It's 9AM
The dog starts whining at 2 AM.
Most mornings.
He gets restless, hops out of bed, and click clacks across the hardwood.
Pacing.
We have a deal, or a sort of deal.
I don’t have to get up to let the dog out at 2 because once I’m up, I can’t go back down.
Most mornings.
Call it a quirk of nature, call it what you will, but once I’m up and moving, that’s the start of my day.
I can beat the alarm clock by setting a time in my head.
Just not 2 AM.
Because I think the dog has an agenda.
I think he’s fooling me.
This smart little pup is being a bit of a smart ass.
When I get out of bed, no matter the time, he moves toward the top of the mattress and snuggles into his mom.
With me gone, there’s more room for him.
The dog knows if he can get me out of bed, half is his for the taking.
I’ve been told he doesn’t think like that.
I’ve been told he just has to go outside, or he heard something.
Even though I reminded her of the many late nights during the possum incursion of 2021.
Or the new puppy next door events of 2020.
Plus, I can tell by his calculating black eyes he knows exactly what he’s doing.
Why else 2 AM?
What happens in the literal middle of the night to make him hop out of bed and give a throaty little whine to hop back in.
He needs help hopping back in because his hips are older than his heart, and despite a diet, he’s pushing a lot of mass for a little guy.
No, I’m convinced he knows what he’s doing.
Get the big man out of the bed so I can stretch out in his pre-warmed spot and get snuggles next to mom.
For such a good boy, he’s got a bad streak.
Still, some good comes out of it though.
Because once I’m up I get extra me time.
Which is when I read, or watch a show, or sit with coffee and ponder life’s wonders, mysteries and improbabilities.
It doesn’t happen every night, because I think the doggo plans it or does it as he wishes.
On the nights when it does, I get a little miffed at the loss of sleep, and a little FOMO on which book or which show to watch.
Until I realize the bonus hours I’m getting.
Because sleep comes again tomorrow night.
Maybe twenty minutes earlier to make up for lost time.
Maybe twenty minutes later because #10 remembers he wants to show me something and we stay up to watch, talk or see whatever that “it” might be.
But when it is time for bed, I get to go early and alone.
The dogs won’t follow until Mom shows up a little later.
Until then, I get the whole big bed to myself.
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My cat (Marmalade)does that too. She has a cat flap so she can come and go, she has a constant supply of dry food, she doesn’t snuggle into my spot when I vacate it, she tolerates a few minutes of petting then runs off. I think she just likes to get me up and available to meet her diva needs. I’m too am beginning to enjoy the quiet time and seeing the moon on the other side of my cottage. I’m retired in Belize after 43 years of being an RN. I read in the afternoons when it’s too hot to do much else and gasp! sometimes I nod off! I think these pets may know what we need better than we do!
My dog does something similar. He wedges up against me since I am a side sleeper and stay in one place all night. My wife moves around a lot. When I get up to go to the bathroom, he moves over and thinks 1/2 of my spot is now his.