guilty of loving a dopey dog

[novemberstorms]

I feel horrible writing this, as my heart might not be understood, but I am feeling so guilty and I need to know if I am completely out there. I am just frustrated, because I think I am a good Mom to my dogs. I don't know if anyone else has experienced this.

We have two yorkies, Rocco and Bella. Rocco is a beautiful yorkie, I believe show quality. Bella is almost one year and is driving me crazy, she is driving the family crazy. My problem is I am so in love with Rocco...he is so pretty & tiny, but I don't feel nearly that way for Bella. I love her, she is cute and she LOVES me. I mean she loves me. She has to be on my lap and will push tiny little Rocco out of the way to get there. She is 10 lbs and he is barely 6 lbs.

She always has this sad, sad face and ever since she went into heat in October, she acts depressed. Can a 10 month old dog be depressed? I buy new toys regularly, I play with them both, they get treats. She isn't the brightest dog...training her to do anything is hard. Stay, sit, pee, poop, you name it, she isn't doing it. I have worked hard. On the other hand, we taught Rocco to dance in circles in one weekend. I seriously think she has a very low IQ, is that possible?

She is the most submissive dog I have ever seen...to the point it's embrarrasing, she lays on her back when a stranger comes into the house. I have thought of calling the breeder...not sure what I would say. My best friend has her sister from another litter, she is tiny, smart and full of personality. I am planning on getting Bella fixed after the holidays, because of her size, the other of her personality.

I try to show both of them equal attention and believe they are just like my kids were when they were little...dogs will notice who gets more loves. Bella is so needy and so jealous, I feel bad for Rocco.

Please, friends, I need advise. I am really frustrated.

Thank you.

[yorkiepip]

I dont think you should feel bad about liking one more than the other, i have 2 dogs a lab and a yorkie and i love and prefer my Pippa more than my lab Jake. Dont get me wrong i love Jake to bits but i have something special with Pippa and i think if you posed the question the majority of people would say they too have a slight preference when it comes to more than one dog.
I even have this with my skin kids i like one much more than the other (shocking i know) but i LOVE them both the same.

[yorkieK9trainer]

What you've mentioned seems perfectly normal. Don't feel bad about it at all! At least you're not letting your feelings get in the way of your better judgement to spend as much equal attention to each as you can.

And YES, most certainly a dog at 10 months can get depressed. She probably already was at one point when she first left her breeders house and she just bounced back faster than she did after coming out of her heat cycle. For some females, those heat cycles can be real tough....cramps; headaches, many if not all of the same symptoms you or many other women you know experience during that time of the month. Luckily for these little guys it doesn't come that often (or shouldn't!).

Getting her spayed sounds like a sound choice. (that sounds wierd to me coming out of MY mouth) From what you've mentioned so far, it sounds like she'd benefit greatly from it at such a young age (to me, spaying under 16 months is young). Just watch out for excessive weight gain afterwards.

Keep that chin up!

[ChestersMom]

You're not the only one in this situation. I had posted another thread about the two males my sister took out of my litter. From day one, Porky was a wimp. Mind you, he's the biggest of the whole bunch! Spanky, the sibling, is your typical playful little pup, but Porky is so timid and shy. He hides and whimpers all the time. He likes to be held very closely, up near your neck. The little fellas have personalities, just like people, and I guess we just have to learn to deal with them.

[red98vett]

awwww....It's hard when you have 2 personalities but instead of looking at things you wish were different, try to look at the special things she does.

I have 2 girls -each unique in their own way. Chanel is my soulmate - she's ALWAYS looking into my eyes trying to read my mind ...Cheri doesn't have the eye power her sister has - but EACH one is special to me for different reasons. I used to compare things Cheri does to Chanel ....but have long stopped doing that. It's not fair to Cheri and she has attributes that I love ....so I concentrate on those.

It's like having kids - you just have to accept them for what they are.

[Patti]

Don't feel bad at least you recognize it and make sue you give her equal time. My older pom is a difficult dog, aggressive at times, not very affectionate and Cali is a little love bug, I love Maya but theres traits she has that I don't like. But I try and make sure she gets her share of attention. She has actually gotten better since I got Cali and now that she's on thyroid medicine her personality seems a little sweeter.

[stedmansmommy]

I too feel like that with my dogs. Don't get me wrong, I love them ALL - and I would do ANYTHING for ANY ONE of them...but Stedman is my BABY. I have a Mini Dachshund - whom I love to pieces...we got her when she was a puppy and have had her almost 4 years. We also have a mixed breed/rescue (which is really more of my husbands dog than mine) and I love her too - she is a SWEET, SWEET dog...very, very loving - but she can also be a BUTT HEAD to Pippi (our Mini Doxie) and it makes me very angry and sometimes I feel like it would be better if we just didn't have her - and then I feel like kicking myself for thinking it! We don't know what kind of life she had in the past (although I'm guessing one that wasn't good) and some of the things she does aren't necessarily her fault.

Pippi on the other hand, can be VERY annoying. She is also VERY, VERY loving though. She LOOOOOVES sitting in my lap, and she LOVES attention. BUT, she does this thing - lol...where she STICKS HER BUTT in others dogs faces, and it annoys them ALL!! I don't know why she does this - she has ALWAYS done this...all the time She also gets right in others dogs faces and drives them crazy, and she isn't nearly as smart as Stedman or our mixed breed, Peaches. She is ADORABLE - and she is really a sweetheart, but she does things that will drive you absolutely NUTS. Also, my husband made me put her outside because she would NOT stop peeing and pooping in the house - he just got SICK of it, and I don't blame him. But she really does love it out there - because she has Peaches...and Peaches DOES need to be outside because she has lots of energy and is a bigger (well still on the small/medium side, but bigger than Stedman and Pippi, lol) sized dog. I don't know WHY - but I just never bonded with Pippi or Peaches the way I did Stedman. And I feel soooooo bad about that. I mean it literally eats me up inside, and I think about it EVERY SINGLE DAY. I don't know why it is like that - because with Stedman, our bond was just INSTANT - and I do mean INSTANT. It is weird...

I have FINALLY figured out though - that Yorkies are "MY BREED" of dog. I told my husband that I will probably, -well- most likely, never own another breed of dog again. There are other breeds out there that I think are cute and all - but my heart is entirely with the Yorkie.

Anyway - sorry to ramble on I just wanted to post and say that I DO know exactly how you feel - It was actually nice to read someone elses post and realize that I am not the only one who has this problem Although I wish I didn't I feel absolutely HORRIBLE after writing all this...now I have to go give Peaches and Pippi a big hug - I feel just AWFUL