Dogs have hidden rituals that most of us can’t begin to understand. I have three dogs, which is, in my mine, the best number of dogs to have. More than that, and pack politics can get very political, like the U.S. Congress.

But three is still a pack, and I see evidence every day of a pecking order. Every evening, these three take up the same formation.

But gets to choose his spot, he likes the living room carpet closest to my chair. Fate always lies down in the middle, between Red and Bud, and Bud is always up higher than the other two, usually on the sofa, which he is forbidden to be on.

Every time the three of them are in this room, they take up the same positions relative to one another. It seems to me, it is the natural power formation. Red is the Big Dog, he gets dibs on whatever spot he wants, Fate is in the second position, she is always between tho two, and Bud likes to have the highest perch, perhaps to feel safe.

I’m not sure of all the internal dynamics going on in this formation, I do love watching for clue.