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The Little Dog Who Made Us a Pack · Happy You. Happy Dog.

0:03
Coco Moon: Welcome to Happy You Happy Dog. This show is for you,
0:07
the human behind the leash. I'm Coco, Animal Naturopath, and
0:10
this is Mana, the Mountain Boo. We are so delighted you are
0:15
here. If your dog is attached to your hip, your cat is
0:18
supervising your every move, and you are curious about the
0:21
wisdom, connection, and joy that blossom from sacred
0:24
companionship. You are in the right place. Our pets don't just
0:28
need us; they help shape who we become. So let's chat. Hello,
0:34
darling. Before we begin, I am so excited. Today I have some
0:39
very special people. My son Yu, his girlfriend Helen, and their
0:44
tiny little Chloe are here with me and Mother. Would you like to
0:48
say hello,
0:50
Yu: everyone?
0:51
Helen: Everyone,
0:52
Coco Moon: glad to be here. Hey, Chloe, she's just so tiny and
0:57
cute. You you recently made the sweetest anniversary post, and
1:02
you called Helen and Chloe the best package deal. Tell me about
1:07
that, Yuu.
1:10
yu: Yeah. So when I was dating Helen, I didn't know I would get
1:13
a two for one special deal. So it ended up being the best
1:18
package deal ever, getting both Helen and Chloe. So getting both
1:22
of them.
1:22
Coco Moon: Yeah, that's great. Their best package ever. And
1:29
then I remember Helen sending me the sweetest picture after you
1:33
guys came back home from one of your trips. It was a picture of
1:37
Chloe on you's lap and reaching up to kiss it-it's the sweetest
1:43
moment. Do you mind if I show the picture of that? Yeah, of
1:47
course. Okay, it's this picture. Oh, and Helen said Chloe wanted
1:55
to be on his lap instead of mine after we picked her up.
2:00
So that made me laugh because Chloe had always been Helen's
2:05
little baby. She goes everywhere with Helen, and sometimes
2:09
literally inside your purse. And now apparently, she decided that
2:15
she has a daddy. So Helen, tell me about your life with Chloe
2:23
before you know you you just mommy and Chloe life.
2:28
Helen: Yeah, I think you know it's always just been mommy and
2:31
Chloe wherever I go. I'll try to bring her. Sometimes though, I
2:36
do feel like I want to be that responsible parent. If I don't
2:40
know how long I'm going to be out. You know, I'll try to kind
2:43
of leave her at home, but I do feel bad leaving her for long
2:45
periods of time. I think before COVID, I would just leave her at
2:50
home for like eight hours while I would go to work. But then
2:52
since COVID, our offices became dog friendly, and then now I can
2:56
bring her and I can also work from home. So she's kind of very
2:59
much used to me being with her, but I think it's always just
3:03
been me and her. If I go out with friends and if like I know
3:07
I'm gonna have a drink or two, I usually don't bring her. If I
3:10
know I'm gonna go somewhere that has like loud area, I usually
3:12
don't bring her, just because I want to make that responsible
3:16
decision. But I think now that he's in the picture, now we have
3:21
two people watching over her so it's a lot easier.
3:25
Coco Moon: Yeah, of course. I mean, I think it's important
3:28
that you know they are with us as much as we can be with them,
3:33
right? And then it's great that you guys kind of like take
3:36
turns. Like you know, Helen has business trip, and then Daddy
3:40
watches over Chloe, so you know she's never kind of you know
3:43
alone or by herself for a long time. I think that's great. Yuu,
3:48
what did you first think of this tiny package that came with
3:52
Helen?
3:54
Yu: I thought she was adorable. She's so tiny, and then at least
3:58
for me, she's always been really friendly with me, and even ever
4:02
since the beginning. So yeah, I thought she was adorable.
4:06
Coco Moon: Yeah, Chloe is like what, like pound three and a
4:09
half pounds. Yeah,
4:10
Yu: three and a half pounds.
4:11
Coco Moon: Yeah, when you guys came to visit, and I was holding
4:14
Chloe, you know, versus Mana, and just like she is so light
4:20
and tidy. Yeah, I
4:22
Helen: think in the beginning, he he always loved Chloe, of
4:26
course. But he will kind of just let me make the decisions.
4:30
Whatever it is I want to do, like if I want to bring her,
4:32
we'll bring her. If I don't, we don't. But I think now he
4:35
definitely has taken ownership of that co-parenting father,
4:40
doggy, dad rule. Where now, if sometimes I'm like, oh, I don't
4:45
think we should bring her. He's like, oh, I already have her
4:46
bags packed. I already have the treats and everything. So yeah,
4:49
he he definitely feels like he is Chloe's dad.
4:54
Coco Moon: So was there like a particular moment that like you
4:58
went, oh, I'm hard. Now, that's
5:02
Yu: a
5:03
Helen: good question.
5:05
yu: Not officially, but I think when me and Helen moved in
5:09
officially, and then when Helen like went on her trip to Italy
5:13
for two weeks, and I just watched Chloe. I think that was
5:15
kind of where we really bonded because I was with Chloe like
5:18
every day for two weeks, and then I work from home, so she
5:22
was just with me every day. That's right.
5:25
Coco Moon: You had a chance to bond with Chloe without mommy
5:29
being there because Helen was on a trip. Oh, I see.
5:33
yu: Yeah.
5:33
Coco Moon: What was that like? That was like the first time
5:36
that you were spending like just you know long periods of time
5:41
just with Chloe, right?
5:43
yu: Um, honestly, Chloe's like really easy to take care of.
5:47
She's easier than I thought she would be easier to take care of
5:51
because we just leave her pee pads out. She just pees on the
5:53
pee pads, and then for food, she's one of the weird dogs
5:56
where like we can just leave food out all day, and she would
5:58
just eat whenever she wants. Like she doesn't, she's an
6:00
independent. Yeah, she doesn't like other dogs eat all the food
6:03
at once, and they eat it whenever the food's in the bowl.
6:05
But she just eats whenever she wants, and then we let her sleep
6:09
on the bed with us. So she sleeps with me at night and in
6:12
the morning too. So
6:14
Helen: she does bark at you a lot when she wants attention.
6:16
Yeah.
6:16
yu: Oh, yeah. But she when she wants attention, like when I'm
6:18
on calls and stuff, and she wants me to play with her, she
6:20
will bark at me.
6:22
Coco Moon: So she's talking to you, right? Like Debbie, like
6:24
look at me, pay attention. So, what hasn't been like watching
6:32
Chloe developing her own relationship with you? You,
6:37
Helen: I think it's really sweet. I think before, because
6:41
Chloe just she loves people more than she likes other dogs. So
6:46
whoever will come over, she'll bark at them first, but then
6:48
she'll always kind of gravitate towards you know wanting
6:51
attention and stuff. So I think before she just treated him as
6:55
like oh just another person that I I can play with. But now
6:59
definitely like if I'm ignoring her and I'm on a call, she'll go
7:02
to him. Or like if I see that she's hungry or something, like
7:07
but I don't have time to get to it, I don't even have to say
7:10
anything, and you you will just know to you know start packing
7:13
her food and leaving that out and everything. So I think it's
7:16
really sweet to see that he went from this passive friend that
7:21
comes and that Chloe just thinks of as like oh somebody that's
7:24
here to somebody that Chloe is like oh I can rely on and I can
7:28
trust. Recently, he actually after we moved into our new
7:32
apartment, Chloe has her own little corner and he actually
7:36
printed out adoption papers to put that he officially adopted
7:40
her.
7:42
Coco Moon: Oh, that is so sweet! I love that. So you officially
7:48
her daddy.
7:49
yu: Yeah.
7:50
Coco Moon: Yeah. There
7:51
yu: was also one time I think we were taking a flight, and then
7:54
Chloe kind of gets scared on flights, but she was on Helen's
7:57
lap. But then when the plane started taking off, she started
7:59
shaking a lot, and she actually went to my lap because I think
8:03
she felt safer with me.
8:04
Helen: Yeah.
8:04
yu: So she sat on my lap while we were taking off, and she just
8:07
kind of cuddled me while she was a little scared.
8:09
Coco Moon: Oh, so she knows like you are kind of a protective
8:14
figure for both of
8:15
yu: them. Yeah, Helen and Chloe.
8:18
Coco Moon: So does she act like or behaves a little different,
8:21
like when she's with mommy and when she's with daddy. Like
8:25
there is like mommy version of Chloe and like daddy version of
8:30
Chloe.
8:32
Helen: Very slightly, the only thing I notice is that when
8:36
she's she would rather play with him because he can roughhouse
8:40
with her. Every time she brings me her her toy, I will play with
8:45
her a little bit, and then I'll start cuddling her and
8:47
smothering her with kisses. And sometimes, like in bed, she'll
8:50
just take the toy away, and then she'll just go to him instead.
8:53
And then he'll make a joke like, "Yeah, it's not smothering time
8:56
right now. Like it's time to play.
8:59
Coco Moon: I think that's kind of like a common theme that I
9:02
have seen on TikTok. There is like a talking animals or like
9:06
talking pets, and then they are talking about or that like an AI
9:11
pet is talking about the relationship with dad, which is
9:14
usually like more treats or more playtime. Yes, and mommy is more
9:19
cuddling and you know, doing some like you know, sweet stuff,
9:23
or like putting her to bed, or something like that. So it's
9:27
kind of like the same theme that I have seen.
9:32
Helen: Yeah, we always joke that he makes me be the bad guy
9:36
because he'll let her like he'll play with her, and then he'll
9:39
like allow her to eat on the couch and stuff, and then I have
9:43
to be the one to take the food away from her and be like, "Hey,
9:46
you have to eat down here. And then when it's time to like
9:49
brush her teeth, I'm doing it, so she gets all mad and then
9:52
she'll go in.
9:55
Coco Moon: So there's like a not like a bad cop, good cop, but
9:59
mommy's. Always have to do like necessity stuff, right?
10:05
Helen: Yes.
10:06
Coco Moon: Yeah. So Daddy gets a little bit of like fun stuff.
10:09
Yeah. The playtime. Oh, so I want to ask you for both of you,
10:15
how has loving Chloe together affected your relationship?
10:21
Like, has watching you, you love Chloe, or Chloe love you, you
10:25
change something about the way you see you, you, or and vice
10:30
versa.
10:32
Helen: Yeah, it definitely melts my heart. I think the picture I
10:35
sent you was the first time that she has done that. And while he
10:39
was driving, she actually like stood up and started giving him
10:43
kisses, and that just like totally melted my heart. And I'm
10:46
like, wow! Like she she went from like just like liking this
10:50
guy to being like, oh wow, this is my protector. I want him
10:53
around and stuff. Like I go to him, and it was very sweet.
10:58
Coco Moon: Like how that like a human relationship with each
11:01
other, kind of changed, or having Chloe in the middle, like
11:07
added more, like moments in the relationship.
11:13
yu: Yeah, I think at least for me, seeing how Helen is with
11:15
Chloe, I can see how she can be with like our future kids
11:19
because I can see how like motherly she is with Chloe, and
11:23
then at least like it's kind of nice because we like now it's
11:27
like we're like a pack, right? Because like because there's
11:29
like three of us, so not only just me and Chloe, but like now
11:33
like when we take out Chloe when we go on like activities and
11:36
stuff, it just felt like we're kind of like a group in a pack
11:40
with us three,
11:42
Coco Moon: definitely a family.
11:44
yu: Yeah, yeah,
11:45
Helen: yeah. I think it's definitely it would. We're
11:47
definitely closer because of it.
11:50
Coco Moon: And I think like you and I, parent or mother or you
11:55
know Mano or Chloe, kind of similar way. And I think in like
11:59
Asian culture also, like we consider our pets our you know
12:04
of course part of our family and like our kids, right? Like we
12:08
literally take care of them, like you know our children. So I
12:12
can see that you know you you kind of stay a little bit you
12:16
know in the future, like how you guys gonna be or how you gonna
12:21
be as a mom? How you you is gonna be as dad too? You know
12:25
when you guys have start having human family, but I want to ask
12:31
you, Helen. And to be honest with me, was there any moment
12:36
that you were like, "Wait a minute, she's my baby.
12:42
Helen: Yeah, definitely. I think I joke about it all the time,
12:45
especially at night when we're laying in bed. She will always
12:49
go on him instead of me. And then at first, like it's because
12:53
she wants to play and stuff. And then I'll joke around. I'll be
12:55
like, "It's just because you have more real estate. Like your
12:58
body is bigger, so it's more comfortable for her to jump on,
13:00
but yeah, I think every once in a while, I'm just like, oh, I
13:04
can't believe he's choosing, like she's choosing him over me.
13:08
yu: Yeah, Chloe has like this little dumpling that's like her
13:10
favorite toy, so Helen will use that dumpling so Chloe goes on
13:14
her, and I'm like, oh, that's cheating. You can't use Bibbit
13:17
to to make her go on you instead of me.
13:19
Helen: Yeah, and then whenever like me and him will hug or
13:23
something, Chloe will kind of always like nudge her way in the
13:26
middle, and she's like, "Oh, I don't allow that. And at first,
13:28
we're like, "I wonder which one she's jealous of. Like, which
13:32
one is she like? Oh, either like, oh, that's my mommy, or
13:35
like, oh, that's my daddy. And like, why is it that she always
13:37
does that? Because she's very aggressive about it. And then
13:40
recently, I think we saw on one of like the facts articles that
13:44
it's actually because she feels like we're all three of us are a
13:47
pack. So when we hug together, she's like, "Oh, my pack is
13:50
doing something without me. So it's not like out of jealousy.
13:53
She just genuinely feels like I should be in this.
13:56
Coco Moon: So she definitely have like a definition or a
13:59
sense of like you, you belong to my family now, in addition to my
14:05
mom, right? Yeah. So I think
14:07
Helen: that was like a big tension, like turning point.
14:09
We're like, oh, she actually thinks of him as like a pack.
14:14
Coco Moon: So now I bet like she acts different to like your
14:18
friend, like even though she may have seen people around or
14:22
friends or coworkers, but you is differently the daddy and the
14:27
mommy is there.
14:28
Helen: Yes,
14:30
yu: Chloe,
14:31
Coco Moon: I love that. So I wonder if there is something
14:35
beautiful about realizing that a new relationship doesn't always
14:40
take love away from existing one. Sometimes it gives love
14:44
somewhere else to grow.
14:46
Helen: Yeah.
14:46
yu: Yep. Yeah. Definitely.
14:49
Coco Moon: So something you've been saying makes me think or
14:53
wonder about the humans in our lives too. Do we sometimes stop
14:58
being curious? People because we think we already know them
15:03
because obviously Chloe kind of evolved herself right, allowing
15:08
you to become part of her family or her pack.
15:13
Helen: Yeah, I think Chloe definitely teaches us to be
15:15
curious always and to just always look for little
15:19
opportunities here and there, so yeah, I think we learn from her
15:24
as much as like she's just a pet. But to us, like you said,
15:27
like she is not just a pet; she's so much more, and like
15:30
we're always learning from her and always knowing that as long
15:33
as she's curious and she's growing, we are too.
15:37
Coco Moon: Yeah, yeah.
15:38
yu: I was saying I think one example is like when we're going
15:40
on walks, she is like the worst walker because she will
15:44
literally stop and smell everything.
15:46
Coco Moon: Yes,
15:47
yu: but then we like saw a post that it's just her like her
15:50
thing is like smelling everything, right? Like that's
15:52
what she likes to do and that's what she likes to explore. So
15:54
like it's like those little moments for her. So then that
15:56
kind of like realized with us like oh she just wants to take
15:59
her time because she wants to smell everything and enjoy
16:01
everything.
16:02
Unknown: Yeah, such
16:02
yu: like always having to walk fast or like rush to the next
16:05
place that we're trying to go.
16:06
Helen: Yeah, so she definitely taught us to be more present and
16:09
be more in the moment. So now we try not to like rush her
16:12
anything.
16:15
Coco Moon: I think that's a great reflection. I don't think
16:20
like you know Chloe or Mana or my cats. You know they don't
16:24
intentionally trying to teach us, but through our relationship
16:29
with them, it kind of reflects into okay, how am I living life
16:36
that we are sharing? Like you are saying, and especially in
16:40
the modern days, everybody's just rushing and like so much
16:44
noise out there, and we are always like scrolling on the
16:48
phone or something. But sharing our lives with them, you know,
16:53
we realize, okay, hold on, like you know, let me be present. You
16:58
know, let me enjoy this moment, and I think it's just so
17:01
important, you know, for us to you know take that moment and
17:05
just pause and breathe and okay, just like you know smelling
17:11
everything or just you know looking at each other, like
17:15
being present moment with each other. Just you know, Helen and
17:18
you you and Chloe. I think you know that's important. That it's
17:24
great that you guys kind of be curious with her through lives.
17:30
Helen: Yeah, it's funny you say that because sometimes when
17:33
we're on our phones and if she's within reach and she's like
17:36
barking at us and we you know sometimes we tune her out, she
17:39
will physically come up and smack the phone out of our
17:42
hands, and we're like, "Okay, yes, you're right, Chloe. We
17:45
have to put our phones away. It's family time.
17:48
Coco Moon: So Mana and Haru do the same thing.
17:52
Helen: Oh, really? Yeah.
17:53
Coco Moon: So Haru, yeah, Haru is my white tabby, as you know,
17:58
cat. She he uses his hands a lot, like even like trying to
18:02
take treat, or like if I'm like you know if I have like bacon in
18:06
my mouth, like yeah, yeah, butter. So he will literally
18:12
come and you know just push the phone down with his paw, or Mana
18:17
does too. Like Mana will use her nose to kind of like push my
18:23
phone away. Yeah, yeah. So you know they're either telling us
18:28
like you know I need some attention or you know like you
18:32
said it's time put the phone down.
18:35
Helen: Yes, be more present. Yeah,
18:36
Yu: because when you think about it, like they're only a like
18:40
they're only a small part of our everyday, but to them, like
18:43
we're their whole world, right? Like we're there, we're there
18:45
24/7.
18:46
Helen: Yes.
18:47
Coco Moon: Oh, I love that. I love that. What you you just
18:51
said, like we are their whole world. Absolutely, absolutely.
18:58
So you you is on. Well, Chloe is on New You's lab right now.
19:03
yu: Yes.
19:07
Coco Moon: At night time, like she's more gravitate towards
19:11
mommy when she gets sleepy. But then on the bed, she's kind of
19:16
like sleeps on New You.
19:17
Helen: When it's playtime, she nighttime. The first, like I
19:20
would say, maybe 15 to 20 minutes, we just kind of lay,
19:24
play, be on our phone. So that's when she plays with him, and
19:27
then when it's time to go to sleep and we're winding down,
19:30
then she'll like ask to be under the covers and like nudge and
19:33
cuddle me.
19:35
yu: Well, a lot of times she'll actually sleep in between us
19:37
too. Like she'll find the perfect spot between me and
19:40
Helen and sleep there.
19:41
Coco Moon: Yeah, she wants to be in the middle.
19:43
Helen: Yes.
19:45
Coco Moon: So how has Chloe? Did she kind of like change or
19:51
evolve at all before just having the one-on-one relationship with
19:58
Helen? To now it's kind. More like a pack or fan. Yeah,
20:03
Helen: I think now she knows that she has two people that she
20:07
can go to for different needs. I think now she knows, like, oh,
20:12
if one person doesn't want to play right now, I can go to the
20:15
other, or if one person doesn't want to give me a treat right
20:18
now, I can go ask for the other. So yeah, her mind is definitely
20:22
moving and thinking, how can I take advantage of this
20:25
situation?
20:27
Coco Moon: That is so funny. And has she like surprised you a
20:31
little bit? Maybe something that she didn't do before, like now
20:36
Helen: she just decided she's done on his lap and just came
20:39
over to. I think she just the biggest surprise is how quickly
20:43
she learned that she has two lanes to go to now.
20:50
Coco Moon: When you guys came to visit and stayed, I noticed that
20:55
you you definitely discipline Chloe like he is you know, your
21:02
hard dad versus with Mana, my mom's dog versus my dog.
21:10
yu: Uh huh. Uh huh. Yep.
21:13
Coco Moon: So yeah,
21:13
Helen: I think when when I'm out like on trips and stuff, and
21:17
Chloe has to be with you, you. I think with anybody else, I would
21:22
always be thinking like, "Oh, is she okay? Because she doesn't
21:25
really like being around, like being around new people without
21:28
me. But I think with him, I'm like, "Oh, perfect! I don't even
21:31
need to think about it because I know that they're having such a
21:33
great time, and she's comfortable, and she's exactly
21:36
where she wants to be.
21:38
yu: And actually, before me and Helen started dating, I she
21:40
asked me to watch Chloe one time, and I ended up renting a
21:44
bike and like taking Chloe on a bike ride. And then Helen told
21:48
her friends that at the time she was kind of scared because she
21:50
thought Chloe might get hurt in the bike or like I might fall on
21:52
the bike. But I think now she depressed me fully. Or like if I
21:56
did that like now she would she wouldn't blink an eye. So it
22:00
sounds like through Chloe, you guys's like trust grew as well.
22:06
You you say,
22:08
Helen: yeah, that's a good point. Yeah, definitely.
22:10
yu: Yeah, I think so. I think
22:11
Helen: I can see how responsible he is and how he thinks of the
22:14
little things that sometimes I won't even think about. So yeah,
22:18
I think it's definitely made me love him More,
22:21
Coco Moon: because you started the relationship not just one on
22:26
one. You started the relationship with Chloe inside
22:33
the package.
22:34
yu: Yeah.
22:36
Coco Moon: So I'm sure there is more that you learned about each
22:40
other, like you know, trust grew along with you know having Chloe
22:46
in the middle, and you know relationship evolved through
22:50
Chloe having Chloe too.
22:53
yu: Yeah, I think it's similar. Like when people have kids too,
22:56
right? Like the kids either can like strengthen the relationship
22:59
between the parents. I think it's the same with Chloe too,
23:02
where she kind of strengthens our relationship.
23:06
Coco Moon: So you are a blended pet family. You didn't have
23:13
Chloe or adopted Chloe together. You you know you you came in, so
23:17
it's kind of like a blended family. Yes.
23:20
yu: Yep. Yeah, and that's where I think, like we were speaking
23:22
about earlier, where I got like a really good package deal. I
23:25
thought I was just getting Helen, but I got two girls.
23:30
Coco Moon: Yeah, I love seeing the three of you.
23:35
yu: I'm sleepy Chloe.
23:36
Coco Moon: Yeah, so we're gonna wrap it up. So we sometimes say
23:41
that's just how mom is, or he's always been like that, or she's
23:46
the shy one, or he's the social one, and my dog doesn't like
23:51
that, or my cat would never. Labels make the world easier to
23:57
understand, but sometimes they can also quietly stop us from
24:03
looking again, and I think this is the key distinction. Knowing
24:10
someone deeply doesn't mean there is nothing left to
24:13
discover. Knowing someone by heart doesn't mean they can't
24:18
still surprise you. And Chloe didn't become a different dog.
24:25
Her new relationship with her stepdaddy may simply have
24:29
invited another part of Chloe to emerge. Sometimes a new
24:34
relationship doesn't change who we are. It gives another part of
24:39
us some somewhere to emerge. When was the last time your four
24:45
baby surprised you? And maybe who else in your life have you
24:50
stopped being curious about because you think you already
24:54
know them? Before we say goodbye, I want to. Share this
25:00
week's little love message from my love messages from your pet
25:05
oracle with all of us. Thank you. This week's card is. Can
25:11
you see? I cherish who you are. Maybe loving someone deeply
25:18
doesn't mean having them completely figured out. Maybe it
25:23
means cherishing who they are today while leaving a little
25:28
room to discover who they may become tomorrow. And I think
25:33
little Chloe may have demonstrated that one rather
25:37
beautifully. You, you, Helen. Thank you so much for joining
25:44
our family conversation today, and Chloe. Thank you for giving
25:48
us something to wonder about. And also, little Miss Chloe has
25:53
her own Instagram account, right?
25:55
Helen: Yes.
25:56
yu: Yep.
25:57
Coco Moon: @curious_Chloe. I'll put it in the show notes as
26:02
well, so make sure you follow her adventures.
26:07
Helen: Thank you so much.
26:07
Yu: Yeah, thank you for having us.
26:09
Coco Moon: Oh, thank you for coming on. I love our family
26:12
conversation, and I miss you guys. I love you, and I love to
26:18
hear what you and your four baby discover about each other this
26:22
week. Until then, take gentle care of yourself and your
26:26
precious one, because your happiness matters.