Lucy & Rita

Here we have the first meeting of Lucy and Rita and them resting in the dirt after running around like crazy dogs, unfortunately my action shots don't come out so good. Now, I've had Lucy for a year and a half and Rita is my friend Jesse's dog who she's had since she was a puppy. Lucy and Rita are about the same age and same size but have not met until this day. Rita, an unknown mix, does not get along with other dogs with the exception of Brody who is Jesse's mother's dog. She also has some obedience issues. Rita and Brody ( a 100 lb. pitt mix) play very rough and are always trying to dominate each other. Rita got attacked by another dog at a dog park a few years ago and since then has had issues with any other dogs.

Therefore, Jesse was a little afraid for Lucy and Rita to meet even though Lucy is so mellow. When they finally met, it was in my front yard with the dogs on leash and the husbands nearby. Lucy got a little antsy to go after Rita but once both were sitting all was well and they went into the back to chase each other happily. They each munched on ice cubes and drank water side by side. However, when a food treat came out and Jesse held onto it too long Rita decided to go after Lucy and scrated her ear and got a tooth in the back of her neck. From that point on Lucy ignored Rita. It was funniest thing we had every seen. Lucy was sitting with me on the swing and Rita kept coming up to her to apologize, of course, and Lucy would turn her head away. Eventually, Lucy forgave her and they started running around again with no other incident. If Rita got too rough, Lucy would give a little GRRR and she'd back off.

Then, the next day Jesse calls me and tells me that Rita would do the same thing to Brody, when he got too rough playing she would stop and ignore him. It's amazing how one normal, tame, well-behaved dog (being Lucy, lol) can teach another dog how to behave. Not that I'm biased about Lucy being the best dog in the world. : - ) Jesse, also now belives that there is hope for Rita and that she can still turn around and be a well-behaved, gentle dog someday. Now, at least whenever Jesse and her husband come over we can also have a doggy playdate and Lucy has a new friend as long as we keep food out of the picture.