Mabel had a nice existence as an only dog until she was three years old. Her parents then chose to wreck it all by giving her a baby sibling.
Milo, a goldendoodle dog, required her to share her owners’ affection and care. Carrie Bartsh, Mabel and Milo’s mother, attempts to give them equal amounts of love and attention so that neither sister is envious, but it doesn’t always work well.
“If the other is receiving too much attention, they both get really jealous,” Bartsh told The Dodo. “I try to be fair to them, so when I trim Milo’s eyes in between [grooming visits], I make sure to ‘trim’ Mabel’s eyes as well.”
“Mabel is even envious of the cat,” she said. “He required some ear drops, and she would sit and wait for hers as well.”
Mabel and Milo, like most siblings, work hard, fight hard, and love fiercely. “Mabel and Milo fight like puppies,” remarked Bartsh. “They snarl and ‘bite,’ and Milo will smash at Mabel at 100 mph, rolling her over.” Mabel is the boss, despite the fact that he is larger and quicker. Mabel keeps Milo in order, and Milo keeps her young.”
Milo had an accident last week when the puppies were out on one of their walks.
“We were driving back to the home, and the dogs were doing their usual ‘wrestling while running,’ and as they came to a halt, I noticed blood on the snow,” Bartsh said. “I knew it was Milo… then I discovered it was coming from one of his foot,” says the narrator.
Bartsh found a small cut on Milo’s paw, and rushed to get supplies from the vet. Mabel didn’t seem too worried about her baby brother’s injury — until she noticed it was getting him extra attention from Mom.
“When I called Milo over to change the bandage and Mabel saw all of the supplies, she immediately came over and plopped herself down right in front of me, lying on her side, ready to be fixed up,” Bartsh said. “I finally got her to move over, and once I got Milo all fixed up and he went on his way, she came right back over and laid down for her turn.”
Mabel could only be satisfied by one thing, Bartsh knew.
“I ripped the empty gauze pad wrapper so she thought I was putting one on her and pretended to put one on her, then wrapped a small vet wrap over her leg and kissed her on the head and told her she was all done,” Bartsh explained. “She got up and went on her way, seeming very content.”
“I just had to laugh at myself and the situation,” Bartsh said. “Who puts fake bandages on their jealous dog?”
Milo is doing much better and his paw is healing quickly. Bartsh continues to keep his foot wrapped and makes sure to change the bandage every night. But, if Milo is getting a new bandage, his sister needs “treatment” from her mom as well.
“Mabel gets a fresh one every night, too,” Bartsh said.
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