The furry first-born I'd seen it happen with my friends who had kids. The dog was dethroned the second their baby came over the threshold. Their beloved pups became an afterthought. Once the center of their universe, the dogs became shadowy figures that roamed the backyard or peered up from the basement.
When I was pregnant, I vowed to our golden retriever, Chloe, that she would never be relegated to the shadows when the baby came home.
After all, she broke us in as parents. She taught us about the 2 a.m. crying/potty sessions, going to the doctor for shots, and that dog park politics aren't that different from playground politics.
But, with the arrival of each baby a new reality set in. The frequency of walks and visits to the dog park have dropped.
She is still very much a part of our family, but she often sends herself to the sidelines to stay out of the way of two tiny whirlwinds. I'll catch glimpses of her observing our hectic household throughout the day.
I can almost see the smug oldest sibling thought bubbles forming above her head.
"Hey, I NEVER refuse the food you put in front of me. Nor would I fling. The. Entire. Plate. Onto. The. Floor. ... Oh, thanks, kid!"
"Don't look at me, I always come when you call my name ... unless there is a squirrel involved."
"Do I EVER give you a hard time about going to bed? How about naps? Nope. I think they are a fantastic idea. In fact, I think I'll take one right now. Want to join me?"
Chloe gets up with me every day as I get ready for work. We pad around the house together in the dark while everyone else is sleeping. Sometimes she stands by the door to go out, or kicks her water dish to be filled. But mostly she just follows me around. Sometimes she'll rest her head on my knee and look up at me with her grey goggles that olden goldens tend to get. One morning I realized that this was our only "alone time" in the day.
All she wants is a little undivided attention. Perhaps a scratch behind the ears or a kiss on the little white patch on top of her head. I will gladly give that to her. I can't forget, she may have stepped to the sidelines when the kids came into the picture, but she'll always be our No. 1 pup.
KAY KRHIN
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