[snoring]
[Charles whispering] I think he's sleeping.
[puppy whimpering]
[chuckles] He's awake again.
She's waking up too. Hi, little girl. [chuckles]
-Can we hold them? -Please?
Of course. Just be gentle.
Hi.
-Aw. -Hi.
They're both so tiny. [chuckles]
Teeny tiny.
A friend at the Parks Department found these two abandoned near Lake Willow.
We figure 'em about six weeks old. A bit too young to be adopted.
Six weeks? So they haven't fully weaned yet?
Spot on, Lizzie. I wouldn't normally ask you to foster puppies this young.
-We'll do it. -Hold on.
These two will need extra care for a week or two until they're ready for adoption.
We'll do it!
They need to regain their strength, which means bottle feeding
until they start eating on their own.
That's every three hours.
It'll be a bit of a-- well, a crash course in parenting.
Crash course, honors course. All good.
I love learning.
She really does.
Awesome. You got a deal.
Yes!
-[giggles] Did you hear that, guys? -Yay.
Perfect temperature.
-Here. -[puppy whimpering]
[chuckles]
[puppy whines]
What-- You have your own bottle, Tiny.
That one's for Teeny.
And… they're the same. I promise.
[whining continues]
[sighs] Okay.
[Charles chuckles]
Save some for Teeny, you greedy little dog.
You want some? Here you go.
[both yipping]
Come on, Teeny. Time to do your business.
[sighs] That's one good thing about not being a dog.
I would hate people telling me when I have to go to the bathroom.
Well, it's not like either of them listen.
-[chuckles] Come on, Teeny. Let her go. -[yipping continues]
Finally.
Good girl, Teeny. Such a good girl.
Remember, when he does his business, give him a lot of praise.
It helps reinforce the habits that you do want.
Hey. I was thinking about picking up pizza for dinner.
Excellent idea, Dad.
Such a good dad.
[chuckles] Pizza it is. Just don't offer me a treat.
-[Charles chuckles] -[puppies yipping]
[chuckles]
[alarm beeping]
[Charles groaning]
[sighs] Formula time.
Yeah. Formula time.
[sighs]
Your turn.
-[groans] No. It's your turn. -[Lizzie sighs]
[alarm beeping]
-[groaning] -[sighs] Okay.
Come on.
[Tiny yips, snorts]
[dishes clattering]
Lizzie, aren't you gonna eat?
I will. But if I put her down, she'll wanna eat,
and her next meal isn't for another hour.
Well, yours was 45 minutes ago.
-You want me to heat these up? -Thanks, Mom.
This is a lot harder than usual.
Last week felt like a whole year.
[chuckles] Two puppies are double the responsibility.
You don't understand.
-Feeding them eight times a day. -Watching them constantly.
Parenting the little ones is hard work.
Even if we made it look easy.
Now that you can appreciate the sacrifices your mom and I made,
maybe you'll listen whe--
[Charles snores]
Why don't you take over for a bit?
[Paul] All right. Come here, sweetie.
[imitates whooshing sound] Aw.
[Charles groans, sighs]
[scoffs] Why do we even bother putting down two bowls?
[both chuckle]
Uh, they don't need formula anymore. They're on solid food now.
I know.
I'm making hot chocolate.
[sighs] For both of us.
-They'll be asleep soon. -Yeah.
[puppies yipping, whining]
[yipping continues]
[Betsy sighs]
I'm proud of them.
-Well-- -I know, baby. It was all you.
You raised 'em well.
Beat you to your own joke.
[both chuckling]
Teeny's weight gain is exactly what I was hoping for.
Tiny's as well, although Teeny's gained a tiny bit more.
[Paul, Betsy, Charles chuckle]
[yipping]
And their motor skills have certainly improved.
They love playing with each other.
-They love doing everything together. -[Betsy chuckles]
Well, they're a great team. Like the two of you.
Like all of you, actually.
Are they ready to be adopted?
You betcha.
I'm sure it's gonna be extra hard to say goodbye to these two.
Really hard.
I feel like we have a special connection with them.
Mmm. Me too.
-Ditto. -Guilty.
Hmm.
[sighs] Well, as hard as it is, that's all a part of fostering.
Well then, Caring Paws has an adoption fair the day after tomorrow,
so it's perfect timing, really.
Excellent work, legends.
-Uh, we'll walk you out. -Okay, thanks. [chuckles]
Bye, Dr. Abby.
[sighs] Teeny and Tiny are really gonna miss each other too.
-What do you mean? -Well, you know, when they get adopted.
But what if we make sure they go to the same home?
Charles, a double adoption is gonna be way more difficult.
I think it'll be easy.
-Look at them. -[puppies whimpering]
We can't split them up.
They're a team. Like us.
They do love each other a lot.
And that's why our team has to make sure their team stays together.
Well, there's only one thing in the world better than a puppy.
[chuckling] Two puppies.
[Tiny yips, whines]
-[dogs barking] -[people chattering]
-Do you think they know what's happening? -I don't really think they care.
As long as they're together.
Somebody will want them both.
There's tons of people here, Lizzie.
I'm not worried at all.
-Aw, look at this little one. So cute! -You're gonna hurt that one's feelings.
-[August chuckles] -They're both adorable.
-I wouldn't know how to choose. -Well, luckily, you don't have to.
'Cause today, it's a two-for-one special.
Two puppies?
Getting one puppy is already a lot, especially with your mother in town.
[sighs] Barbara does demand attention.
[whines]
Well, sorry. It's both or none.
They're a package deal.
-Charles. -What?
Not gonna work for us.
-Good luck. -Wait. Um…
You should leave your contact information. Just in case.
Please. If you do decide to split them up--
Not gonna happen.
["Make Room" playing]
[chuckles]
[whines]
-[song continues] -[no audible dialogue]
[no audible dialogue]
[song ends]
[Charles chuckling]
[puppies yipping]
Hey. So I was thinking--
I know what you're gonna say, and the answer is no.
[scoffs] You can't say no by yourself. We're a team, remember?
Fine.
-We have to change our strategy. -No.
Charles! Think about it.
A lot of people wanted Teeny or Tiny. Nobody wanted both.
There are more pet adoptions coming up. There's one in two weeks.
Puppies get adopted faster when they're young.
-The longer we wait-- -No way! We agreed!
Hey, hey. What is going on?
[sighs] Dad, Charles isn't listening to facts.
Lizzie's not being fair!
Okay. Hey. That's enough.
If you wanted a family meeting so badly, you could've just asked.
Let's go.
[Lizzie sighs]
Whatever is going on between you two, let's talk it out.
What's the point?
The point is that in this family, we communicate.
And you know the drill. Productive discussion gets a reward.
-[Betsy] Who wants to start? -Lizzie's a quitter.
Okay, we all know that's not true.
She backed out of our promise to keep Teeny and Tiny together.
I'm trying to do what's best for them, and Charles is being intransigent.
She always uses big words to try to confuse me.
-It means stubborn. -Then just say stubborn.
I think we're getting off track.
What's the key to resolving conflict?
-[Lizzie, Charles sigh] Listening. -Correct.
And can we please use "I feel" statements instead of attacking?
Fine.
I feel that the most important thing is to find both Teeny and Tiny a loving home.
And I feel that it'd be a lot easier if they were adopted separately.
And finally I feel that
sometimes puppies from the same litter bond too much with each other
and not enough with the owner, which can cause serious behavior problems.
I feel that last one 'cause I just read about it.
-Did you hear what Lizzie said? -But they're brother and sister.
And I feel like they came to us for a reason.
So they'd never be separated.
Just like I'd never want me and Lizzie to be separated.
Charles, I'm sorry.
[sighs] It's okay.
I mean, you're right about Teeny and Tiny. Like always.
[sighs] Maybe we can figure something else out.
Something we haven't thought of yet.
I'll get the milkshakes.
What if we put Teeny and Tiny in separate homes…
-Wha-- -…but we get the owners to agree
on letting them have regular playdates?
Charles?
I feel that Lizzie is a genius.
[Paul, Betsy laugh]
You guys earned these.
-It's all right. I'll take that. -Mom!
What? I think I deserve a sip.
Mmm. It's good.
-No. [smacks lips] -Mom! [stammers]
Okay. I've gone through the list of all the people from the adoption.
There's Suzanne, the retired dentist, and Ava, the pregnant lady.
They live 3.6 miles apart, which isn't that close,
but there's a dog park somewhere in between.
-And there's Janey, the yoga teacher. -Lizzie?
-She doesn't live in Middleton… -Lizzie!
…but she teaches in people's homes, so she has no problem driving.
Lizzie!
-What? -Duane and Gregg.
They're both kids.
And they live on the same street.
[Teeny, Tiny yipping]
Not only do they live on the same street, they live right next door to each other.
Did you hear that, Teeny? We found the perfect home for you.
You'll be like us.
Separate bedrooms, but you'll see each other every day.
I'm sorry I was being so intransa-whatever.
[scoffs] Don't be sorry.
If you hadn't pushed back,
we would've never come up with this compromise.
And I think you're right.
Teeny and Tiny did come to us for a reason.
[puppies whining]
-[yips] -[Lizzie, Charles chuckle]
[Charles chuckles] I think Tiny remembers you.
I think so too. Ha!
[Gregg giggles]
Ah. He's tickling me.
Try it and reward her.
Okay.
Come, Teeny. Come.
Good. And make sure to praise her.
Good girl, Teeny. Good girl!
Such a good boy. [giggles]
[chuckles] Eat the treat.
So, it's okay with your parents?
And your house seems safe.
And you have a great backyard.
Plenty of room for her to run around. There's only one condition.
Just one.
-Anything. -Anything.
I'm sure you remember Tiny has a sister named Teeny.
All you have to do is promise to let Teeny…
…and Tiny have regular playdates.
That sounds fun.
Who doesn't like playing?
And here's the best part.
-The playdate is with… -…your next-door neighbor.
-Gregg? -Duane? No way.
I'm not talking to Gregg.
Why not?
Ask him.
He knows why.
[Charles] I'm really sorry.
[sighs] Playdates for Teeny are key to the adoption.
I can't let you adopt Tiny.
-I'm sorry. -[Charles sighs]
-[Teeny whining] -[kisses, sighs]
You know what the worst part about this is?
Every part? Our whole plan just got blown up.
True, but I was gonna say that Teeny seemed to really like Duane.
Same with Tiny and Gregg. I'm so mad I got my hopes up.
Ah, we both did.
But that's okay. I'm sure we'll figure something out.
Okay. Let's go back to the list.
Maybe the yoga lady has a friend.
There's someone here to see you.
Hey, Duane. What are you doing here?
My mom brought me over. She's waiting in the car.
I just wanted to tell you again how much I really want Teeny.
I'll take such good care of her. I promise.
Duane, it's not that. It's that Teeny--
Look. I read this whole book on dog training last night.
Did you know that dogs love having tasks to do?
They really do.
I also got this training clicker and this pouch for treats.
You're really serious.
I really want her.
What about the playdates?
Yeah. What happened with you and Gregg?
Well, we used to hang out all the time.
Then he called me boring and said that he didn't want to be friends with me anymore.
And that was it.
What do you mean? You guys never talked about it?
[sighs] What's the point?
I got it.
So, how about you show me that book?
I'm really glad you called. I keep thinking about Tiny.
My parents even said he could sleep on my bed.
-Did you change your mind? -Not yet.
I need to ask you something.
Why are you so mad at Duane?
I-It was weird.
We always sat together on the bus.
Then one day I got on, and he was sitting with this kid, Zach.
I'd just got a haircut, and they were laughing at me.
They wouldn't stop.
But you were good friends before that. You never talked about it?
I don't know.
Okay. What are you doing right now?
[chuckles] We once fostered a pug named Pugsley,
and he looks exactly like this guy.
-You're so lucky you get to foster-- -Where's Tiny? I can't wait to see--
-What's he doing here? -The same thing you are.
You didn't tell me he was coming over.
Well, you didn't ask.
-Plus, you have to talk this out. -[Duane] There's nothing to talk about.
We're not friends anymore.
And we have nothing in common.
You guys both like puppies.
What about milkshakes?
How long is this gonna take? My dad's waiting.
That's up to you.
[sighs] Here are the rules.
This is a discussion, not an argument.
Focus on listening.
-And use "I feel" statements only. -[scoffs] Seriously?
You know you're, like, our age?
Okay. This is dumb.
It's not dumb.
You guys want Teeny and Tiny or not? Your choice.
[Gregg sighs]
Who wants to start?
He hurt my feelings.
[Lizzie] That's good.
-But let's try to use "I feel" statements. -[Charles clears throat]
I mean, go on.
Gregg said I was boring and he didn't wanna play with me anymore.
What? I never said you were boring.
I said stop-motion tag was boring.
What's stop-motion tag?
It's a game we invented in first grade.
It's fun, but I wanted to change the rules, and he didn't.
It's the same game over and over, and that's what I said was boring.
-Not you. -Oh.
[sighs]
Sorry.
Sorry for laughing at me and embarrassing me in front of everyone?
What?
On the bus, when you sat with Zach and laughed at my haircut.
We weren't laughing at you.
When I got on, Zach called me over
'cause his shirt got stuck in his zipper and he couldn't get up.
It was so funny.
Is that really true?
Why would I make fun of your hair?
It's hair.
This seems like a breakthrough, right?
It is for me.
Me too.
You guys earned these.
[Gregg chuckles]
You guys are it!
You guys are really taking these playdates seriously.
[chuckles] We found a whole new way to play tag.
Using the puppies.
[puppies yipping]
Totally not boring.
You guys are it! [chuckles]
Check out what Gregg's mom made.
Now Teeny and Tiny can play whenever they want.
[Lizzie chuckles]
Get her, Tiny. Go get her.
Maybe when we grow up,
we can get houses next to each other with a door in between.
Yeah. As long as I get a lock on my side of the door.
-Whatever. -[Lizzie chuckles]
Tag, you're it!
Charles, I'm too old to play tag with you.
You mean too slow?
You're about to find out.
[both laughing]