Martha and Skits are playing outside, when Helen calls them over because Alice and Truman have come to visit. When Skits knocks Alice over, Helen fears that he will do the same to T.D.'s four-year-old cousin, who is coming to the lake with them. She decides not to take him with her, then they go and meet T.D.'s cousin, whose name is C.D. He excitedly runs out, but then is afraid of Martha and doesn't want to go to the lake anymore. The kids don't know why he reacted that way, but Martha decides to pretend to leave.
This works, and the kids go to the lake, then Martha meets them there. C.D. becomes fearful again, but Martha assures him that she won't attack him. Once he's assured, he hugs her, which annoys her. She runs off, making C.D. sad as he thinks Martha hates him.
When the kids get back to Helen's house, Martha complains that C.D. is a "doggie lover", which is her term for someone who accidentally hurts or annoys dogs via displays of aggression. She then speculates that C.D. came to fear dogs after one growled at him after being hugged. T.D. calls and says that C.D. has been crying over the incident since he got home and wonders if Martha could come over to cheer him up. Helen isn't so sure, but Martha is keen, since she wants to teach C.D. to change his ways.
She comes over with Helen, and C.D. cheers up and hugs her again. Helen holds C.D. back, then she, T.D., C.D., and Martha go out into the yard, where Helen demonstrates the proper way to pet a dog. C.D. goes to have a try, but he still wants to hug her. Helen and Martha stop him, hold up a tomato, and explain that dogs can be "delicate" like tomatoes. They have him pet one gently, so he doesn't break it, and it works. However, when Martha tells him to pet her just as gently, he doesn't, and goes back to hugging her.
Martha has Helen demonstrate how to approach a strange dog, and notes the lack of hugging. Helen explains that humans need to let strange dogs smell them upon introducing, or else they may get angry. He does let Martha smell him, but afterwards, he hugs her again.
Martha then decides to have Helen give C.D. candy if he pets Martha gently, but have T.D. punish him with a squirt bottle if he hugs her again. However, he hugs her anyway despite being sprayed. Helen declares the situation as hopeless but Martha isn't ready to quit.
She shows up wearing a helmet, pads, and shoes and declares she will go into the garage where C.D. is and has Helen and T.D. promise not to open the door, no matter how much she screams. She goes in, but C.D. isn't there; he's outside playing with Skits, who doesn't mind being hugged.
This episode provides examples of
- An Aesop: The moral of this episode is not to come on too strong when showing affection to dogs.
- Aesop Amnesia: Skits jumps up, despite learning not to in "Skits Behaves".
- And Call Him "George": While C.D.'s hugging Martha is mainly just annoying and not painful, he does hurt her on occasion, and the montage of other "doggie lovers" involves a boy stage-diving onto a St. Bernard's back, a toddler girl pulling a weenie dog's ear, and C.D. pulling Burt's tail.
- Bittersweet Ending: C.D. still hasn't learnt how to behave with Martha, but at least he can play with Skits.
- Broken Record: C.D. and other toddlers are shown repeating words when they're excited (e.g. "Doggie, doggie, doggie!").
- Cats Hate Water: Discussed. Martha refers to punishing C.D. with a squirt bottle as treating him "like a cat".
- Cuddle Bug: Deconstructed. C.D. keeps hugging Martha, but she hates it and tries to teach him that he shouldn't hug her.
- Delicious Distraction: Martha is trying to use the tomatoes to demonstrate that dogs can be "delicate", but she gets distracted and wants to eat one.
- Determined Expression: Martha makes a determined frown when she declares that she won't give up on taming C.D.
- Ear Ache: One toddler girl is seen pulling a dog's ear in the montage of "doggie lovers".
- Food as Bribe: Helen and Martha try to get C.D. to pat Martha gently by offering him candy.
- Friend to All Children: According to Helen, Martha "likes little kids", and she's seen letting a toddler girl stroke her belly.
- Genki Girl: Or in this case, Genki Guy. When he's not scared or sad, C.D. is often running around and excitedly shouting.
- The Glomp: C.D.'s second hug to Martha is preceded by running at her.
- Innocently Insensitive: C.D. doesn't realise his hugs annoy Martha.Martha: "He's out of control, but he doesn't mean to be."
- Irony: Helen initially feared Skits's boisterous attitude would be too much for C.D., but it turns out to be the perfect fit for him.
- Mood-Swinger: Perhaps because he is only four years old, C.D. goes from enthusiastic to nervous to enthusiastic again to miserable to enthusiastic again very quickly.
- No Matter How Much I Beg: Martha tells Helen and T.D. not to let her out of the attic no matter how much she screams for help.
- Platonic Kissing: Helen kisses Martha on the head.
- Shared Family Quirks: C.D. is just as excitable as his big cousin T.D.
- Training the Pet: Inverted — a pet (Martha) tries to teach a human (C.D.) manners.
- Unconventional Food Usage: Helen and Martha use tomatoes to demonstrate what it means when something is delicate.
- Unusual Euphemism: Martha refers to people who accidentally hurt or annoy dogs with physical affection as "doggie lovers".
- Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: Discussed when Helen and Martha wonder if C.D. is afraid of Martha due to being afraid of dogs in general.
