Here's Betsy of Fluffy Windover's Diary with this week's Toddler Thursday:

We have four pets at our house: two dogs and two cats. Our animals were with us long before Edwin arrived on the scene. After he was born, we were very concerned about keeping baby Edwin safe around his rambunctious “siblings”. As time went on, however, the concern shifted to keeping the poor animals safe from this rambunctious toddler. The way Edwin sees it, the animals are pesky nuisances that cramp his style. The dogs steal his cookies and chew up his Legos. The cats are merely furry obstacles that get in his way when he’s in a hurry. So we’ve spent a lot of time teaching him to be gentle with the dogs and cats, not to chase them, or kick them, or whack them with paper towel holders. It’s been a challenge, because he just doesn’t seem to like the animals at all. I find myself worrying that we have a burgeoning psychopath on our hands, and it all started with him kicking our poor cat because she chose to lounge atop one of his books.

Yesterday, however, I learned that Edwin has some compassion for them after all. One of our cats, Lefty, ran under the car as we were pulling into the driveway. She is not the brightest bulb in the box, and I guess she just didn’t move out of the way. I heard a yelp and saw her dart off to the neighbors yard, limping. We brought her inside, and she collapsed just inside the door, panting. I was a frantic with worry, but I didn’t want to upset Edwin. So I just pet her for a while and told Edwin that she might have gotten hurt. He said, “Aww, Lefty” and started petting her gently. Then he went and got his little toy guitar and said, “Mommy, I’m playin’ a song for her.” It was so sweet, and a big relief to see that he is not entirely without feeling for our pets.

After a long (and expensive) night at the pet ER, Lefty is home resting with some pain killers. Nothing is broken, so we’re hopeful that she will be OK. As for Edwin, this morning he was yelling at our dog to “go away, that’s my waffle!” Perhaps his compassion for animals only extends to those in distress. But I guess that’s better than nothing.