What you're feeling...

There’s a new dog in our family.

Jorge, our eight-year-old terrier, is feeling lots of things since her arrival, including, probably: ENVY of the attention his “sister” is getting; FEAR of losing his place as the goodest boy; CONFUSION about her odd number of legs (wait—she can't shake hands?); JEALOUSY over his people and his stuff; SADNESS about whatever losses he’s perceiving; EXCITEMENT to go on walks with a sniff-ari buddy; PROTECTIVENESS when another dog approaches her too quickly; HAPPINESS that he gets more treats than usual as she’s being trained; NERVOUSNESS about the sounds he hears coming from another room of our customarily quiet home; ANGER that she’s still here?! DEFIANCE... You get the idea.

So many feelings! They feel good. They feel bad. Some of them feel really big and they push and pull moods like a playground swing. They influence behaviors in positive and negative ways.

Some of them make others in the household feel stuff, too. And maybe hide under the sofa.

What you’re feeling is okay, Mister Rogers says so in this video.

And there’s stuff you can do.

And when I come out from under my cloud, I think I need to dance.

https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1P4KQoPChQ/

[illustration generated using wix ai]