Hiking with Lola
Just wanted to send you a Lola adoption update. She’s doing really well! Everybody loves her and she loves everybody, including our friend’s dog! And my boyfriend and I just adore her more and more each day. She cuddles and plays with students & parents during piano lessons times (and sometimes jumps onto their laps as they’re playing, haha).
Jonathan and I have also harness trained her and she went on her first hike last week. We went to Eaton Canyon Falls. Lola was perched on my boyfriend’s shoulder like a little parrot for the first half of the hike to the falls but we brought her backpack carrier with treats, collapsible water cup and baby wipes, which we didn’t end up needing. She was surprisingly relaxed throughout, didn’t meow, and didn’t try to escape her leash & harness at all. On the way back, I just held her in one arm and whenever we were on flatter ground, I’d let her walk a bit herself. Since I was with my boyfriend, his sister and her dog, we let her walk on the ground for just short intervals because she does a lot of walking then stopping & smelling. Also, she currently walks us, her humans, rather than the other way around. But it was interesting – I think because she saw so many dogs on the hike (which she was fine about as well), she started to understanding the concept of leash walking because by the end of the hike, she wanted to keep walking, instead of being held, and seemed more comfortable and confident in her harness & leash.
We’ve also taken her to cafes with outdoor seating, like Urth Caffe & Jameson Coffee in Pasadena to I think lots of people’s delight! I guess it’s not everyday you see a cat walking around the city in a harness. My thought process was just that as a foster, I made such an effort to introduce new people, smells, sounds & experiences to her and the other kittens that I figured, why not continue that? She seems to really enjoy the different sights and places, as well as all the new people, who seem to enjoy her too!
