We were pretty excited to bring Rocki home from the pet hospital as the house just didn't seem the same without him. We also hoped to bring some life back to his brother, who had been despondent since Rocki left. So, imagine our shock when we arrived and Rocki's brother was in a complete and total snit.
He was so mad he was salivating. He turned his back on Rocki, growled at him whenever Rocki approached and refused to be anywhere near him. I couldn't believe it!
When the vet called to tell us we had forgotten something at the hospital, we asked why Rocki's brother would be so mad at him. The vet speculated it was because Rocki smelled of other dogs. Hmmm...so perhaps our oldest, who has always been Rocki's inseparable companion, thought Rocki was "cheating" on him! If only he knew what that poor little guy had been going through.
As night turned into the next day, Rocki's brother finally started to come around a bit, but not much. I thought perhaps if I gave Rocki a bath the scent of other dogs (and not to mention the sickly "medical" smell) would not be so strong. I know it sounds kind of simplistic, but it actually started to work since my older dog began sniffing Rocki more after his bath. He even allowed Rocki to nibble on his ear...but not for long, of course. He is, after all, the oldest and the self-appointed boss of the two so he has to be mad just a wee bit longer to make his point. At night, I noticed the older one gradually coming closer to Rocki. He wouldn't actually touch him, but he would lie down within a certain distance that was carefully monitored at all times.
After a couple of days it was business as usual. There was wrestling to be done, food to share, toys to squeak, cushions to beat up, bugs to chase, grass to dig up and chewies to fight over. It warmed my heart to finally see them both back to normal.
0 comments:
Post a Comment