Squirrel Meets Puppy

Once the excitement of bringing a new puppy home had subsided, we wondered what effect this would have on Tony Peanut. Since Milo's crate is next to the back door and close to the peanut bowl, it wouldn't take long for Tony to become aware of the newest family member. When two or three days had gone by with no sign of our resident squirrel, we worried that he'd seen us taking the puppy out on walks and had decided the backyard wasn't big enough for both of them.

But on the fourth day after Milo's homecoming Tony was at his usual post. Happily, I welcomed him back with peanut after peanut handed through the door while Milo watched quietly from his crate.

It wasn't clear if Tony knew about Milo yet. So I opened the door wider, stepped back and waited to see what would happen. Would Tony's natural instinct warn him to steer clear of potential danger? Or would the lure of the peanut bowl override his better judgment?

The peanut bowl won. The historical moment is captured below.

As Tony scoots toward the peanut bowl, he spots the puppy for the first time. Milo calmly gazes out at Tony, as if being sized up by a demented black squirrel is the most natural thing in the world!

Tony grabs a peanut, sits back and leisurely cracks it open as he assesses the situation. He seems to know that he's perfectly safe as long as Milo is in his crate!


A week later, business is still brisk at the peanut bowl, and Milo has become canis non grata as far as Tony is concerned. Judging from the look of things, Milo couldn't care less.