Mutiny!

I don't know what's going on but clearly there was a family meeting consisting of all three of my pets and I wasn't invited. There have been several incidents of mutiny and I am outnumbered. It started with Stevie refusing breakfast before 1:00 in the afternoon. She is a girl that really enjoys sleeping in, to the point that if I dare wake her before 1:00 in the afternoon she refuses breakfast and goes back to sleep. I feel like I am raising a teenager in canine form. I have to feed the dogs at the same time because if I feed Alvin earlier and then try to feed Stevie later, Alvin panics that he is missing out and I can only see so many of his whirly twirls until I start to get dizzy. I changed their feeding schedule to accommodate Princess Stevie and so they eat very late at night and then have what can't even be characterized as brunch because it's too late in the day.

Then there is Mister Alvin who made me almost fall down today because of his rebellion. We went over to grandma's house and Alvin was terribly excited because he hasn't been over there for nearly a week. I was so proud of him because on the way over he didn't so much as break out even one loop, pranced by my side, and knew the way to grandma's house. Once we got there, we had a grand time, complete with hot dog bites. My mom decided she would come back over to my house with us and I was proud of Alvin because he was able to go out the door and didn't attempt to run back in at the last minute. This was obviously due to the fact that my mom was coming with us. Due to my mom's fairly recent knee surgery, she walks quite a bit slower and I tend to walk ahead of her. I was walking Alvin when all of a sudden I got pulled back so hard that I started to stumble backwards. Alvin is a little thing but he managed to plant his butt and pull against me so hard that it caused me to nearly fall. I turned around to find him sitting, eyes wild, and his neck extended. He flat out refused to go further until his grandma caught up. He lovingly trotted next to her and it was clear that he was running the show.

My cat, Maddie is getting pretty old and will be 16 next month. She has always been the ideal cat, not too needy, fearless, yet cuddly. She has recently taken to meowing loudly early in the morning while demanding one of two things, a treat or affection. When she wants a treat she stands beside my bed and meows repeatedly. She actually expects me to get out of bed, go into the kitchen and get her a treat. Keep in mind that her "treat" is her own cat food, of which she has a whole bowl full, but she wants me to serve it to her on the floor in small amounts. I made the huge mistake of getting up a few times to give it to her just so she would shut up. This has led to a terribly persistent, very verbal cat. She has started a new move of now sitting on my back and meowing repeatedly when she wants me to wake up and pet her. If I give in and pet her, she will then go back to her dog bed, but then apparently gets bored because 15 minutes later she is standing on my back meowing. For a cat that has never given me one ounce of trouble, she is certainly making up for it.

They have also taken to all standing near the food container and Maddie has taken on the roll of town crier and strongly advocates for me to get up and give them each a treat. Alvin stands there literally licking his lips. They look so darn cute as a trio that I usually give in.

There are many more incidents of obstinacy, rebellion, and being terribly demanding. When reflecting on their recent behavior, I could only conclude that I had created this entire mess. I have spoiled those three to the point that I find myself actually begging them to behave, or in Maddie's case to let me sleep. I concluded that it is such a blessing that I never procreated because if I had a child, I would be the mother getting the phone calls from school and when they told me that my child was once again suspended, I would just be relieved that the little darling hadn't managed to get expelled. I have the gift of taking a lovely, undemanding animal and making them a spoiled rotten mess within hours. And so to society as a whole, when reflecting on the fact that I didn't procreate, all I can say is, you're welcome!