nana vs. della
Della is our puppy. Jed got her for Christmas and when we brought her home she was exactly 6 weeks old and fit in Bob's cupped hands. As opposed to our other big dogs, she needed to stay inside and had to sleep with one of us because she got scared and cried. Now, at 9 months old, Della thinks she's an equal member of the family, and is pretty much treated as such. She sleeps on the couch, or a bed, comes in and out constantly, and chews on Jed as she would with another puppy.
This has been a big step at our house, although I hesitate to mention it because Bob will deny it. See, Bob grew up on a farm where dogs - all animals - stayed outside. Dogs had fleas and were simply not on a par with humans. I grew up where I might get chastised from my mother for trying to move a dog off the couch so I could sit down. The dog was there first. So much our our union has been spent debating the role of dogs in our family and boundaries we set for them. Bob has finally seen the light, and as such Della has a pretty good life. As do our other two dogs who like to come in, but are't quite in the "sleep on the couch" mode yet.
Enter Nana. Bob's mom comes up almost every August to watch the kids when we go back to work. Della started off on the wrong paw when she tried to enthusiastically welcome Nana to our house while Nana was getting out of the truck after a looong trip from Georgia. Nana wasn't in the mood to be jumped and slobbered on, and Della didn't understand why this visitor shooed her away. That night, Nana got up in the wee hours to go potty and scared Della, who barked. That scared Nana, who jumped. That woke up Bob, who fussed at Della, who then got testy and came upstairs to wake me up for sympathy.
Throughout the week, the interactions between Della and Nana continued. Nana would shoo her outside, and Della would paw the door repeatedly (and annoyingly) to come back in. Nana would sit down in Della's spot to read the paper and Della would come up to explore this usurper. Nana would rattle the paper at Della, or roll it up and swat her, which made Della likely to pee from fear whenever Nana walked towards her holding something. It wasn't that Nana didn't like Della, she just like her better when she stayed outside where dogs belong.
Della digs holes, which Nana commented upon. Della brought sticks up onto the porch to chew, and left bits of wood everywhere. Nana swept the porch. Again. Della jumped up on Jed and scratched him, and she told him to hit her with a stick. We told him it served him right for training her that he plays rowdy.
Last night, Bob took Nana to the airport. The car was barely down the driveway before Della was up on the couch, back in her spot. She looked at us like, she was annoyed that she had been forced to share for the past week. Life was back to normal.
This morning Bob was laughing and looking out the window to where Della was rolling in our freshly spread dirt, digging holes where I intend to plant grass. "Mom commented on how much Della liked to roll in the dirt," Bob said, "I think she was telling me we need to leave some dirt for her to play in. I think she liked Della more than she let on." I didn't see that, but I never thought she disliked Della; she just didn't understand her place as an equal in our family.
So today everyone is in "let it all hang out" mode. Jed's still in his pajamas, eating bacon and watching football. Ali is trying to sneak back into bed, and Bob's reading and drinking tea. As for Della, she's sprawled out right in the middle of the floor, so we all have to step over and around her in order to move anywhere in the house. She doesn't move and we don't expect her to. We'll adjust.
This has been a big step at our house, although I hesitate to mention it because Bob will deny it. See, Bob grew up on a farm where dogs - all animals - stayed outside. Dogs had fleas and were simply not on a par with humans. I grew up where I might get chastised from my mother for trying to move a dog off the couch so I could sit down. The dog was there first. So much our our union has been spent debating the role of dogs in our family and boundaries we set for them. Bob has finally seen the light, and as such Della has a pretty good life. As do our other two dogs who like to come in, but are't quite in the "sleep on the couch" mode yet.
Enter Nana. Bob's mom comes up almost every August to watch the kids when we go back to work. Della started off on the wrong paw when she tried to enthusiastically welcome Nana to our house while Nana was getting out of the truck after a looong trip from Georgia. Nana wasn't in the mood to be jumped and slobbered on, and Della didn't understand why this visitor shooed her away. That night, Nana got up in the wee hours to go potty and scared Della, who barked. That scared Nana, who jumped. That woke up Bob, who fussed at Della, who then got testy and came upstairs to wake me up for sympathy.
Throughout the week, the interactions between Della and Nana continued. Nana would shoo her outside, and Della would paw the door repeatedly (and annoyingly) to come back in. Nana would sit down in Della's spot to read the paper and Della would come up to explore this usurper. Nana would rattle the paper at Della, or roll it up and swat her, which made Della likely to pee from fear whenever Nana walked towards her holding something. It wasn't that Nana didn't like Della, she just like her better when she stayed outside where dogs belong.
Della digs holes, which Nana commented upon. Della brought sticks up onto the porch to chew, and left bits of wood everywhere. Nana swept the porch. Again. Della jumped up on Jed and scratched him, and she told him to hit her with a stick. We told him it served him right for training her that he plays rowdy.
Last night, Bob took Nana to the airport. The car was barely down the driveway before Della was up on the couch, back in her spot. She looked at us like, she was annoyed that she had been forced to share for the past week. Life was back to normal.
This morning Bob was laughing and looking out the window to where Della was rolling in our freshly spread dirt, digging holes where I intend to plant grass. "Mom commented on how much Della liked to roll in the dirt," Bob said, "I think she was telling me we need to leave some dirt for her to play in. I think she liked Della more than she let on." I didn't see that, but I never thought she disliked Della; she just didn't understand her place as an equal in our family.
So today everyone is in "let it all hang out" mode. Jed's still in his pajamas, eating bacon and watching football. Ali is trying to sneak back into bed, and Bob's reading and drinking tea. As for Della, she's sprawled out right in the middle of the floor, so we all have to step over and around her in order to move anywhere in the house. She doesn't move and we don't expect her to. We'll adjust.
Comments