A Boy's Best Friend

Meet Rufus.  Most of you know Rufus, he's been around for 6 years now- and after all WAS the center of my world.  That is until I adopted Otto (my Italian greyhound/Chihuahua) and of course had my first born, Oliver.  Both of these events rocked Rufus' world.  Rufus went every where with me- the grocery store, the mall, class, plane trips, you name it.  That all came to a screeching halt the minute Otto nervously walked through the door, and by the time Oliver arrived, Rufus pretty much checked out.  He managed to gain twice his weight (even while on a strict diet and only getting 1/4 cup twice a day.)  He started and continues to eat his own crap that has made him very sick on 2 occasions.  It really breaks my heart, because he's obviously dealing with some major doggie depression.   And yes, I feel guilty- I play a huge part in Rufus' sadness.  The hardest part is accepting that there is some truth in what all those people were saying when I was pregnant.  "Oh you just wait," they'd say.  "You won't love your dogs nearly as much after you have your child."  Yes and No.  I love my dogs as much as the day I brought them home, it's just a different love from what I have for my son.  Oliver comes first- I carried him for 9 months and birthed him.  But I still and will always adore my dogs.  They don't get nearly the amount of attention they did before Oliver, but now that Oliver is getting more independent and sleeping through the night, I can take more time and cuddle or play with them. 

The really sweet thing is, Oliver just adores Rufus.  Rufus is his buddy as far as he's concerned.  And Rufus will take all the attention he can these days.  Sometimes it's hard to say if Rufus is actually enjoying himself or not (he's such an ornery old cuss), but recently I've seen him and Oliver playing tug of war with a dog toy.  I think Rufus secretly loves little Oliver, but I don't think he'd ever admit it.  That's my Rufus.