Reilly's daily treat(s)

It is no doubt that Owen loves Reilly. It is so sweet and has been this way for a long time. One of the first things that made Owen really laugh was Reilly barking and me imitating it. I have several videos of Owen laughing and most of them are him giggling at Reilly. I am not sure anything else gets Owen as excited as seeing Reilly.

It has been a fun evolution watching their relationship change. Owen becoming more mobile and Reilly going from running away to now staying closer at times and interacting more with him. We have always worked hard to get Owen to be gentle and easy with Reilly, but I think what really solidified their positive relationship was allowing Owen to give Reilly scraps of food and treats. We keep a box of treats on the floor of our pantry and if Owen hears that door open he comes running, yelling "Food"! (that is what he calls the dog's food/teats)

Now, he also starts calling Reilly once he gets a treat or two in his hands. She is usually upstairs and I have always had to call her down for him to give her the treats. Now he does it but she doesn't hear him yet so I end up calling her just the same but I love his attempt. We are working on him leaving her alone once she has the treat. He likes to go sit with her while she eats it and pick up pieces that she drops. I don't think Reilly would bite him like she would a stranger interrupting her eating but we don't want to take the chance. Plus I want Owen to learn not to mess with any eating dog.