A Mop Comes to Visit

Murphy is staying with us this week.  He is some type of Lhasa/Shih Tzu mix, otherwise known as a mop.  Murphy is a rescue that Kristen and her family adopted about 6 months ago.  His family went out of town so he gets to stay here.  Rigby stays with them when I travel, so they have already met a few times.  It’s been a fun visit so far but having two dogs is hard!

When he first arrived, Murphy was a little unsure.  He’s never been here before so he stayed inside his house for a little while, warming up to everything.

I had kept Rigby outside while he settled, but she whined and cried at the door, begging to come in.  She was so excited, she almost crawled into the crate with him.

She REALLY wanted him to come out and play.
  
After a few minutes, she got tired of waiting, so took a break in HIS tiny bed.  

 
Finally he came out of his house after much coaxing and a few false starts when Rigby pounced on him and he scurried back in.

We went out for some exploring.

 
 
Whenever I separate them whether it be for feeding, sending one or the other outside, or bedtime, when Rigby sees him, it’s like she forgot he was here and is seeing him for the very first time, ever.  She’s so big and bouncy – like Tigger -and he’s little and timid.  He wants to play, but she scares him just a little.
When he’s had enough, he takes refuge where he can – under the chairs, in his house, or under the bed.  Rigby waits as close as she possibly can, willing him to come out and playl
Neither Rigby nor Murphy are piggy eaters with their food.  They’re both more like grazers unless of course the other one’s food is down.  I separate them to eat and they barely eat a thing while separated.  But as soon as I put them back together they REALLY each other’s food.

Making either one of them mind is a challenge.  Rigby minds commands very well, but with the little one around, she’s having some trouble. I tell her to sit/stay in order to call Murphy to me.  But when I call him, Rigby comes which defeats the purpose because she bounds over, scares him, and he hides.  Getting them in and out of the backyard and their wet feet cleaned feels a little bit like an “I Love Lucy” episode…Crazy!

We went for a walk tonight.  Rigby and I walk all the time, and she’s well trained on the leash.  Murphy is still learning so the walk was very chaotic.  He ran this way and that way, crossing leashes and tripping up both Rigby and me.  His little legs ran and ran, but after a mile he was beat.  He finally just stopped, flopped down on his belly, and wouldn’t move.  I had to carry him back and drop him off before continuing the rest of the walk. 

I’ve been debating the pros and cons of getting another dog.  I’d love to have a playmate for Rigby because she has so much energy.  But having a second dog is double the work.  We’ll enjoy our visit with Murphy this week, but I’ll have to continue the debate for now.