It turns out Gladys had brought Alison a present, and she wanted her to wake up to see. It is well-documented that, despite the title held by Waffle the cat, the Aiken household lacks a dedicated, full-time mouser. So Gladys took matters into her own hands; she brought Ali a (mostly) dead mouse!
As a dog, I am above mousing. Still, I think it was a very meaningful gesture -- and I have no doubt that Ali was deeply moved by the thoughtfulness and generosity of her puppy Gladys... our new mouser.
