The Doggie Diaries - When Your Dog Loves Someone Else More

Oct 4th 2010

Each week, Ben Westhoff shares the ups and downs of owning Pippi, the dalmatian mix he and his wife Anna adopted as a puppy in late 2009.

Anna wrote this week's column.

They say no man can serve two masters. That may be true for dogs too. You see, Pippi loves Ben more than me. Even though I faithfully conduct her early-morning walk, feed her twice a day and engage her constantly after I come home from work, it is clear that Ben is Pippi's first master, and I am running a distant second.

I can't blame her. The truth is, Ben's a sweetheart of a man and takes excellent care of all his girls, including Pippi. He works at his computer all day with Pippi by his side -- either at his feet or in her chair -- where she is alternately snoozing and chomping her bone.

But I must say I was a little surprised when I noticed this distinct affection differential. I mean, I'm supposed to be the "dog person" in his house! When we first adopted Pippi, Ben -- who had never had a dog of his own -- sometimes wondered out loud if we had bitten off more than we could chew. I reassured him that dog ownership would be tons of fun once we hit our stride, and lo and behold, it is. I just assumed that Pippi's primary bond would be with me.