Sometimes I wonder if Louise and Sofie are a bonded pair. Louise was 1 when puppy Sofie came to live with us. They have been together almost their whole lives (they are now 6 and 7). They do not function well when the other is not near by. They work together as a team, especially when it comes to squirrels. They get mopey if the other is not around. Though they are not always next to each other, or even in the same room (for example: Louise sleeps in her kennel downstairs and Sofie on her dog bed upstairs), they don’t like if the other is not in the house. Charles is new to the pack, so they really don’t care much about him, and may never, but clearly, they get confused if the other is not in the picture.
Bonding to another animals comes in many varieties, some healthy and some unhealthy. Here are several different types of bonding that I have found:
Litter mate bonding (genetic). When pups are kept together to adulthood, they may become very codependent and throw tantrums when separated. There has been much written about the problem with litter mate bonding. Most literature warns that they may never be able to be independent of the other. I also read that they may not bond well with their human, because they are so bonded to each other.
Mother and child bonding (dam and offspring). When a pup stays with the Mom longer than 9 weeks, especially if the pup continues to nurse, there can be significant separate issues for both. The Mom can become overprotective and the pup could lack independence.
Work pack bonding (think sled dogs or herders). The dogs are not necessarily related genetically in this case. When dogs work together to carry out a task, they learn each others habits, and depend on each other to reach their goals. When not together, you can imagine that they may feel incomplete and lost.
Grief bonding. This is where an animal, who may have lost their long time pal, replaces that spot with either another animal in the existing family or a new friend. So, if you have 3 dogs and dog 1 & 2 are bonded, and dog #2 of that bonded pair dies, the mourning dog may bond to dog #3, even if they hated each other when dog #2 was alive.
Medical bonding. This is actually one of the reasons we got Louise. Squash was blind and we wanted another dog to help him get around better. Medical bonding is when you have one animal help another, especially when they are blind or deaf. These dogs not only bond because they are together so much, but one would clearly suffer if they are apart. Squash passed away in Louise’s first year, so I don’t think this bond got a chance to be that strong.
Trauma induced bonding. Dogs that have survived floods, tornadoes, puppy mills, even being placed in kennels together in a shelter, have been found to emotionally bond over their shared situation.
Inter-species bonding. These days we are seeing tons of photos on the internet of animals of different species that seem to be very emotionally tied to each other. If you have a cat and dog that have been together for 10 or more years, it would seem to reason that they would miss the other if separated. Is this a true bonded pair? All I know is that when one of the pack here at the Zoo disappears over the rainbow bridge (whether feline or canine) things do shift.
Are your pets bonded to another animal in your family? Tell us about it.
It was raining cats and dogs and Mom was concerned because Charles did not have a raincoat. So she took my old raincoat and turned it into a teeny tiny version of what it used to be. (She can be clever like that sometimes.) But now Charles can walk in the rain with us. I don’t understand why the pest has to come everywhere Louise and I go?!!! Couldn’t she just let him stay home?
I think that the coat looked much nicer on me anyway, don’t you? – Sofie Bear
Life has been very busy with our new brother, Charles the Mugwump. He is a very silly little guy. He likes to steal the big dog toys and take them across the room to his bed (usually dropping them half way because they are bigger or heavier than him). Louise really likes his teeny tiny tennis balls (there is a lot of squeaking going on). Even Nine, the Mancat, is coming around. Everyone is getting along, sort of, as long as Mom puts Charles in his exercise pen when we are having dinner or high value treats, like antlers. Learning about life with a dog that is the size of a cat is a new experience. He needs what any dog needs: he loves long walks with the pack, running in the yard, and cuddling, but he also wants to climb on things (like the cat tree) and play with the cat toys. Mini Cooper and him will become close friends, I think, once she figures him out. Life at the DogDaz Zoo is never boring.
Louise and Sofie are figuring out that the little guy is not going anywhere. He is not just visiting, he is staying forever. He tried to go to sleep with Louise (bottom right with flash). She is so sweet, I think she was confused but would have let him stay the night. He really likes her kennel, maybe because it smells worn in.
Sofie and him had a little fight last night. It was really my fault because they were doing so well, I gave them all treats together. Big mistake. Sofie is not ready yet for that much closeness. (bottom 2d from left) I know better than to feed him outside the exercise pen, but I did not realize nylabones would have the same effect. Charles tried to come visit me and had to pass Sofie (who is always at my foot). Sofie is cranky when it comes to anyone (dog or cat) getting too close to her, sometime even Louise. Well, that was fur raising for a moment. Charles was beside himself and hid behind V the rest of the night.
Pecking order establishment. I worry about 50 and 60 lbs dogs against 13 lbs.
I had to block the rabbit holes under the fence. Never really worried about that with the big dogs. I liked the holes so the critters could pass through the yard. But now, Charles can escape, so I blocked them with long flower boxes until I can nail boards down in the spring (bottom 2d from right).
The girls are now teaching Charles how to stare Mommy down (top) when eating at the table. If 4 sad hungry eyes weren’t enough, now I have 6 looking at me, pleading their case.
Louise, Sofie, and Charles are going to be great friends (paws crossed). Even the cats are coming around.
Being December, the fairy garden and Christmas dog are lite up under the DogDaz pines. Since it gets dark around 4:30 PM here, we get to enjoy the twinkling of the holiday lights for a long time in the evening.
The early darkness also means we are walking at a time when many cars are coming home for the evening and people are tired and speeding around the corners. Of course, everything I wear is black, and so is Louise. To keep us safer during the walking time, the girls wear lights around their necks (maybe I should too?). I recently read that flashing light collars are not healthy for dogs (I can’t find the article to share it here). It said that the flashing can scare them, give them headaches, or even seizures. That would not be good. So, to be a good pet protector, I have been putting their lights on the steady mode. My dilemma is that I don’t think people see the dogs as well (check out the video of us blinking below).
What do you think? I like the blinking for safety and I really think that the flashing is actually behind them, so do they really see it?
Do your dogs wear lights when walking in the dark? Do your use flashing or steady lights?
You can sure see Louise better in the darkness with her red light on. Sofie’s blue light is almost hidden in all her fur.
Sometimes, you can just find the best toys at KMart. It is hard to see, even at night, but there is a flashing light where the pee hits the snowman.
This reminded me of my blog friend, Easy. He would have found this funny. Easy left the planet the other day and is now, with Sammy the OneSpoiledCat, and all our Zoo Angels, in the big meadow over the rainbow bridge. This has been a good few weeks if you are in the Angel making business, but a bad few weeks for us still down here. Easy was a really special weimaraner and his humans really knew how to show his personality on their blog.
