Dr. Veronica Morgan, Dog Psychiatrist

On the Internet, later that afternoon, Veronica discovered three things responsible for causing hot spots. The first was tangled or matted hair. That only applied to long-haired dogs, not beagles. The second was allergies. Esme had never mentioned Cadbury having any allergies, so Veronica didn’t think that was relevant. The third was boredom, stress, or loneliness. Bingo.

“Your dog,” the site said, “may need more exercise, playtime, or attention. Lack of any or all of these things may result in a dog who maims himself by constant licking and scratching.”

The thought of Cadbury maiming himself made her finger itch and her heart break. Obviously if Cadbury belonged to the Morgan family, he wouldn’t be lonely, so he wouldn’t need to hurt himself. Adopting him was good for Veronica and crucial for Cadbury. Why should Mrs. Kreller be the only one to benefit from psychiatric intervention?

Veronica would lay it on thick tonight, at dinner, but she had to finesse it just right. Her parents had to think adopting Cadbury was their idea. Her plan was so brilliant she could barely stand it.

Meanwhile, it was time to walk Fitzy.

“Be careful, my baby,” Mary said. “And don’t bring him in here to say hello. He is one dog that ruins the whole bunch.”

“Of apples?”

“Yah, Fitzy is more bad apple than one bad apple.”

“Mary.”

“Yah?”

“Never mind,” Veronica said. Sometimes explaining the English language to Mary was a lot more trouble than it was worth. She grabbed a plastic bag from the kitchen and headed for the elevator.

Fitzy was a miniature dachshund who lived on the tenth floor. Fitzy growled at the doormen, bit her dog walkers, and took special delight in nipping at young children. She wore a monogrammed sweater and a bow at all times. Perhaps Fitzy suffered from too much attention. Mr. and Mrs. Ferguson called Veronica the Dog Whisperer because Fitzy adored Veronica. In fact, when their fifth dog walker quit, they offered to pay Veronica fifteen dollars a week to walk Fitzy. If Veronica had been able to convince her parents that she would be perfectly fine walking a ferocious dachshund, she had to be able to convince them to rescue an anguished beagle with psychosomatic hot spots.