boxofdelights

So, that dog I mentioned last time: it turned out that he does need me.

He's terribly skittish. Afraid of noises. Not just loud noises. Afraid of doors. Afraid of stern looks from Kitsu, which is a rational fear since she thinks he needs a deal of home training.

He's very beautiful, playful, affectionate, and submissive. Doesn't lift his leg to pee. Terribly thin. His first night here he was too anxious to eat, but since then he has been eating like a 14-year-old boy.[*] He paces a lot. He has ear mites, and testicles; I must take him to the vet.

He lived two years at a puppy mill, and then two months with a very kind woman who couldn't keep him. She thinks he spent way too much time in a kennel. He's happy with other dogs. I brought my dogs to meet him: his ears and tail came all the way up while he was romping with Tai.

We didn't like -- and he didn't know -- the name his puppy-mill breeder gave him, so we have named him Aiko.

The woman who gave him to me warned me that he escapes at any chance, and runs himself to exhaustion. This would be a problem if I still lived at the dacha, but here, I have a big more-or-less fenced backyard, where Aiko romps happily with Tai.

[*]Speaking of 14-year-old boys, Mungo played in Tuba Christmas today. He plays the euphonium.