Wednesday, February 16, 2011

The Doodle gets a room


Apparently the accommodations in our completely overcrowded bed have become entirely too much for Darby, as he has moved out.

At first he would at least make a show of coming to bed with us, choosing to stay on the floor rather than participate in the nightly scrum between he and Bad Kitty Bo as the cat came onto the bed and claim the spot Darby had been keeping warm just moments before. As Darby has a completely healthy respect for the cat’s right hook, he invariably ended up ceding the high ground anyway. When the Doodle chose to flop on the floor, we looked at it as coming to terms with the inevitable --- and an opportunity to once again be able to crawl into bed without practicing our ninja stealth moves to avoid all of the furry objects already taking up space.

Shortly after the floor-flop phase entered our lives, we began to notice that sometimes when we got up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom there was no Darby to step over. Not that I minded not having to switch on the cell phone flashlight to know where to avoid stepping, but I couldn’t help but wonder where he was. Did he decide to camp out by the front door in pursuit of the booger who showed up every morning at around 4 a.m. to throw something at our porch? Was he trying to see exactly when it was during the night that the neighborhood strays and ferals were holding their pool parties in our backyard?

None of the above. Darby had simply relocated himself to the guest bed, where he could sleep in queen-size splendor, never having to move, skootch or bump into another breathing creature. We found it cute.

Now, he’s taken the final step towards sleepy-time independence. Darby no longer pretends that he is part of our evening bedtime ritual. When I announce that it’s time for bed, the Doodlebug happily trots on down the hall…into the guest room, where he pops up onto the bed and curls himself in a ball, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible, lest we decide that we are no longer amused by his defection.

For the record, we find it hilarious. At least until the next time we have guests.

8 comments:

Shot Through the Heart: Doug Kessler's Photoblog said...

I like Darby's "adaptational" style.
Cute story, Vicky!

Pamela said...

Are you sure Darby didn't just decide his coat looked better with the bedspread in the guest room? Maybe it's not just humans who try to be fashionable.

Kristine said...

Yay! It is letting me write a comment this time. I can't tell you how long I tried and tried on the weekend before giving up.

Anyway, I understand Darby's desire for his own bed, his own space. Sometimes, you just need to stretch out.

snoopy@snoopysdogblog said...

Darby,

You really are smart!! A whole bed to yourself!!

Snoopy :)

Vicky said...

Darby is such a unique little dude that it could honestly be any of the above. Or perhaps he thinks we snore too much. Who knows what lurks in the minds of little floppy dogs?

Lori @ According to Gus said...

I do the same thing with my phone in the middle of the night. When the temperature rises, Gus heads down off the bed and sleeps on either the floor or under the bed. If I get up in the middle of the night I'm always paranoid I'll step on him. Glad I'm not the only one. :)

I think it's awesome that Darby found a spot of his own. We all need room to spread out once in awhile.

So glad I'm able to comment now...sounds like Kristine had issues too?

Vicky said...

Yeah, I think it was a little wonky for a day. I've come across that on a couple of blogs when I've been Hopping.

Glad it's better now, since I love hearing from you all :)

Unknown said...

I'm glad my little terrier let's me share her bed. I wouldn't want sleeping on the floor =( Besides, it makes for a warm bed when you have your furry kid sleep beside you. Lotsa love to Darby from her furry-less friends over at http://www.naturalk9supplies.com/

 

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