Page 8 2024 Animal Stories Lincoln Daily News February 2024 doggie language. Licking her lips means: “I’m hungry. Feed me NOW! I expect food soon!” Wagging her tail exclaims: “Aren’t we having fun?” Even when we are wrestling on the floor (something she insists on every day), and she is ravaging my fingers with her sharp little teeth while growling fiercely, she regularly stops to lick my hands and my nose just to assure me “this is all part of the game we’re playing, you know?!” At first, I patted myself on the back thinking what a nice control I had achieved with Karen’s dog, feeding her, giving her timely potty breaks, playing with her, etc. But then it finally dawned on me some months ago: actually, she is the boss, and she has trained me to wait on her hand and foot!? But how could I not—especially when she jumps up on the recliner with me every day and snuggles up to me and her snoring lulls me away from my reading or TV watching into gentle snoring in tandem! The way Zookie trusts me, relies on me, forgives me, plays with me, and reads my changing moods has become a wonderful and totally unexpected part of my life. Who knew that an animal could become such a loving and dear companion?! I just didn’t see it coming!
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