I don’t usually take my dogs to pet stores (why would I, really?) but I wanted to take Zinnia because she hasn’t been exposed to many dogs outside of Fate and Bud, and I thought she might be getting nervous around them, not being sure what they are.

I often talk to Zinnia and explain the world to her, and she always seems to be listening intently. Maria wanted to capture one of those scenes. I imagine she (Zinnia) thinks I’m a gasbag, but she does seem fascinated by the world.

We ran into several dogs at the pet store while we were looking for red shrimp and two Mystery stails for our tank. Zinnia barked at each of them, tail wagging, and was tentative but then settled out and was sitting next to a greyhound.

We did tons of people socializing, but I’m going to step up the dog socializing. Pet stores are the best and easiest way to do it, although not with a puppy before all his or her shots.

Zinnia is afraid of very little in this world, by the time we left the store she was challenging everybody to play. But I’m going to do some more dog socialization work to be certain.

Zinnia was wonderful in the store, I showed her the fish – she seemed quite interested – and she was happy to lie down and be still while we needed to focus on something. People practically lined up to greet her and ask about her and pet her.

She’s like the Queen in that way, she just waits to be loved and admired. She was calm in the store – pet stores with their smells and treats are a good barometer of calm for a dog. And she slept in the car all the way, it was nearly an hour’s drive each way, we loved the store and are planning to return to pick up some small neon tetras for the tank.

She is a great dog to take places, though once she’s socialized, I doubt I’ll take her to a pet store again. I was surprised at her ability to sit calmly while people and dogs walked right in front of us.