what's up?

When we first got Miley, she drove me crazy with the in and out of the door thing. I was used to Chamine's patient system. When Chamine wanted to go out, she simply stood and stared at the doorknob, willing it to open. Eventually it would. If we were neglectful enough, she'd get tired of waiting and just lay on the ground and stare at the door. She never made a sound, never scratched at the door. She just waited patiently until someone noticed her.

After Miley arrived, she took over the job for both of them. If she saw Chamine staring at the door, Miley would stand there and whine. If I didn't respond, she came and whined directly at me. At first I thought she was begging me to open the door so she herself could go out, but then repeatedly, after I opened the door and Chamine went out, she would just stare at me. It was a kind of "mission accomplished" sort of thing. And then of course, whenever she wanted to go out, which was frequently, she would stand at the door and whine for herself as well. She didn't really need to go out every single time she did this, but I wasn't about to take any chances on any special gifts left somewhere because I didn't halt my life to open the back door.

It got really, really old. I mean really, really, really, REALLY OLD. Finally, we decided to get a doggie door. We hemmed and hawed over the purchase for a bit. Get it big enough for Chamine? Just get a teeny door? What to do? We got one we were certain Miley could get through, obviously since she's just a quart sized creature, but we weren't certain Chamine could get through. As it turned out, Miley was scared to death of the door. Big surprise there. But of course the fearless one, saw the door, and with one very small coaxing from her mommy (my daughter), Chamine pushed right on through. "You want me to do what? Squash my body through that little hole? Oh. Okay." We did finally get Miley through after a few days, and now both of them use it freely and happily. We wonder how Chamine ever lived her life without this door.

But this is my favorite. Sometimes when Chamine is outside lounging around lazily, I'm pretty sure she gets this idea: "Hmmm. I wonder what's going on inside the house. I wonder if I'm missing out on anything important or tasty. Guess I'll check." She sticks her nose in, hangs out there for a few seconds, assesses the current household situation, and then decides whether or not she needs to come in and launch a more serious investigation. Sometimes she walks on in. Most often however, she just hangs there for a few seconds, sniffing and listening, alert for anything that might require her attention. Then satisfied that it's as boring as ever inside, she just quite simply pulls her nose back out and settles back down in a heap by the door where she started. Cracks. Me. Up.