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NESSA
Nessa the Messa
"Nessa the Messa" was her nickname when we brought her home and settled her in because Nessa was a sneaky mess maker! She was very shy and stayed behind the couch in our living room a lot during the first month or so in our home.
We kept things calm and quiet, and gave her lots of time to settle in. She would venture out in the dark of night to chew little round holes in couch cushions and pillows around the house. I needed new pillows anyway, so Nessa was not chastised for these indiscretions.
I also decided to work on keeping her active and awake during the day, and inviting her to sleep with my husband and me and our 2-year-old border collie, Gracie, in our room at night. This worked like a charm. Soon Nessa was venturing out and became more curious and engaged. I took to tying her leash to my belt loop while moving around the house doing chores. I also took Nessa and Gracie on walks and encouraged people to stop and talk to us when we met them while out walking.
I enrolled Nessa (and more importantly, myself) in a basic dog obedience course, and I can attest to the wisdom of that decision. Nessa has been with us for over a year now. She is dependable, sweet, curious, NOT destructive, and is joy in motion.
She leaps and moves like an agility champ, and is very confident in our household. She is still shy when visitors are around, but is curious and makes circles around the periphery. No more hiding for Nessa.
I am very proud of her strides, and love to see the devoted friendship of my two "girls". -- by Nessa's mom, Lori
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