I’m always wary of putting human words onto dog’s behaviors. I can’t say for sure what is happening with Bud and Red, yet by human definitions, it seems so much like a deepening friendship.

It seems to me that Red makes Bud feel safe, and also that Bud watches Red closely to understand how to live with human beings, something Red excels at.

In the morning, when Bud is up, the first thing he does is rush to Red, shower him with licks, touch noses. Then he comes to us to say good morning and show us the same affection.

Bud and I have bonded strongly, as have Red and I. But Red is, in some ways, his safe place. I forget sometimes just how hard a life Bud had in Arkansas, how he lived out doors for most of his life, exposed to the weather and the sun, hanging on while his pen-mates – pugs – died one by one of heatstroke.

He needed many months of medical care before he was well enough to travel to us. I think Red, who is so accepting and affectionate, has been his touch stone.

Whatever it is, it is a beautiful thing to see.