G*Nice: Cookie takes the biscuit

I can't emphasise enough how my life has been enriched by my little French Bulldog by the name of Cookie. But it's not all easy like a Sunday morning. I am less the dog whisperer and more the dog shouter. "Cookie, no!" as I return home to discover she has devoured yet another PS3 controller. But I do think that within our crazy world, I know what she is thinking.

Cookie is now 11 months old and is real little tester, always pushing for a new privilege. A few weeks back a brand new idea popped into her bullet head. It has always been the case that at around 6am she tick-tick-ticks down the corridor to spread herself outside my bedroom door, breathing heavily into the slight open crack between door and wall. I always took it as the dog equivalent of a loud clearing of the throat to get someone's attention but to be honest at 6am, it's gonna take a lot more than that to get anything outta me!

So one day she chanced it and nudged the door open off the little catch. I am a light sleeper so heard the pop of the door and glanced up. The look of uncertainty and fake surprise on Cookie's face was absolutely priceless.

If she could talk I am sure she would have said something between an excuse and an offer: "I don't know what happened... it wasn't me... but let's face it, you're a man, I'm a dog, we are both awake, let's say we do away with these rules and just be ourselves!" Despite being on a bedroom ban up to that point, I called for her to come in. She was kinda shocked and unsure if she was being beckoned to be told off, so kept looking over her shoulder to see if I was talking to someone else. When she twigged that I was inviting her, she daintily tiptoed so as not to make any noise or commotion that she could be blamed for.

After a quick greeting we both fell back to sleep, Cookie curled up with her head on my Motley Crue biography.

The thing is, that was one of her tests; the very next morning at 6am she no longer felt she needed an invitation and she has convinced herself that now she is on the guest list. Gone is the delicate push of the door with the nose, replaced by a full-on shoulder barge not unlike a forced entry by a Swat team. Her intention is to wake me without making any obvious assertive move to do so. What follows is an hour of foot and leg chewing (hers, not mine!), burping and manic use of the back leg as an ear scratcher to rouse me.

Now many of you out there will be thinking that I would be angry at this invasion but you know what? I find it endearing because I think I know why she is doing it. She has worked out that she has from the time I wake up until 9am to hang out before I go to work so she is ensuring she is in my space and face for as long as is possible to spread the love. Who could be angry with that?

Cookie-And-Cream-ingly Yours
  G*Nice