I havenโt written any new posts for quite a while. Since you are likely to have a life, you probably didnโt notice.
No excuses, but no drama, either. There just hasnโt been much to say about our favorite Mauzer, and Iโve been a bit tied up doing some work with my charity foundation.
Before I forget, in answer to some questions, we do have social media accounts. If you want to visit, check us out on Instagram, where our handle is @machikonoishi.
Miss Reiko is scheduled for her annual wellness visit on Friday. Itโs only been eight months since she arrived, but her vaccinations are expiring and her dog license is coming due, so I have to go get the rabies, Bordetella and DHPP shots and have her oil checked and tires rotated.
Unfortunately, because of scheduling conflicts, we will not be seeing her regular Vet.
A little while ago I was sassinโ and texting with my good friend Carolyn of emoji fame, and we got to talking about the fur nugget. I mentioned that Reikoโs Vet believes she (Reiko, not Carolyn) is actually a very happy little dog who is living her best life.
The Vet points out that Reikoโs behavior at home suggests a pup who feels safe and comfortable with her existence.
She has several private places where she can hang out in solitude, which she prefers. She gets her good eats on the regular and treats are available daily. She has direct access to the Great Outdoors, consisting of my securely fenced backyard, courtesy of a little dog door I built for her.
Some mild entertainment is provided by running away from me while pretending I am a large and dangerous monster from whom she must escape.
At night she sleeps under my bed, safe and sound despite being stone-cold deaf.
So overall, she gets pretty much everything she wants and needs for a calm and pleasant life.
The Vet thinks this may be as far as our relationship ever goes.
She believes Reiko was so severely traumatized when she was young that she may never voluntarily accept human contact. Given a choice between snuggling next to a human and hiding somewhere alone, sheโll take hiding every time. Particularly when the human in question is the aforementioned dangerous monster.
She also has no apparent desire to take walks outside the property. Why would she? Sheโs never had them, and going for a walk would require being attached to a leash.
Restraint of any kind is approximately 1,000% unacceptable in Mauzer World.
So, bottom line, we are likely to remain roommates forever.
Not what I envisioned when I went to the shelter, but you pays your money and you makes your choices, and thatโs that.
There have, however, been a couple of small behavioral changes during the past month.
First, she has become enamored of television.
Mine is mounted above the fireplace. Reiko has recently discovered that if one watches closely, one can occasionally see other dogs, animals and dangerous monsters moving around on the big glowing rectangle.
Bright lights! Colors! Things running!
Being deaf, a war movie and a romantic comedy are acoustically indistinguishable to her.
She will settle into the Recliner of Sloth, the Love Seat of Indolence or occasionally the Sofa of Abject Laziness, whichever happens to be farthest from me, and watch television for surprisingly long periods, her head following the action across the screen.
Maybe she can read the subtitles.
The other recent development is a state of open warfare between Reiko and my resident hummingbirds.
There are a lot of them this year, and they apparently take enormous pleasure in dive-bombing the Mauzer from every conceivable angle.
Reiko, of course, cannot hear the buzz of approaching wings.
Consequently, every incoming hummingbird is a jump scare.
Sheโll be peacefully sitting on the patio chaise when suddenly a tiny feathered missile appears six inches from her head.
The Mauzer spins around.
The hummingbird reverses course.
Another comes in from the flank.
The Mauzer does a 360.
The hummingbirds regroup.
Repeat.
Iโm not sure who is winning, but the hummingbirds appear to have air superiority.
And so the dog days (hehe) of summer pass quietly here at Chez Roommates.
The Mauzer has her food, her treats, her private quarters, her television, her backyard and an ongoing territorial dispute with the local air force.
And I have a roommate who apparently likes living here.
She just doesnโt particularly want anything to do with me.
Could be worse.
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