Hubby Dotty For Doggy

Dear Dog Lady,

My best friend's new husband seems obsessed with his two year old Golden Retriever, Dottie. Is this possible?

My friend has severe allergies and asthma and her new hubby is unwilling to move his pet outside or give her to another family. I don't mean to pry but it seems odd that he dotes on his dog, but his new wife is suffering. It’s as if he is using his dog as a crutch to avoid discussing these things with her. He accuses my friend of hating Dottie, and he is no longer sleeping in the same room as my friend. Of course, he's still letting Dottie sleep in the bed and the dog has the run of the house.

My friend is a beautiful, intelligent, funny woman, but her husband says she is being inconsiderate of his feelings. Is he being a brat? Or am I just taking sides?

Josephine, Amarillo, TX

State of the Art Dog Park

For Dog Lady, rubbernecking at dog parks gives immense enjoyment. (Yes, the Lady is a tramp). In the middle of Boston, this dog recreation space was recently sanctioned by city poohbahs and designed by one of the area's top architects. The peastone ground cover can be a problem as the pebbles tend to drift far and wide, but, overall, this dog park is a big success. Privately funded and imaginatively designed, the space continues to win over urban dog doubters.

Nom D' Fume

Dear Dog Lady,

We love your column and sound advice. We are interested to know your thoughts related to a matter of etiquette. We are partners and have a nine-month-old Westie with an uncommon name. She is the center of our universe. Recently friends of ours got a second dog and gave her the same name. We were a bit taken aback, but have not said anything about this to our friends. Are we being too proprietary about this name thing? Is it in poor taste to name one's dog the same unusual name of his friend's dog? Your thoughts would be most appreciated.

Ian and Antonio, Boston, MA

A Wary Dog In Designer Duds

This spaniel sweetheart in a purple velvet bow was on high alert (it's all in the eyes) backstage at the Milan fashion shows. The photo was taken by Christophe Simon for AFP/Getty Images. Dog Lady pilfered the pic from Andrew Sullivan's always-interesting blog.