Do Your Dogs Do Strange Things in Your House Like Ours Do?

We're really starting to wonder who owns our house--us or the dogs.

First of all, there's the real estate situation in the master (dogster?) bed. It's beginning to look like it's 75% canine-controlled. No matter how it starts out any given evening, by morning they've established dominance. It's like a game of Risk, where we ruled the majority of the territories when we went to sleep. Then overnight, somehow, we lost the game.

Secondly, there is barking going on all the time. And we're not talking about the kind of barking that occurs understandably when another dog passes by our property. No. Nikki, in her senior years and no longer able to jump up on the bed by herself, barks when she'd like to be LIFTED onto her throne. Or when she'd like to go for a ride in the car. Or when she'd like some attention.

We're not saying she's spoiled, but that expired milk in our fridge smells FINE by comparison.

The latest thing we've noticed is the odd drinking routine. Even though there's a perfectly acceptable (and accessible) bowl full of water on the floor of our bathroom, Nikki often bypasses it and goes straight for the toilet water. Sometimes she'll have a few sips of both beverages--as if she's a connoisseur at a wine tasting.

Do your dogs do this? Do they have any really odd habits? Tell us about it.