Amy Scott's Thoughts

One family member has felt the arrival of Owen more deeply than any other. That family member would be our Toby. This dog is a sensitive soul. He has always been very tuned into our schedule and our routine. If we divert from the regular flow of life, Toby lets us know. He usually isn’t too happy about it. So, you can imagine how he feels about our new way of life now. Many people asked us how we thought Toby would do with a baby. It’s a reasonable question. Toby was our “baby” for over three years before we had a human baby. We expected it to be an adjustment for all of us. Toby does well with Owen. He behaves himself just fine. However, something tragic has happened. I do believe we have killed Toby’s spirit. The spark has gone out of his puppy eyes. He knows that things are different and he can’t say he is happy about it. I think Toby likes late night feedings the least of all of us. He groans at us if we have to move him out of the way. He would prefer that we let sleeping dogs sleep. Understandable. I would like a little more sleep myself. There are moments where Toby will come up to me and sit on my lap or sleep by me during the day and I try my best to love on him in those moments. I want things to feel as normal as possible for him. I’ve also tried my best to take him for walks on sunny days because these are always great adventures for him and they tire him out. He is a happy pup on walk days. I’ve also feed him more people food than I should in the last six weeks. I’m trying to cover my guilt with scraps. I know that a day will come where Toby’s memory of the family three will fade and his new normal will be our family of four. But that time has not come yet. He still remembers when he was the center of attention. So far now I will keep bribing my pup in hopes that his sensitive soul will be encouraged and that spark will return. Poor sad dog!