Claudette and I enjoy all manner of activities, from romantic nights at the opera to dining at the finest French restaurants. Claudette has a soft spot for handspun cotton candy and diamond collars, and perhaps these slight weaknesses have somehow contributed to our current financial difficulties. However, we were both raised in fine homes, and our previous owners thought teaching stuffed dogs to beg was gauche. We are not accustomed to needing ‘help’, and I have not, in fact, made Claudette aware of the seriousness of our financial problems. I’d rather keep this matter private. Claudette is very much a lady and has a quite fragile constitution.