Mischief Managed: Penny has a new friend!

My sister got a black lab puppy and named it Maddie. She is the bitiest (she bites a lot) dog I've ever known, but I guess I haven't known that many puppies. She is very social and wants to be a lap dog even though she's really too big for that now. Despite her bitiness, she's obviously much more trainable than my own dog - she just needs to grow up a little (mature, not get bigger). She already knows how to sit, shake, and come. She REALLY wants to play with their cat, Jones, but Jones is having none of that - he hisses, swats, and puffs himself up when Maddie gets within four feet of him. Yet Maddie keeps on trying.


We've been talking about introducing Penny to Maddie since they got her, at which time she was still smaller than Penny. That didn't last long. So the other day when they met Penny had a bit of a freak-out at first because this crazy dog who's bigger than her was jumping and barking and snapping. But after five minutes of careful collar holding while sniffing could still be done, she put aside her defensive growls and, I'm sure recognizing this as a puppy, they were perfectly fine. Maddie must have recognized Penny as her elder because I don't think she even tried nibbling at her, which for Maddie must have been a real struggle. Penny played with her but also wanted to sit on our laps and observe while Maddie bounded around trying to get more play.


This is unfortunately the only photo I have of the meeting. What I love most about Maddie is that her puppiness makes Penny seem calm and behaved in comparison, and the kids now think Penny is just the greatest!