Charlie Finds a Friend
We have a house guest named Ginger. Since both Ginger and Charlie are only-dogs, it took a good deal of work to get them to accept sharing the same space. Highlights of the introductory period included …
CHARLIE: YAY! A bouncy, squeaky friend! Let’s play! We can bounce and wrestle!
GINGER: AAAAHHHHHH!!! You are a big galoot, get away from me!!!
CHARLIE: Bounce like this!
CHARLIE’S HUMANS: Charlie, be easy!
GINGER: AAAAHHHHHH!!!
CHARLIE (in full bow let’s play position, tail a rockin’): Ok, I’ll ask nicely. *wag* *wag*
GINGER (stalking away haughtily): What a plebe. Oh look, you have tasty bones. I’ll just be taking this. *steal* *steal*
CHARLIE: AAAAHHHHHH!!! No! No! No! You are not nice!
GINGER’S HUMANS (taking bone): Ginger! Don’t steal.
CHARLIE and GINGER: ARF! ARF! ARF! ARF!
TIM: Who wants venison treats?
CHARLIE and GINGER (parking their butts on the floor): We do! See how good we are! We are best friends and deserve treats!
TIM (handing over treats): Good job.
CHARLIE (to Ginger): If we do all that again, we can get another venison treat when we stop it!
GINGER: Ok! You start bouncing and I’ll go steal your bone!
CHARLIE: Let’s bark a lot too!
GINGER: Bark? That’s child’s play. I’m a beagle; I can bay! Listen to this! AAAOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
CHARLIE (bouncing): YAY! That’s awesome! Ok, let’s take it from the top and I’ll add in poking you in the side over and over with my nose and then you bay!
This is scheduled to go on for the next three weeks at which time we predict the dogs will be inseparable, but Tim and I will be stone deaf.