, from a long-term perspective, of giving her some treats in a Kong—not to reward her, but just to occupy her, not that she'll know that.)

Arrrrgh.

Comments

[i-ate-my-crusts.livejournal.com]

Oh poor Emmy.

Terrible for you to be reduced from boon companion to mere food-provider though...

(I followed you here from rasfw and rasfc for book reviews, btw, and have had you friended for some while now. SF+dog people seem to far exceed the SF+cat people in my flist...)

[kate_nepveu]

Yes, sympathy for her is nice, but I was feeling bad for me! =>

(Now she's moping because she can't get the treat out. It's almost time for bed, though, and hopefully she won't whine after being crated.)

And that is somewhat surprising about SF+dog people, since it's usually thought to be SF+cat that predominates.

[sidhebaap.livejournal.com]

Awww... Poor girl.

[kate_nepveu]

Yes, she leads a truly difficult life. Right now she's taking solace in sniffing Chad's dress shoes.

*sigh* He's going to be gone barely more than 48 hours. But there's no telling a dog that.

[boxofdelights]

Yeah, some dogs just fixate on one person. My Kitsu is like that. I always give her a couple of Greenies to distract her when I leave. She cries, destroys things, sometimes injures herself trying to escape. Then when I come back she remembers oh, I got Greenies! and eats them.

[kate_nepveu]

Pretty dog, but poor baby--fortunately Emmy is not that bad, or we'd be spending a *lot* more time with our trainer.

(It's 6 am here and she's woken me crying, but she went outside and was sick--she has a bad stomach, though she hasn't been actively sick for quite a while--so I'll forgive her for getting me up if it spares me cleaning her crate.)

[sraun]

How's she been eating? I know that Mac, our oldest, will throw up a clear bright-yellow liquid if he doesn't eat regularly. He always gets at least one Milkbone just before bed - otherwise he throws up about 3 nights in 5. The vet informs me this is a fairly common thing among dogs.

[kate_nepveu]

Thanks for asking, and yes, acid buildup in her empty stomach is usually the problem.

She gets an acid reducer at night (OTC generic Zantac) and some kibble or other dry treats, and we make sure to feed her regularly. She's also on a special prescription kibble.

It's been weeks since she last was sick, so it's pretty well under control. *knock on wood* It's possible that she was eating sticks or something out in the yard yesterday and that irritated her stomach, or maybe pining gave her indigestion.

[writingortyping.livejournal.com]

Oh, I sympathize. Despite (because of?) the fact that I am the one home with Toshie (http://writingortyping.com/Photos/mac_frisbee.jpg) almost 24/7, it is my husband John who is his sun, moon, and big blue sky.

[kate_nepveu]

What an adorable dog.

I always knew that a dog would love Chad better--he's more of a dog person, though I like them very well--and he also was the one to bring Emmy home from the shelter.

I just wish she weren't so _abject_ about it.

[writingortyping.livejournal.com]

Thanks - yeah, though I adore dogs, I was the one who came into the relationship with cats (http://writingortyping.com/Photos/simonanddash.jpg) (shameless pet-shilling - Simon, on the left, was mine coming in. Dash we got jointly before we got married, and Toshie was filled with joy: "Mom! Dad! You got me a BABY BROTHER!").

The frenzied yelping and ears-down wiggling when John comes home is downright pathetic. John gets it most days, I only get it on special occasions. (Jealous? MOI?)

I think Toshie knows I'm writing about him. He's wandering around and hooting to himself, even though we just got back from a walk. Whoops - nope, it's that Baby Brother got locked in the bedroom. My little tattletale.

[kate_nepveu]

Oh, we both get the wiggling and toy-parade when we get home, at least; Chad gets it more, but I do get it.

Chad insists that Emmy has, _on occasion_, moaned at the door when I've left the house, but I'm unmoved, because we have to put her in the back yard before Chad can walk out the front door--she just can't bear to see him leave.

Jealousy is a terrible thing, ain't it? =>

Glad to hear that the dog gets along with the cats, or at least one of the cats.

[writingortyping.livejournal.com]

Simon (who was 14 lbs. to his 7 when we first brought him home) he respects.

Dash is his BUDDY. They PLAY. And chase one another. And make noise.

It's a good arrangement, as Simon is almost 9 years old and disdains playing.

[veejane.livejournal.com]

I am told this behavior is almost totally unheard-of in cats, but I have the clingiest cat in existence. When I go away on a trip (as I am about to do, little does she know), she hides from Flatmate and emerges only when nobody is at home or awake. Last time, Flatmate was worried the cat had got out, and checked, and found the Amazing Belly Princess curled up under the covers of my bed, sniffing my left-behind pajamas.

[kate_nepveu]

Poor thing. It's probably no fun for the person the pet misses, either, even though they don't have to deal with the moping pet.

What kind of rejoicing does a cat do when she's glad you're home?

[veejane.livejournal.com]

Mostly, crawls all over my hair when I am trying to sleep. Also, the interjection of a nose (possibly, a rough tongue) in conversations and the interjections of a furry body in attempts to walk across a room. Also, excessive purring, and leaping up on shoulders.

[kate_nepveu]

Well, that doesn't sound too bad, except for the first. I'm not sure there's such a thing as excessive purring, in particular.

[leighdb.livejournal.com]

Our family dog Holly was like that with my sister Liz. I mean, she loved all of us, but it was Liz she insisted on sleeping with at night.

It was hilarious, too, because we all knew where we were on the Sleeping With Hierarchy. If Liz was unavailable, I was next choice. After me was my parents' bed, and last came Kate (my youngest sister, not you, of course).

I think this may have had at least a little to do with the degrees of how kicky/tossy each of us were in the bed, though. Sharing a bed with Kate can be an... acrobatic experience.