We Will Be Heard!!!

This is the story of 3 Chipoodle siblings (or Choodles, as one of us prefers to be called) who belong to three very different siblings. These are their letters to one another sharing about the joys and woes of their world. We begin our story with each dog introducing themselves. 
Written by sisters: Ashley Browning, Amanda Sellers, Elizabeth Sellers

Have you ever wondered what really goes on inside a dog’s head? If you are answering “no” right now, you are so totally lying! I know you humans must ponder from time to time what your domesticated animal friend is thinking. You probably assume there ain’t much on our mind, especially when you see us lick ourselves or sniff another dog’s backside. The reality is, we secretly have deep inner monologues about what in the world our humans are doing…and our fellow domesticated friends. But before I go into all that, let me introduce myself.

I am Harley “Choolican” Browning. I own 2 humans. They always refer to each other as “Choo” and “Chooette” (it sounds ridiculous, but it’s their thing). They are an odd set, especially the female. I think the female is my favorite and she totally loves me more than the other domesticated canine that dwells with us (more about that diva later). She’s always squeezing me, petting me, and making me do weird stuff with my arms, legs, and paws. She thinks she is just so funny. I indulge her ever so often by licking her or nudging her with my nose. If she gets too annoying, I just bounce on over to the male. He’s chill. He respects my need to just lay down and do nothing. He and I have that in common. Don’t get me wrong, my female is totally cuddle worthy. She’s got this soft blanket that just drives me crazy! I wait in anticipation for her to recline on that large, plushy reclining thingy and cuddle up in that blanket. I take that as my cue to jump in her lap and nestle down. I really like it when she is occupied with this bright screen with words on it. She’s always looking at it. I’ve heard her refer to it as “reading.” The male has one, too. I never hear him refer to it as “reading.” He prefers this large black screen with moving pictures on it. He has a fluffy blanket, too. But, he always has that other nuisance in his lap (I think she’s his favorite).

Now, I come from a litter of 3. I have a sister and a brother. They both live far away. Now here’s the funny thing, the female that I own also belongs to a litter of 3. As it happens, the other humans in her litter are owned by my brother and sister! We decided we needed a means of communication between us to share our stories about our humans and our lives. Since they have yet to create “DogBook” or “Domesticated Animals Unite” (both perfectly acceptable social media names) for us to communicate long distance, we have decided to do this the old fashioned way: letters! So sit back and enjoy because…..this is our story!

Most perceive dogs as domestic animals, pets if you will. Four legged friends with few privileges and many boundaries. Sadly, most live their lives from door knobs down, if their lucky. Others are confined in small fenced areas in a backyard with a muddy food bowl and a leaky dog house.
I, on the other hand, couldn't tell you much more about those kind of lives because mine is nothing of the sort. I am not a pet, I am a fur baby.
My name is Cora Chipoodle, and I am one pristine pooch. I have 1 human who takes care of me, and I have her wrapped around my paw.
I live in a home with 4 others like me though. Lily is the oldest. We have the same dad. Then there is Quigley, who lives outdoors, he is massive! Thor, he is the dopey one who doesn't ever know what's going on. Lastly, there is Bailey and she is the biggest pain in my backside I've ever known.
But my family is even bigger than that. Lily has a sister named Dixie, and she lives far, far away with my brother, Harley. I have one other brother, and his name is Ace. He doesn't live as far away as Harley though. 
So that's all of them. Also I have a hunk of a dog that I like to call mine. My human has something like a pet. But he also walks on both legs like she does. I refer to him as a pet though because he follows her and loves her just like I do. She feeds us both and gives us kisses. So I feel it's safe to assume he is also a fur baby, and his name is Alex. But anyway back to MY man. He belongs to Alex and he is the kibble to my bowl and the squeak to my toy. His name is Shadow, and he has this wild dog look that just drives me crazy. I mean, BOW-WOW!
So, my life is pretty great you could say. My human, who I prefer to call my momma, loves me and takes such good care of me. Granted, my bowl does run empty from time to time, but we are working on it. I couldn't imagine life without her.
I'm sure you’re tired of hearing about my life. You're probably asking, "Why?"
Well, me and my brothers, since we all live in separate homes, need a way to stay in contact. We thought, "Why not share our letters with the humans so they might better understand us?"
So that's what we are going to do. Get ready to understand life from behind the black and white eyes of a dog.

By now, you have probably already met my 2 siblings. They saved the best for last I suppose… or it could just be because I am the runt, or because they forgot about me (which happens more than you would think). That’s right, I am Ace: the baby of the litter, the one that came out last, and the smallest and scrawniest out of all of us. There is one in every family, and in mine, it is me. I live with my human, and let me tell you, I am not so sure about her sometimes. For starters, she moved me from my luxurious home with my human slaves, also known as her parents. I had constant attention there. She moved us about a month ago into something she calls an “apartment.” This never made sense to me because they are not apart from anything, in fact, they should be called togetherments. I am now constantly swatted on my bum for barking… ummm hello, human lady, I have something to say. The dog outside my window, yeah not supposed to be there. I am simply telling him to move along. She also calls me Acer Monster…I, for one, am not a monster; therefore, I am pretty sure that name is invalid. I have come to learn something about my human. She belongs with 2 other human people. She calls them sisters. I call them “banes to my existence”. My oldest brother Harley (what a name right?), is the nerdy sophisticated one, much like his human (she is that brainy goody goody, too). My sister, Cora, yeah she is a drama queen. Again, much like her human; they both like to lie around all day and sleep. Me, well I am all over the place. I am a spaz I guess, but my human is, too (if I hide her favorite socks under the bed, she will spaz until she finds them). I only do that when she leaves me for extended amounts of time. What can I say? I am social. I need human interaction. She has threatened to get me a playmate, but I don’t much feel like competing for her love and affection. I will go live with the slave humans if that ever happens. I think that this is her way of making up for the fact that it is just the two of us. I have an idea… why doesn’t she get herself a playmate and leave me out of it? I consider myself to be the loveable one out of my family. Give me a chair and a human’s lap, and I will be your best friend. I keep trying to tell my human that I do not wish to be left alone with tiny human puppies because they are grabby little creatures. Evidently, my subtle snips are not noticed. I do miss my fur siblings, and I am so happy we have finally found a way to communicate. Do me a favor though… if they say anything bad about me, just assume it is exaggerated and not true.

The writers (from left to right): Elizabeth Sellers, Ashley Browning, Amanda Sellers