When The Sit Hits The Fan

My parents were out of town for a few days, so they asked a family friend to stay over while they were gone and watch me, my brother, and [Dog]. I was supposed to let [Dog] sleep in my room with me and let her out first thing in the morning.

The first night, I was about ready to head to bed and got up to pick her up when I heard a loud, strangled-sounding yelp. The last time I heard her make a sound like that, the neighbor’s dog had gotten loose, grabbed her by the rear end, picked her up, and shook her. Naturally, I rushed upstairs to see if she was okay.

She was hiding under the couch, the place she always goes when she’s upset, hurt, or not feeling well. [Friend] was extremely apologetic. [Dog] had been napping on my dad’s black rocking chair, curled up into a little black ball, and completely blended in. [Friend] didn’t have any pets, so she was unfortunately unaware of the first rule of caring for small animals: look before you sit.

[Dog] wasn’t hurt, just really badly frightened. Trying to get her out of her safe place would just stress her out more, so we left her there for the night. I checked her again first thing in the morning, and it was like nothing had happened at all. She even forgave [Friend] for her transgression. All of us were a lot more careful around the chairs from then on.