Dog-Sitting Re-Deux

Apparently I have a knack for dog-sitting.

My roommate, Michelle, and I are currently the lucky caretakers for a little, scroungey mutt named Magirtz. She arrived on December 7th (the anniversary of Pearl Harbor, mind you) and will return to her rightful owners on February 7th. A little less than a month to go until she's no longer our third roommate (not that I'm counting down or anything).

Magirtz, like my dear, beloved Zoe, has many lovable characteristics. She readily greets me the moment I walk in the door, she affectionately curls up at my feet while I relax on the couch, she's very well behaved and every now and then likes a good game of fetch.

However, she's a bit odd - in both character and in looks.

Clearly, she is a mutt. Michelle and I believe Magirtz is a mixture of a rat, cat, and bat. She has a cute little face like that of a cat (her only complimentary feature). Her stalky mid-section is supported by stumpy, spiny legs like those of a rat. And her ears are a bit oversized for her miniature face - hence the bat. To top it off, her shaggy off-white fur covers her body and her beady black eyes complete her unique (for lack of a better word) appearance.

Our little mutt wanders aimlessly throughout the house all day and all night. Perhaps she's searching for something (like her real owners) or perhaps she's doing this to annoy Michelle and me (we believe it's the latter - especially when she incessantly follows us around).

You see, her claws make this ever-so delightful clip-clop-rackity-rack noise on the wood floors as she moves about. Oh, and her collar. It clinks and clanks with any and all movement she makes. In the middle of the night, both Michelle and I will awake to this combination of noises - at first it sounded as though the ghost of Christmas past had come to pay us a visit. Now, we know it's the little white ghost of our present.

The funny thing is, whenever Magirtz does something to annoy me, or whenever I go to yell her name (mostly to command her to stop her annoying behavior) - the first name that comes to mind and out my mouth is "Zoe." Hmmm...

Then, there's the debacle with her food dish.

For the first month of our doggy adventure, Magirtz barely ate. Concerned, both Michelle and I decided we needed to get to the bottom of this issue. Turns out, she's afraid of her dog dish. She'll carefully approach the metal bowl filled with her delectable dog food, take a sniff, lean in to take a bite, and then jump back like something bit her. She'll repeat this behavior until either Michelle or I stand next to her and command her to eat.

She now eats off of a plastic plate like it's the most common thing in the world for a DOG. Well, except for the occasional relapse when she resorts back to her metalbowlaphobia (definition: fear of metal bowls filled with dog food).

Right now she's curled up in her little doggy-bed, only her face is visible amongst the ball of fur that surrounds her, and she almost looks cute. Almost.