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When Doggie Met Baby...
Harry Pearson has been observing unexpected rivalries developing in his recently expanded household...
When we brought our daughter home from hospital our dog, Ingo, a Schnauzer, accepted the new situation with surprising equinimity. The crying, the commotion, the fact that visitors who had once fussed over him now strode past without a second glance in his direction, Ingo greeted them all with an indulgent sigh.
Looking back, his attitude was based on a terrible misconception. Ingo took consolation in the erroneous view that her stay would be a brief one. After eight weeks a couple of strangers would arrive, hand over a cheque and take her away in a cardboard box, never to be seen again. After all that's what had happened to him.
When it became clear that this practice wasn't to be followed, Ingo's behaviour changed. When the baby cried, he emitting a mournful yowl. When commanded to be quiet, he would stop and look up at us with sad, brown eyes, a victim of gross injustice.
When visitors arrived he no longer waited to be sought out but hurled himself at them with attention-seeking vigour. Male friends now approach our house sideways, hands cupped in front of their groins like footballers in a defensive wall, in an attempt to ward off the impact of a high velocity canine skull.
Sometimes he gets shouted at. The first complete sentence our daughter uttered was, "For Heaven's sake, get out of the way Ingo!" But dogs are snobs by nature, adoring those who are above them in the heirarchy. Since my daughter started to issue commands, Ingo's attitude to her as begun to soften. Just after lunch yesterday he actually licked her face. This was surely a sign of affection. Either that or there was a bit of mince stuck to her chin...
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