The Competition

Rugby spends a good amount of time with my dad. When I leave for school in the morning, Rugby scratches at my dad's door and lays in bed with him until he has to get up for the day. When I am too busy with homework, Rugby is a lap warmer for my dad. He likes to get what my dad calls "free pets."

My brother, Max, comes down to visit almost every weekend. Rugby loves him. So much so that for his entire visit, Rugby chooses him over my dad. If  Max is here, my dad's door does not get scratched in the morning, and you can usually find Rugby laying with/on/next to Max and no one else.

My dad thought it must be a fluke the first time, but after several visits... he became jealous. Tonight my dad started his training routine with Rugby, which mostly includes bribing him with extra "pets." During this training session, Dad was boasting about the fact that he has the best pets and with all this extra "training" there is no way he could be picked last again. With some coaching from me, he made a few adjustments in his petting technique, then he laughed and said, "Ha! Now Max will never get you!"

The competition has begun. Personally, I don't think Max has anything to worry about.