Do Pets Really Get Jealous???
Humans do get a bit silly and attribute human feelings and emotions to animals. I've heard people say that their dog or cat "had an accident" on purpose because they were mad at their owner, for example, but that isn't true. A pet can be stressed or upset or sick and that could happen, but they don't "punish" us in such a manner.
However, I do believe pets get jealous, especially dogs. Maybe in a dog's mind it isn't true human jealousy, but there is something similar going on! For example, Scooter always wants the treat the others have, even if he has the exact same one of his own. I was like that when young. Our aunt once got Daisy and I the exact same sweater--mine was maroon, hers was blue. I always wanted to wear hers instead of mine. She was a vicous, selfish sister and never wanted me to wear her clothes, while I was always generous and giving and let her wear anything of mine. LOL.
He'll also hoard his treats--he'll take one from me, lay down for a second with it, then come back for another one to stock up. If I am petting Zoe, for example, he'll come over for a pet as well, but he's not content to sit NEXT to Zoe and get his share, he has to "scoot" over and push her aside. He also stares down Peanut if he feels the Little Man is taking up too much of my affection.
The cats on the other hand are jealous in a different way, or should I say, Tarzan is jealous. But not because he wants attention from me if I'm giving it to Catfish, but because he wants Catfish all to himself! He'll come over and push my hand away and start rubbing his head against Catfish, treating me as if I'm stealing his boyfriend! Seriously! Maybe because they spend every second together and are not with me as much as the dogs are, they've developed a special bond.
Pictures above: Top one is Brett and Jeremy's cat, Pearl, enjoying her first birthday dinner, while Lucy looks on a bit jealousy. Is it jealousy or just "I want that food!" Dogs are such pigs. I have more Pearl party pictures, but want to wait until Brett is back to his old self and posting before I upload them so he can weigh in.
Lower picture is Skeeter's duo, Sheba and Cheetah, who she says are jealous of the attention The Saint is giving the neighbors dog. Are they jealous or are they just curious about the big black dog too close to their domain?
So, do your pets show signs of the green-eyed monster?
posted by Sandy at 6/07/2007 09:38:00 AM
Pet People
22 Comments:
I forgot to mention that I have some more sleeping pictures to post (thank you Alice) and also some new cat pictures from her that are very cute. I am a bit backed up on things, but I will get to them as soon as possible. If I ever forget something you've sent me, don't hesitate to remind me!
Wow, what a black and white theme we have going with our pics today! The white counter with the black and white checkerboard tilework and the white cat wearing the black color next to the black dog. Then there are the very black cats in front of the white door looking out at another black dog and the Saint with his white shirt. Interesting. Was all that an accident, Sandy?
Skeeter, I can see why you say you can't get good pics of the girls. They look like shadows against the background. I hope the Saint doesn't see this. If he is as vain as some other man I know, he'll have a cow that his head is peeking out from his hair!! LOL
Lucy is jealous big time!! You are absolutely not allowed to rub anyone but her if she's in the room. Or so she thinks. She too will not share. She plants herself between you and whoever you may be petting and pushes them out of the way with her butt. Dog or cat, it doesn't matter to her. Especially when her Daddy is rubbing somebody. She just can't stand that. What is it with female pets and their Daddy fixation???
Zoe has that Daddy fixation too, even though I pull the weight in caring for her. Little slut. LOL. Zoe is not jealous though, she is a very good girl in all ways, except for her WHINING. When anyone comes home, whether gone for a minute or a day, she whines and yelps so much it makes you want to scream! The worst noise comes when she knows she's going for a walk. If someone heard her outside of the door they'd think I was abusing her!
The Boss has the same head as The Saint. Skeeter just needs a little practice with photo shop and the rubber stamp tool. :)
I noticed the black and white thing too. I was going to post them separately eventually, but the topic of jealous popped in my head and I knew those two would be a good illustration, so it was more of a lucky accident than a plan.
Black pets are always hard to photograph, even for professionals. It's one reason it's thought that black dogs and cats get adopted the least, because often a cute picture on Petfinder will really attract adopters. Sigh, in life, even for pets, it's all about looks.
My new coworker says she always likes "ugly cats." I agree. You know they are the least wanted, so it's good to adopt them. You all saw the picture of one-eyed Phoebe who was adopted from Cats Are Us but a woman who now spoils her rotte. That dog is so damn ugly she's cute! I have to post her again under, "Is this the ugliest dog in teh world?"
Have a few mintues to check in since our grandson is off on a adventure with his other Granddad and granddaughter is down for a nap.
On the jealous thing, actually Penelope is the only one who get jealous of her sisters and it's mostly during the night in bed. If she decides she wants to MAYBE lay by Mommy a few minutes then get up, I'll call fro Brittany and Courtney to come and lay with me. Well Penelops cannot have that so back she comes. If I want to her to stay awhile all I have to do is call the other two when she starts to walk away. It's funny.
The Boss and The saint need to talk to Fly By about the head thing, he has less than both of them only he doesn't care. In fact he's thinking of shaving the rest just so it's easier than getting his usual buzz. I like the buzz and the shave thing, I call it the Astronault look, it's kind of sexy.
As for the ugly cat thing, my grandkitty Gracie ( you know the future race car driving cat ) has been called ugly but I disagree. I don't think she's ugly at all, she just has a unique coloring. Sandy, I need to have you repost her driving the car. Do you still have that photo? It is one of my very favorites. I wish I had one of Courtney earlier, in one oh her lying on her back poses with feet up in the air,so cute.
The other day I took the sheets out of the dryer and a dog toy had apparently sneaked into the wash. I took the sparkling clean tog toy out of the dryer and squeeked it a couple of times and the boys, Max and Charlie came running. Aimee, dog princess, is above such things... Anyway, I tossed it into the air and Charlie caught it. Max looked at me with his big brown eyes as if to say, "Mom, how could you!" Charlie trundled off to put toy in a safe place and then went to look for his ball. Max, seeing that clean toy was unattended, immediately went to claim it from Charlie's mountain of doggie toys.
If one of the dogs is getting petted, one of the other two or both, invariable come over to get petted as well. God forbid I should go to the bathroom and leave the door open! I have to pet animals while... er... sitting there. Even the cats come in! One will perch on the bathtub rim and two dogs will sit at my feet getting their chins scratched. And IF I close the door, Scootie will paw and dig at the door to try to get in. Although I am home alone in terms of people, I am sure never alone with all these love-hungry pets!
Dogs and cats don't get jealous. They are dogs and cats. That is an emotional state that is only achieved at the level of human. They are dogs and cats. They don't have the mental capacity to be jealous. If you took the brains of all my pets and put them together, you are talking about the mentality level of an amoeba. Because I have some dumb varmits! Really dumb varmits. They would have to get some sense to be stupid.
Coming from an imaginary creature, I guess you would know. :)
pearcehart, Thank you.
Oh dragon, dogs get jealous just like I did when you declared your amorous feelings toward your Tennessee wenches and not your Yankee wench!
There is no doubt my spoiled Tennessee dog, Bennie, gets jealous of poor Murphy. If I dare speak a word to Murphy or pet his little head, Bennie's radar can pick that up and be sitting at my feet for his share in a mere 2 seconds.
I am departing today for the sunny (I hope) Bahamas to celebrate the graduation of my daughter (the one with 2 legs). Grandma will be home taking care of the ones with 4 legs and if Sandy isn't blogging much, it's because Grandma is calling her every second with the latest worry.
Have a great week everyone and dear dragon, I will be dreaming of you serving me pina coladas in that red thong.....ahhhhhhh
The only one of my children that gets jealous is Stella. I think she wishes she could be a lap dog. If I'm holding Mattie and Oscar than she wants to be petted too. It hard for her living in a house of midgets.
Pam, The Foreman has NO hair. He started going bald when he was 25 and decided to just sahve it all off. He shaves his head every couple of days. I love it! He's my own good luck charm.
Dragon, I wouldn't be making fun of your pets' stupidity. Look in the mirror. They aren't the ones building kitty castles and cleaning up after you.
Alice, I have the same bathroom issues. If the door is open Zoe will come in and sit at my feet. While I pet her, Scooter comes in, sits next to her and pushes her over. If I take an occasional bath, Zoe loves to sit at the edge and lick my arms. When I get out of the shower and put lotion on my legs, Zoe starts licking it. How they can stand the taste of soap or lotion is behond me!
Adrienne--poor Stella! To be a lap dog in the body of a giant! I guess you can lay on the floor with her and give her snuggles!
And I can attest to Bennie's extreme jealousy. Daisy will throw a toy from a basket of many and he loves to get it and shake it, but then she'll throw one to Murphy and Bennie has to drop what he has and steal that one. She'll throw a third to Murhpy and Bennie will steal it and on and on and on. I dont' think Murphy ever gets to play with toys!
ok--i'm trying to get caught up on all the topics I have missed during my sabatical. Lucy jealous? OH h*ll yeah. But Charlie is worse. And yes, Sandy was right, Lucy just wanted the food in the pic.
It's funny because while they are fussing over who needs to be loved, Pearl just walks between them and takes over. You should have seen the love fest we had when I got home from the hospital. All three of them just surrounded me all night. I cried when I saw them again. I was all about getting home to my babies.
Brett, you old softie you, but how sweet that you were so happy to see them taht you cried. I bet they were happy to have you home.
Adrienne, I know waht you mean about loving the bald look. There area lot of stars who have it as well and they are sexy too. I say if the hair is going don't worry about it, stand up and be proud of how cute and sexy it can be but puleeezze no comb overs ever, ugh! It looks far better to see no hair then to try and pretend it's still there,ha. I hope I ahven't offended anyone by saying that, it is only meant as a tip to look better.
Sandy, poor Murphy, as if he didn't have a terrible life before now his brother mistreats him too.
Alice, don't let Dragon fool you into believeing a word he says about jealousy. He gets jealous too. You should have seen him getting testy over how good the guy in the play ( the one who played the male stripper with the great bod )looked. I think thats why he wanted to put on his red thong and get on stage so badly! And, even he had admitted wanting his wenches to himself. He's just blowing hot smoke.
ok--I am a softy when the babies are involved. I'm a Shirley Feeney when it comes to my animals.Thye give me so much, and being away from them was h*ll. BUt as soon as we pulled in the drive way and I saw Pearl sitting in the window, I teared up. Then on entering the house, Lucy and Charlie pounced on me and licked me til I was soaked. I missed them, and thank goodness, they missed me. It was so hard to get any sleep in the hospital cuz I had no Charlies under my blanket and no Lucys with her head on the pillow behind me, snoring to beat the band. And there was no Pearl curled up and my feet so that I couldn't move them at all. It's funny . Most nights I'm like "you guys are going to start sleeping in your houses", but when I had four nights and five days without dog hair, slobber, trips to go potty outside, and all the usual part of our routine with them, I was so upset and thrown by it that I couldn't rest.
But now, I am sitting here at the desk, Pearl is laid out on the desk top, Lucy is sprawled out at my feet, and Charlie is nubbing a bone behind my chair. God has blessed me so many ways.Life is good.
Alice, forgot to mention earlier how like you I get followed to the bathroom. Ususally only by one at a time but sometimes two. And if I shut the door before they get in well that just isn't right. Nope not much privacy even for bathroom times.
B, you're right. When Trouple passed away, the house seemed so empty even though there were three dogs and two cats still here. When things get too quiet, I get up to count noses, just in case. Hubby commented that there is no part of us or this home that hasn't been covered in fur, saliva or other body fluids, so sharing dishes is no big deal. I do have cat dishes with higher sides as the cats tend to lick the food off the plate and we use the old cutlery for the pet food. But I also use the cat plates for the microwave becuase they are glass and our smaller plates are not microwaveable. So we all share here, it works for us and if doesn't work for someone, that's ok, too!
That's how I feel when I go back to PA alone to visit family and sleep in a bed with just ME. It's like you are missing your arm or leg or something.
Stacey on the Saints hair or lack of, he said to tell you "Dam Headboard" LOL, he is not the least bit vain about the hair thing, he has more hair then most of our friends so who cares! He combs it while he has it but one day he too will shave what is remaining when he is ready... Hey from the front, he still has a head full of hair!
Alice, the dog toy in the dryer is really funny! I find toy mice in bed with us all the time. Just today I had made one up in the bed unknowingly. I was wondering what the bump was then found the mouse. Again, my clown cat Sheba is to blame for that one. One of her many little games she loves to play with us. Hide the mouse…
Alice and Sandy, way to put the Dragon back in the corner of the castle! Whoop there it is….
Did yall notice how the Yankee (nothing but humor here) Daisylouu did not tell us about her Bahamas trip until she was on her way? I am thinking a Pet People Road trip here if we had proper notice! I want to dream of Dragon in the thong while sipping pina coladas too!!! Boo hooo hoooo.
Poor Stella, I know it must be sad for her at times to be the gentle giant! I am with Sandy, a mattress on the floor with a snuggle bunny would be great for Stella!
About animals in the bathroom, well Sheba entertains us while we do our thing by getting that fresh drink of water from the faucet. After she gets her fill of water, she just stares at the water trickling down the drain. The look on her face is so funny! She is so bad about the sink now that we have turned on the water and gotten side tracked and found the water running an hour later! The Saint and I are both guilty of this one and we are in the middle of a bad drought down here in GA! I hate the thought of a wild animal not having water because of my clown Miss Sheba! One time I was doing my thing and four eyes were upon me as I sat in wonder! It was so funny that it was a good thing I was sitting where I was a the time because it made me pee from laughing so hard! For once, not in the pants! You have to wonder what are they thinking during those moments in time...
On Jealousy. My neighbor told me a funny story about her Rat Terrior Zip Zip. He stays with her mother when Lisa works long hours. Grandma had the two legged grand kids too. Well the kids were playing with their toys and not letting Zip play with them. He kept trying to get them but they would take them away from him and yell no to him. He was so sad that he collected all of his toys and took them to the bedroom and put them in the middle of the bed and was guarding them from the kids getting them! Now that is a jealous dog! I will send in a picture of Zip, he is cute…
Brett, come to my house and push me down the stairs so I can get me a pet free vacation at the hospital! Just joking of course, I would not know how to sleep without a dog or cat in the bed with me! It happens everywhere we seem to go. But loving animals as we do, who cares!
Brett, at looking at the birthday girl Peal and Lucy, I was guessing that Lucy was after the left overs. That picture reminded me of pictures taken when we were kids of the birthday kid behind the cake looking at the camera as the other siblings looked at the cake!
Skeeter, your story of Zip Zip is like one about Fly By when he was little. His Mom tells a story of how one of his cousins would come to visit and I guess he wasn't very good with Fly Boy's toys so on one time when they told his the cousin was coming they couldn't find Fly Boy, they looked all over the house then finally called to ask where he was and he said I'm in here, they went to the bedroom where they heard him calling from and he was under the covers with a bunch of his toys. They asked why he did that and he said well that kid's coming isn't he? Ha.
When I was a kid, I gave my friends rides in our dryer for change. The dryer broke and they never got a new one--Mom just hung out the clothes to dry and in winter she hung them in the basement.
I was a bad girl. :)
Sandy, you were such a bad girl and I should know cause I was a bad girl too. I bet I was badder than you and I meant to say badder, we don't worry bout no good grammar on here. I'm not proud of the things I did and thanfully I grew up to be a nice person but there were days back when I was a real brat!
I used to sit on my sister and hold her mouth to get my way. She could breathe through her mouth of course but she didn't realize that she was still breathing when I did that so it gave me the upper hand. I used to get my sister and my cousin ( she was like our other sister )to do things for me by telling each of them I'd get the other to do it if they didn't want to so they would fight over who got to do whatever it was I wanted them to do.
One time I decided I'd really do the two of them in. I told them I would make them a special drink. They got all excited and I told them to wait outside while I made it. I took milk, sugar, mustard, ketchup, pepper, salt, and a couple of raw eggs, mixed it all up then called them in. I put straws in it and thought I'd have a good laugh while they gagged and puked but that time the joke backfired and they loved it! They drank it down asked me to make them another one,ha. Of course I wouldn't but I was so disapointed I didn't make them puke,ha. I was a bad girl too. There is no way I could ever get paid back for the things I used to do. Thank God my child and grandkids have never been even close to the kind of kid I was! Anf thank GOd for forgiveness!
Pam, you were already a good cook (drink maker) at a young age! How funny you mean ole thing you... ha-ha... I was the baby and the only girl to three mean boys so imagine my daily tortures from them! They made me a tough gal that learned to fend for myself. That was very helpful the day I beat up my ex-husband when he tried to attack me! haha...
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