Nana at 13

Little Princess Dementia Doggie has her moments of cheek and playfulness but she’s sleeping a lot more of late.
Even before the heat of this Summer she was slowing down. We think she might be going deaf as she doesn’t respond to us as well when we ask her to "stop" or "stay". Two or three months ago she was greeting us at the door like a little bounce-mouse. Nowadays we can come back home and it won’t be until we caress her that she will wake up almost postictal for a few seconds. However there are times when she can suddenly appear underfoot from the other end of the apartment, where she has been in coma, to investigate the sound of her portion of McDonalds French fries being unpackaged.
Her anxiety and confusion levels are more pronounced and she is more of a cuddle-bum than she has ever been.

She is providing edifying experiences for us, as did our previous pup Lucy, about the vagaries of advancing in years. One aspect about how the world, so fast, so unwieldy overwhelms us as we slow down physically, cognitively and emotionally. And how, not just the the need for patience, but the act of reciprocal patience appears to be a rare commodity these days.

So I try to practice my cross species patience with her. Half the time I get it right, I’m getting better. It also helps in some ways with my emotional intelligence for my own species.