The weekend with Xena

This was a fun weekend! We went apartment hunting together yesterday and encountered many dogs. Xena seems to be frightened/nervous around dogs who are interested in her, or show any interest. She tucks her tail and tries to get away... it's kind of sad, but I think she's just not used to socialization. She's better around smaller dogs. In the picture above, we bumped into another Rhodesian. Xena really wanted to get away from him, but after she realized he wasn't going to hurt her, she was able to sit patiently and wait for me to finish shmoozing.

Today we went to Westchester to my family's house. Xena definitely will need an owner who will be understanding that she is nervous in new places and with new people. She had not met my family before and had never been to the house. She walked around the entire house, smelling everything. She will not jump on on anything and will not take a seat on the couch without you offering it to her, but she takes awhile to settle down and relax. My father tried to give her some treats, which she was happy to take, but it seemed to excite her more. I had to leash her, put out a familiar blanket for her to lay on, and then she finally relaxed and laid down. She was great for the rest of the visit.

I thought, since my family has a large venced in yard, that Xena might want to play fetch with a tennis ball. She wasn't too into the idea... but I think it was because she was freaked out since she just left her family of 9 years last weekend, and has been with two foster parents in the past week... taking her to more new places might not have been the best idea, but given her week, she did wonderfully.

When we got back to the apt, Xena was sooo happy to be back! She knew exactly where the apartment was and wagged her tail all the way down the block until we arrived. Then, she was ready to play! I actually don't have much experience with large breeds, so I wasn't sure how to handle it. She was crouching her back and wagging her tail leaning over... she picked up one of Lucy's (my chihuahua) toys and threw it back and forth. This was the most playful I have seen her! Now, she is resting on my couch.

Xena does not go for people food. She lets you eat peacefully, no begging, no attempting to get at the food... she just looks, but doesn't get up from whatever position she's in.

That's all for now!