Mylu was a Very Good Girl

Last week 3 year old Mylu visited with us for her meet n greet.  She spent 4 hours with us one morning and another 4 hours for an afternoon. She was such a good girl we were more than happy to welcome her back to stay overnight. Her mom and dad had to be away for 5 days! The first few hours she was happy and played with all the toys.  After that, she headed to the gate and set to waiting, waiting, waiting...  After all her 4 hours were up. Right?

We let her stay there for a short time, then encouraged her to come into the house. It was close to dinner time and we knew it would help her remember she's safe with us. After dinner everyone settles in to relax mode around here. She was happy to receive all the attention we gave her and kept a wagging tail and smiley face. Despite our attempts to lure her in, Mylu decided not to join us in the living-room. Instead she found a nice cool spot to rest and wait.

I'll just wait here till my mom and dad come for me.

At bed time she followed us out for the evenings last piddle and was quite willing to head into the bedroom to choose her mat. We gave our normal cuddles and hugs and nighty nights, with a special extra dose for Mylu.
She had chosen the mat along my side of the bed. One that our little Lady May is always willing to give up to new comers. Thank you Lady May. That mat allows me to stroke their fur and give any reassurances during the night.  I leave my bedside lamp on low so I can see comfort levels at a glance. I always watch for the first while until I know every dog is fast asleep.  Mylu lay down quietly for a few minutes.  Then decided she needed to make some noise. Perhaps to let me know, her mom and dad were not with her. At first, she quietly gave a few little moans, enough for me to stroke her and reassure her it was okay to go to sleep. She held her head up and looked me right in the eye and barked! That yielded a big fat No Response from us. I could just imagine her thinking,"Oh drat, that didn't work." Her sounds lasted all of a minute and lessened to moans and little woofs with the occasional little bark. Sleep followed quickly.
With proper reinforcement for quiet behaviours, we encourage our new comers to figure out on their own that they are safe with us. We know they miss mom and dad. A minute after she was quiet, I reached down and spoke softly to her, stroked her fur again while she fell fast asleep. 
Not a peep all night!

By early morning Mylu was ready to begin her, by the gate, vigil again. She laid there while the sun came up until I called her in for breakie.  That seemed to break her concentration on mom and dad's absence. The rest of the visit was plain old fun and lickie kisses for everyone.

Why don't I hear my dad's car coming? 

Oh is it time to eat!?

Mollydawg, "Okay, I'll let you lay beside me but no more kisses!"

 It was a very hot weekend so the kiddy pool was filled and refilled many times.  It's placed in the shade under our big Mountain Ash tree. The blossoms are blowing and they fill the pool quickly.  Mylu didn't seem to mind at all. She spent much of each day, in and out while throwing toys in and staying cool.
When it was time to rest, she made a point of trying out most of the resting spots to see what fit her best.

A little too big 

A little too small

Lady May, "Don't even think about this one. It's taken!" 

Mylu,"Fine, I really wanted to be with Princess MollyDawg anyway!"

She's not so cranky! 

Good! and keep your stinky feet out of my water anyway!

Oh Lady May you're such a funny girl. It takes her a very long time to really warm up to new comers. I love it when they stay longer than just one over night visit.  By the last night Mylu was here, she had warmed up enough that she moved back onto her own mat and allowed Mylu to use the crate she deems her own.   I even caught a moment of acceptance of Mylu's gentle kisses. Of course there was no camera on hand but I saw it!  Mylu is scheduled to be back again this month. I already know Lady May will be smiling this time.

Thanks for visiting us Mylu. See you again soon!
You can check out Mylu's photo album in our Facebook album here  "Mylu"