[Dailydrool] A monster in the making

[dpmcquade at verizon.net]

Since she came to live with us, Holly was a nearly perfect hound, who never seemed to do wrong. It seemed so bad, I started to encourage her to have her own personality. I blamed her overgoodness on heavy-handed humans who punished her for wrongdoing.
 
I couldn't have been more wrong.

Since Jane left for the Bridge, Holly has increasingly taken up the idea that she is in charge here. Though Jane never seemed to rule the roost in the months since Holly came, she must have had some kind of limiting impact, because now my once-perfect Holly has been getting into so much trouble that I can hardly believe she's the same hound.

The biggest change is that Holly has decided that self-feeding is the way things should be around here. The door to our hallway that holds the dog food has never shut all that securely, but until recently it wasn't a problem. The past week or two has totally changed that. This morning, right after the hounds' breakfast, I found Holly in the hall, with her head in the food bucket, chomping away happily. Last week she didn't get dinner one day, because she'd gotten out there and eaten an unidentified amount of kibble. I was afraid I'd overfeed her if she got any more. And I could swear she's been counter cruising too.

Putting Holly in charge of the pack is like leaving Jesse James in charge of the bank. She just can't be trusted. I have had to gate her out of the kitchen altogether, for fear of her eating so much that she'll cause herself to bloat. Sure, she's still on a diet because she has a few more pounds to lose, but we really don't starve her. Yet even though she's lost a good deal of weight, her appetite has just never slowed down. We always knew she was hungry, but when Jane was here, she kept herself under control.

On top of her food antics, Holly's spending a lot of time making sure that Dexter knows who is in charge. She parks herself in areas near doors, so he can't leave a room without her permission. I'm constantly moving her out of the way so that he can have a real life.

I think I've created a monster. Where did that good little girl go to? Has anyone found her at the Bridge? Her good part must have left with Jane.
 
Or maybe it was just an act all along.
Pam, food slave to the Dashing Bassets