Kiwi lies atop the staircase landing watching her vanishing kingdom fade into oblivion. Her doggie fiefdom has been raided by four fellow canine, only Kiwi does not fully welcome them as kin, the curse of being an only child.While fiercely protective of the large, pink, upright creatures that walk and feed her twice daily, Kiwi must become one with the pack to survive. I pet Mischka, the kind, Zen-like yellow lab, and observe Kiwi’s lip twitch and curl in stifled jealous fits. Casey strokes Zoe’s athletic frame and our black dog trembles with trepidation. For Kiwi, the New Dog represents the ghost in the closet, the dank basement full of brown recluse spiders, the circus clown with the crocodile smile.
I suggest that such blindsided immersion might be good for Kiwi’s anxiety. I was taught to serve cocktails at the Sports Club Irvine Bar and Grill by being tossed into the mix. Melissa shares with me the psychological term for this technique: flooding. Expose the patient to her fears in order to reintegrate her repressed emotions with current awareness. Sink or swim. Kiwi’s simple fear-aggression issue seems easily surmountable from the comfort of my orderly desk and keyboard. But then I remember how much she hates the water.
Zoe, Mischka, and Sass
Puff in fetus position
Mischka
4 comments:
Oh, poor poor Kiwi! That's a great shot of her on the stairs.
At least she can now rejoice in her regained kingdom. Maybe she can train her "pink people" to be less hospitable to unwanted invasions in the future...
No! No! No! I liked Zoe and her sisters but I just have a hard time expressing my true feelings.....Kiwi
oh my gosh, a whole pack to play with....and such a pretty pack too! poor kiwi and sky, missing out on the joyous chaos of packdom.
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