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Who says dog owners miss out on parenthood?
By Kim Campbell Thornton
April 13, 2010
It’s one o’clock in the morning and I might as well blog since Harper isn’t letting me sleep. I don’t know if we’re going through the terrible twos, the night fears or some kind of adolescent angst, but we’re revisiting the night last year when she frantically insisted on being on top of our heads instead of in her usual spot — the crook of a pair of knees. That time I took her to the ER because her behavior was so strange and out of character. We’re not doing that this time since there was nothing physically wrong with her the last time.
We kept putting her at the foot of the bed and eventually onto the floor and she kept instantly jumping back up. This went on for an hour. So she and I have moved out to the sofa so that at least Jerry can get some sleep. There’s a crate in the bedroom, but it has been appropriated by Twyla. It would take a bigger earthquake than the one we had on Easter to dislodge her from it.
So why can’t I just let Harper sleep under the covers with her head on the pillow, like so many other dogs do? Maybe that’s what she wants to know. The answer, Harper, is that I have allergies. I can tolerate dogs in the house, in the bedroom, even on the bed, but if they get up close to my face, the result is tears and sneezing. And frankly, I just don’t enjoy 13 pounds of fur lying on my head, allergies or no. I could shut her out of the bedroom, but that seems cruel when she’s going through what appears to be an overwhelming need to be close to us.
I am wondering whether it’s a false pregnancy. She went through estrus in February while we were gone, so the timing might be right for nesting behavior. But the last time, she only did it that one night. I will get that checked out, but I see no need to do it in the middle of the night. In the meantime, I guess I’ll try again to get some sleep.
Update: Toward dawn, when Harper seemed to be sleeping peacefully on the sofa, I went back to bed. At 8:30, they were all scratching at the bedroom door, so I let them in. Harper jumped up on the bed and settled right into my knees, as if last night had never happened. Too late, puppy. Now it’s time to get up.
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I lived the sleeping on the couch part of puppyhood. Henry, the golden, had diarrhea off and on for months after he arrived. Mostly from the change in diet. The bedroom was down the hall and the couch was closer to outside, so that is where we slept most nights. I realized that Henry was very used to sleeping in the living room one night when I let him back in from being outside and he ran and jumped onto the ottoman and curled up. Actually, a year later and he still does it if I have to let him out in the middle of the night.
Nothing wakes you up quicker than a dog trying to vomit on the carpet.
Comment by Jill — April 13, 2010 @ 12:42 pm
I don’t even have to fully wake up to get a vomiting cat off the bed…..the ‘urks’ start and I just automatically head for the noise.
Comment by redheather — April 14, 2010 @ 6:42 am