Billy Settles In
Billy has settled in well over the last week or so. Well, mostly settled in. I did some gardening last week and he joined me in the backyard for some sun which he absolutely loves. It’s so nice to be out there planting flower seeds and then look up to see him basking in the sun or rolling on his back making happy dog noises.
He sleeps on my bed at night. It’s the sweetest thing. When I head off to bed, I call him and he follows me down the hall with a big grin on his face, doing his happy dog walk (swinging his bum and tail as he walks). For a big dog, he’s surprisingly unintrusive to share a bed with!
During the day he sits next to me on the couch or at my feet in my study. I have spent a lot of time on the couch, reading, watching TV, writing and listening to music over the last few days with Billy snug and snoring next to me. Unfortunately, this may be creating a pattern where Billy is anxious if I’m not next to him on the couch. Every time I get up off the couch to do something, he leaps up and follows me. Yesterday, He got anxious and whiny when I went and had a shower. Today, I have been working on my blog in my study. I have put a bed next to me which he sat on for a while but when Heather woke up and started going about her day, he became anxious, going out to see her, then sitting in the courtyard like he was waiting for something, then coming back to sit with me but never really settling. He’ll lie in the courtyard or beside you but as soon as you leave or if he’s lying somewhere by himself and you walk past, he gets up to follow.
This behaviour is not surprising, as he’s been through a lot of turmoil over the last few months. But it is something we want to nip in the bud before it gets too ingrained. It’s a fine line between showering him with love and attention and building up his resilience to be happy to be by himself and confident that he will not be abandoned.
On the health front, his eye is looking great. He’s going to the vet today for a check-up and should hopefully only have one more week in the cone. Yay! I’m looking forward to giving him some proper no-cone hugs and seeing him be without the cone.
Peppa's Place 