My mother decided to call her new puppy Cody, the same name as her longtime small Pekingese companion who imagined himself a tough protector. My daughter has always favored cats, but she likes her new Labradoodle puppy, too. She calls her pet Chance.

Their puppies were Christmas gifts, from me.  Both of the pets are toys. Their eyes open and close and they make sleeping sounds. They can lift their heads and lay them down, and with a little petting, they’ll fall asleep or wake up. They have blankets to keep them warm. Both Cody and Chance spend most of their days comfortably perched on pillows on my mother’s and daughter’s beds.

My nearly 80-year-old mother has wanted another pet since she lost the real Cody about four years ago. He had been a part of our family for 11 years and my mother still gets sad when she talks about how he went blind and suffered before he passed away. She isn’t able now to take care of another animal and she has missed the company.

My calico, Afi, had been with me for six years when my daughter became the baby of the house. Afi refused to eat and started having difficulty walking before the veterinarian figured out she had been overcome with jealousy. Once Afi realized there was still a place for her in our home, she and my daughter became great pals over the years. We lost Afi a little over five years ago. My daughter has been talking about pets more often since we moved to North Carolina a few months ago so I knew she’d enjoy another pal, too.

 My mother says she has a lot of fun with her new Cody and plays with him two to three times a day. He makes her smile and helps take her mind off her ailments. My 15-year-old daughter, on the other hand, doesn’t tend to her puppy as much, but she’ll pick it up and stroke it after tough days at school.

While their needs often are vastly different, I’m so happy to have found a single solution to offer comfort to my mother and daughter.

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