Emme Makes a Friend

Emme is not used to being around small children. Unfortunately, most of the members of our family are long past their pre-school years. Over the Thanksgiving weekend when my nephew's family came to visit, Emme got to play with the two little boys.

At first, Emme was very nervous around the children. Whenever they moved, Emme backed off and barked. She spent some time in her crate for time-out the first evening they were here because she just couldn't settle down. After the newness wore off and Emme was allowed out of her crate, she was very interested in the boys. She wanted to investigate how they smelled and what they would do. With Caleb, Emme mostly smelled every part of him: his hands, his feet, his bottom, his face, his ears. She also stayed near when he ate cereal to see if she could get any droppings.

With Joshua it was a different matter. She and Joshua made friends. Joshua quickly learned that he had to approach Emme quietly and slowly so she didn't get frightened. As soon as he started doing this, Emme warmed up to him. She loved to be near him and he loved to pet Emme. I think both of them enjoyed the experience. If Emme were making a Christmas list, I think it would include one or two little boys. They make excellent dog toys.