Poor Madison...

This one is her favorite...we call him BIG BOY

Well, our four-legged child Madie has had a stressful 2 months since Landry joined the family. Up to this point in her 11-year life (that's 77 in dog years) she has been perfectly content with her role in our family as the spoiled "only child." As most of you know, she is not a fan of kids, dogs, or even most people (for that matter). Basically, she only likes people she has known since birth or those that give her people food (Grandma). Over the years, her doggy toy collection has spun out of control. Trey said we were either going to need a bigger house or fewer dog toys. This was never a problem when it was just her toys, but we now have Landry’s toys in the mix as well. So, yesterday Trey and I went through all of them, and gave each one a thumbs up or thumbs down. This may not seem like a big deal, but each one of these furry little slobber infested stuffed animals with half working squeakers has it's own back story that is very dear to all three of us. Some were brought back from trips that she did not get to go on, others were birthday presents, x-mas presents, or even post surgery presents. For a period of time (some longer than others) each of these things was her favorite thing in the world. I wish there was a place you could take these toys and donate them to other less fortunate dogs in need (a toys for tots for K9's if you will). It would make it so much easier to look them in the eye when you say goodbye as they stare back at you from the trash can.

The toys that didn't make the cut (Bear, elli, x-mas ball and frog, mermaid dog)

The Keepers (little boy, froggie, hedgehog, platy, Valentine big boy and of course dodo bird)...I know she is still VERY spoiled

So far we have been very pleased with Madie's behavior around Landry. I think she is somewhat scared of her and really doesn't know what to think. Occasionally she will give her a cautious sniff, or rub her back on the carpet where Landry might have been. For the most part she has been surprisingly good, and avoids as much of the chaos as possible by hunkering down on her bed in our bedroom.