Perpetual Ruminations

Monday

I had today off, as well as tomorrow. It was lonely here, without Klarissa around, even though it has been a long time since she really was her old self. Even though she was pretty inactive anymore, she would still have to come see me, and make sure everyone was alright. It's going to take a while to get used to life without her.

We had to have a small fire today to get the ground to thaw out enough to dig her a grave. It was a nice day, sunny and warm, and she would have enjoyed being out in the sun, lying in the leaves and rolling. Even as we got the fire going I could see her bringing me sticks from around the yard and trying to do her part to help out. She would have enjoyed the fire, too. She loved to lie in the warmth, sometimes so close I was afraid she would get burned.

She is in her final resting spot now, and it's helped to bring a bit of closure for Rhonda and I, but Hyko, our other Golden Retriever, seemed to be miles away. He has taken her passing very hard, and seemed to have lost touch with any interest in any of his favorite things. Even in play, his heart was not in it, and he soon just went and lied down.

It was difficult to see him so depressed and lonesome, as it was to see Rhonda the same way. I know I have been like that, too. We had talked of getting another puppy to help Hyko deal with the loss, but we knew that it would not be good for Klarissa. She insisted on keeping me all to herself, and there would not have been anyway to get her to share me with another dog.

But now, it seemed like it may be what was needed. I didn't want to pay a lot for a  dog, when there are so many that need a home. So instead of calling breeders or looking in the paper, we looked at the humane society, and found a cute little gal named Lilly. She had been there for about five months and really needed a home. She is black lab and spaniel mix, very pretty, and a bit smaller than a Golden Retriever. She seems smart, attentive, and I don't understand why no one had taken her home yet.

We did, and she is doing well. It will take a while for her to adjust to things, since she is used to living in a small cage, and she is not used to interacting with people much, at all. The lady who runs the shelter seemed to have taken a liking to her, and I'm sure she spent a little time with this young dog, but the guy there seemed a little rough and hard on her.

She does not show any signs of abuse or neglect, but she does favor Rhonda and seems to be a bit afraid of me. I think she was mostly handled by the guy, and pampered a little by the lady. She seems to think I'm going to take her away from things here and maybe put her back in her little kennel.

I do believe she will come around fast enough. She did not answer to her name, so we renamed her Hannah and she has learned it pretty well already. This indicates she may be a fast learner and pretty smart, too. She is pretty mellow, and doing well so far, we will see how the night goes, and then work with her a bit more tomorrow.