I adopted Millie almost two months ago. A four-year old beagle, she is usually sweet-tempered, happy to sniff at anything and everything, and willing to eat anything we’ll give her.

Since my father died in July, my mother has been alone most days when I’m at work. I thought having a companion would be good for her. Millie adores her.

In the past week or so, their bond has been evident in the way Millie has been reacting to me. Having been on holiday vacation for two weeks, she’s seen me a lot more than she had for the first few weeks of her living with us. She would climb up in bed to snooze or snuggle with me during the day, and run into my room every day to give me a good morning sniff. This hasn’t stopped.

But now, I find that she has begun to growl and bark at me at night if I poke my head into the living room, where she lies against my mother on the couch. And yesterday, she peed twice in my bedroom – while I was there. She will not willingly go for a walk with me if my mother doesn’t come.

Don’t get me wrong – I realize it’s still early days and the family dynamic is still adjusting. But I also know that my mother – a control freak by nature – took caring for Millie and ran with it. “Let me walk her; she pulls and you’re not as strong as me.” She feeds her every day, spends hours of quality time with her every day.

I have to be honest – my ego is a bit hurt. I mean, I’m the “compassionate vegan” in the house. I care about animals! I do what I can to bring ethics to the situation every day! And now my dog doesn’t like me. (Yes, I’m being a drama queen.)

We will have to continue to get used to each other and our roles in the house, and I’m sure that with some patience and some work, we’ll get there. But this experience has been and continues to be a learning experience.

Do you have a companion animal? What did you do to relate to one another in the early days?