3 Dog - 2 Cat Weekend - Day 1 - Meet the Cast

There are 5 family pets: the 3 dogs belong to my kids and the 2 cats belong to me and my husband. These 5 lords of the manor spend weekends with me during the spring, summer and fall.

Now the mix of personalities are interesting.

Meathead (full name is Meathead Augustus) is the senior statesman English Bull Dog, first dog in the family, and he prefers to sit quietly on the couch perched on my daughter's lap. Not a big walker, Meaty goes out to pee and poop and the whole process (from leaving the couch and returning) takes about 5 minutes - less if there is rain. The cats ignore him. He ignores the cats. He gets along with Grimace. He tolerates Milo. His only troublesome eccentricity is that he will eat the cats' food if he can get to it, and he loves the "special cat cookies" he finds hidden in the "cat cookie boxes" - the boxes with the sand. We try not to think about this when he kisses us. He is not a barker. He enjoys is naps which involve maybe 22 hours out of ever 24. He likes to get everyone up between 3 and 4 in the morning for night time walks. He uses the excuse that he is a senior canine with a weak bladder.

Grimace (full name is Grimace Roberto Geronimo) is the second senior statesman Pug, second dog in the family, and he prefers to sit right by his grandmother (me) on the couch or go for long walks outside with his grandmother. He also ignores the cats, but Wally loves Grimace - in a kind of a questionable way. Always rubbing up against him, wrapping his paws around him ... and freaking out Grimace.

Grimace love Meaty, but avoids Milo and the cats.

Grimace has two troublesome qualities: he barks EVERY SINGLE TIME he hears dog bark or door bell ring on the TV - you can't imagine just how frequently that occurs until you have a canine pointing it out to you - loudly and sharply. And he can't seems to figure out that it is a make believe sound. It can put you off TV.

He also makes "social statements" in the house, for which he wears "pooch pants". My son calls them camp trousers.

Pugs like to wear "clothes" so this isn't a problem for him.

Milo (full name is Milo, the Stud) is the "baby" at one year old, and the third dog to the family. He loves and plays everyone - to excess. Often he is isolated in the kitchen because he can't cool his jets on the playing. His favorite playmate is Meathead and any other dog that he can bully into playing with him. He barks alot at real and imagined things through the window. Milo loves the cats and has permanently destroyed his relationship with them because he hasn't learned the fine finesse of getting along with cats. Milo also loves the couch especially when his mom has Meathead on her lap. He is the most cuddly of the 3 dogs. He has excellent bladder control in the morning and would prefer to sleep in than go for a walk (an excellent quality if you want to sleep-in) ... I should have such bladder control! At other times he can be alittle leaky - wearing his own version of pooch pants.

Wally and Max, our cats (you can call them "Sir"), are acclimated to the dogs, sort of. Dogs have been part of their lives since they were kittens. But when faced with Milo's brand of "friendly", they say the most interesting cat swear words. I don't know where they learned to talk like that.

They don't seem to mind Meaty and Grimace.

They are fully "armed" and have yet to put their paw down with wayward Milo.

It's just a matter of time.

So that is the cast of characters this weekend and for many weekends into the future. They are all different beings with their own personalities and requirements! They are always "mixing it up." It makes for interesting weekends. ("Interesting" translates to sleepless, unexpected, farty, snorty, and noisy.)

I love these weekends.