Let’s talk about grandparents – Pinot and Oma have a special bond

My Oma (German for grandmother) is 87 years old. All my life she has told me she wants to live to have great-grandchildren. 

As of July 2020, she has three great-grandchildren. They just happen to have each have four legs and a tail. 

Of her six grandchildren, all of whom are under 27 years old, three of us have fur babies. 

Oma never had a dog. Her daughters have each had dogs so she’s familiar with them, but I don’t believe she has ever been super comfortable around them.

Because of the pandemic, Oma has spent a significant amount of time living with Pinot. And along the way, she’s gotten a crash course in puppydom. 

The first time Oma lived with us Pinot was five months old. She had (still does) a lot of energy and love to give to people. She caused some cuts and bruises on Oma’s thin skin, thinking that Oma has the same tolerance for vibrant hello’s as I do. 

But the magical thing about Pinot – she learns, and she learns quickly. Within two days she was already treating Oma differently than my mom and dad. She still sometimes jumped on her or climbed on her shoulder to kiss Oma’s glasses. But overall, she was significantly gentler with Oma than anyone else in our household. 

And slowly they fell in love. She looks forward to Pinot waking up from her nap because she knows that when Pinot finds her, she will jump up next to her and lie against her leg waiting for her rubs. She finds joy in watching Pinot try to get the apples out of her hide-and-seek toy, she sees the determination and elation when Pinot finally gets one free. She laughs hysterically whenever I tell Pinot to go to her room (aka her crate) to get her daily chew. 

They found an easy rhythm of friendship that no one expected.

Yes, we had one instance of Pinot zooming away while Oma was, unknowingly, standing on her leash leading Oma to take a small tumble in the grass. Yes, most mornings I keep the leash on Pinot to temper her early morning energic greeting. She is still a puppy after all. But Pinot seems to know that Oma is more fragile than the rest of us and adjusts her behavior accordingly.  

However, as much Oma loves my baby doggy, she has amended her wish to live until she has great-grandchildren with two legs.