My best decision of last week was the decision to do nothing. I didn’t try to coax Eko into proximity to Penny and made no changes to Eko’s schedule. He got his usual runs and walks. In his own time Eko chose to try out a romp with Penny.
I was a bit nervous at first and thought Eko might overwhelm or injure Penny. I worried a rough first outing with Eko would make Penny timid around him in the future
“Me, too rough? Never! Just giving Penny a hug”
The two had a great time wrestling and I was happy to see Eko warming up to Penny. And despite getting beat up by Eko, Penny had no qualms about venturing into the mouth of the lion.
It looked like Penny was Eko’s dentist
“Glad to see you’ve been brushing”
After that initial encounter, Penny and Eko really hit it off. Where Penny once steered clear of the big grouch, she now follows Eko wherever he goes. Eko has also been great about not overwhelming Penny.
While Penny always goes full tilt, Eko dials it back to make sure the little tot doesn’t get hurt
While Eko was delighted to romp with Penny, at my mom’s he still preferred to keep the whole couch to himself. Last night when we got home it was more of the same.
Can you spot Penny?
Although she had been shut down before, Penny boldly squirmed up to the futon. Eko growled and grumbled as expected. But then… 
He let Penny curl right up!
Eko even let Penny use him as a pillow
I hoped Eko and Penny would take to one another, but after their first encounter I never expected things to go this well this soon. I have no doubt these two will have plenty of challenges as they learn to live together, but I’m thrilled last week’s strangers are now siblings!