Thursday, March 22, 2007
I've lost that lovin' feeling
I think I've lost that loving feeling for my dog Bailey. I haven't stopped taking care of him. I still feed him, bathe him, give him his flea and heartworm medicine, keep him updated on his vaccines, and take him out for walks when I go out with Isa. However, as my husband has repeatedly and disapprovingly told me, I don't give him any attention anymore. Ever since the baby was born, ALL my attention has diverted to her. We actually tried to heed to the pet expert's advice by getting him used to her scent by letting him sniff her blanket, having him sniff and lick her feet when we brought her home, trying not to act anxious when he came around to smell her, and petting him when he was around us but Bailey still showed the ill effects of bringing a baby home by soiling our new shag rug multiple times (while my mom was a guest at that-how embarrassing!) Top that off with the new scratches and lick marks on the living room sofa and the claw marks on the curtains, I have not found it easy to show affection towards him like I used to. I wonder if this is uncommon behavior for a new mother who has pets? I was never one for having pets in the first place. My husband was the one that wanted to have a dog more than I did. He was always trying to bring me to puppy stores when we first got married. He brought Bailey home shortly thereafter to console me when he had to leave me to visit his family for Christmas. I grew up in a household that did not allow shoes in the house let alone dogs. I learned to love Bailey and he became a pseudo replacement for a child that we thought we would never get to have. Now I am struggling with trying to love him again. However each time I try to let my guard down, he does something naughty like vomit on the carpet, drop feces all over the dining room while I am trying to get him to go outside, or wake up Isa with his barking after I've gotten her to go to sleep. This does not sit well for my type A and "dirtaphobic" personality. I DO feel guilty about it and I DO want to be affectionate towards him again but now that Isa is here, it has been a difficult thing to do. I cannot let go of the fear that he may one day hurt her. Ever since we had left him in Charleston to go on one of our trips, he has not done well with children. I don't know if I can let this go or even if I should. I think Isa's safety comes first but am I compromising it by behaving this way? I feel guilt for wanting my sister-in-law to take him when she buys her house. I will try again to be loving and patient towards him. I just pray that he does not do anything to hurt my little girl because she will always come first before him.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment