Settling In

After 3 days, I think I've finally gotten used to Persia. I still miss Cabana, but I'm able to relax into our newly established relationship with Persia. At first, I felt like Persia didn't really like me. She didn't dislike me either, but she was neutral or ambivalent. Today, I feel like we've got a bond of sorts.

On the other hand, Persia has liked my husband from the start. She is always SO excited to see him (a bit too excited actually), jumping to greet him and waggling her tail furiously. I think Persia's usual dad must romp around with her, so she associates men with playtime and perhaps rough-housing.

The weather today is gorgeous, a "no-temp" day, meaning it's so pleasant you don't feel too hot or too cold--you don't even notice the temperature, hence "no-temp". Persia and I sat outside in our backyard while I replaced some buttons on a shirt, and it was so relaxing! Persia didn't try to chew anything, and she sat so calmly on the deck with me. Maybe this is her inner "slug" showing itself? Cabana is always busy, sniffing here, tasting there, so relaxing isn't a word I'd use to describe our outdoor time.

But I'm still counting down the days until we get Cabana back...4 more days. I hope she's doing okay and not driving the other raisers too crazy. She's a whippersnapper, that one.

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Persia-nality

Persia is a sweet dog, and our time with her has been very smooth. I don't see much "slug" in her, though! She has a different kind of energy than Cabana, but she still seems plenty rambunctious and playful.

Persia's raisers told us to limit her water intake because she will drink and drink and drink, which can lead to accidents. And sure enough, Persia will drink every last drop I put in her bowl. She checks her water bowl often during the day, wanting more--and it's hard not to give it to her because I hate to think that she's thirsty. So I give her just a couple inches of water to drink at a time, rather than filling the bowl like I would with Cabana--and then I remind myself to take her out to relieve within the next half hour or so. And we've had no accidents thus far.

But talk about a fast eater--holy guacamole! I wouldn't have called Cabana a slow eater--Cabana eats her 1.5 cups of food in about a minute or so. But Persia eats her 2 cups of food in about 3 seconds. She doesn't seem to chew at all--she just inhales it.

Persia is quick--she can dash out the door in a millisecond. And she goes after flying insects and catches them in her mouth! Who needs a fly swatter with Persia around!

Another fun difference I've noticed is that Cabana will only lay on soft surfaces, while Persia doesn't seem to care what kind of surface she's on. When I'm showering, Cabana comes and lays on the bathmat in front of the shower. When I'm in the kitchen, Cabana comes and lays on the rug in front of the kitchen sink. But Persia will flop down on the tile or the wood.

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Ours for a Week - Persia

Last night, we brought home Persia! She is a 6 1/2 month old lab/golden cross. So far, she has been doing very well. I haven't seen much evidence of sluggishness yet (her raiser calls her a slug, not me), but we'll see what I think after we go for a walk.

It's so interesting to see the little ways that Persia is different from and also similar to Cabana. Since we haven't had a dog previously, I finally have something to compare against.

And I'm so surprised at how much I miss Cabana! But because she's been with me almost every waking moment since December, I guess it's to be expected--even though I somehow didn't expect it! Still, it IS nice to get an opportunity to miss her--like they say, you don't realize what you've got until you don't have it anymore. Last night, we handed Cabana over to Cherish's raisers, and she sat there with them like it was the most normal thing in the world. She's so resilient, I think she'll have no problems with the adjustment. And Cherish's raisers have raised a handful of dogs, so they know what they're doing a lot better than we do. I told them to fix all her problems this week and give us back a perfect dog!

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