My puppy is jealous. Not of our other dog. Of me.
I’m an only child so maybe someone with siblings can explain this to me.
Our lab, Cosmo, is a sweet, sensitive boy. He needs attention all the time. If we’re home, he’s asking for attention. On the flip side, our golden, Wanda, wants nothing to do with us. She’s happy to ignore us most of the time and do her own thing.
But, what I’ve noticed, is that if I’m petting Cosmo, Wanda will wiggle herself between us. I sort of expected this when we got another dog, but what I did not expect was that Wanda isn’t trying to get my attention and pets. She wants Cosmo’s attention. She thinks her big brother is the coolest being to ever exist, and she’s jealous that he comes to us for a pet. I think she views it as him giving us attention, not the other way around.
And like any good big brother, Cosmo ignores his annoying little sister completely.
Again, I’m an only child. My husband says he was annoyed by his little sister when they were kids too, so I assume it’s normal.
But these are dogs, not kids.
Cosmo loves to play and get attention, but not from Wanda, and she’s desperate for his attention. If they’re in the same room, she’s trying to get him to play or run or just acknowledge her. Most of the time this ends with them play-fighting (she’s playing, he’s defending), making all kinds of annoyed noises and Cosmo chewing on her scruff until she’s covered in drool.
And I’ve tried to help them get along. We’ve tried to teach Cosmo that she’s friendly and just wants to be acknowledged, and we’ve tried to teach Wanda that Cosmo doesn’t like a puppy licking his teeth/ear/eyeball, but it’s been seven months now since she came home and they’ve only gotten a fraction better.
I just want to watch TV without my dogs making raptor noises at each other. I also never thought I’d have to tell my dog to stop licking her brother’s teeth.
Dogs are gross.