Dog-Sitting

This is Bonnie, our next-door neighbor’s dog. We’re taking care of her for a few days while our neighbors are traveling.

We have a dog of our own, Riley, and having Bonnie here provides a study in contrasts. While Riley will ignore food in his bowl for hours at a time, Bonnie may be the most food-motivated dog I’ve ever known. Whenever Jennifer or I stand up, Bonnie jumps up too. Yes, lots of dogs do that, but Bonnie’s not looking at us, exactly; she’s eyeing our hands, checking to see if we’re holding a treat. If I actually pick up a snack, Bonnie becomes hyper-vigilant, focusing like a laser on the food in my hand. In fact, it doesn’t even have to be food. I can pick up the TV remote and Bonnie will come running over, just in case what I’m holding is an unusually large dog biscuit.

Riley accepts being petted with the weary mien of the King of Id being cheered by his subjects. Bonnie, on the other hand, rolls over on her back to present her tummy for rubbing whenever I lean down. This complicates things when what I’m leaning down to do is clip a leash to her collar, especially given that as soon as she realizes I’m attaching her leash, she tries to leap up and run to the front door, wagging her whole body in paroxysms of joy at the prospect of going for a walk. For Riley, going for a walk is an onerous duty.

But perhaps the most significant difference between Riley and Bonnie, from my perspective, is that Bonnie has taken a shine to me. It’s not that Riley dislikes me, but he’s completely imprinted on Jennifer. He barks plaintively whenever he hears the garage door go up, signaling that Jennifer may be arriving. When she walks in, he all but does back-flips of joy to finally be reunited with her. If I’m the one who walks in from the garage, Riley peers past me to see if Jennifer is behind me. If she isn’t, he turns around and goes back to bed.

While Bonnie is nowhere near as ecstatic about being in my presence as Riley is at being in Jennifer’s, she does seem to favor my company. She sleeps on the floor on my side of the bed — and I’m not even bribing her with food to stay there.