She’s a cuddle queen.
When Iris first started attending doggy daycare in April, her mom had no concerns that the young pup would fit in. “She is a social butterfly,” Ebony Magyar, Iris’ mom, told The Dodo. “She loves making friends.”
But Magyar was surprised when, a week into the pup’s stint at Alpha Doggy PlayCare, she received a photo update from the staff. Iris had decided that instead of sleeping on the beds or the floor, the comfiest place for a nap was curled on top of a big, fluffy dog.
This quirk made perfect sense to Magyar, since Iris is always searching out the coziest place to nap. “At home, she is always looking for a warm lap to curl up on,” Magyar said. “Blankets also seem to have magical powers. When she is in a ‘piranha’ mood, I can wrap her in a blanket, and she calms instantly.”
Still, Iris’ confidence around dogs 10 times her size continues to impress both her mom and the daycare staff: “The first one [she slept on] was the massive fluffy Leonberger,” Magyar said. “She’s built even more confidence since then and will snooze right on a dog’s head or squeeze between two dogs that are already snoozing.”
Luckily, the other dogs “seem to be quite receptive” to Iris’ advances, according to Magyar.
And two months in, Iris now has her favorite pups to sleep on.
“The trainers at her daycare said she seems to be selective, but [they’re] not sure of her choosing process,” Magyar said. “I guess, the fluffier or fatter, the better!”
Iris will go so far as to hold off on a snooze until her bedfellows are ready: “She definitely waits for her favorites to lay down,” Magyar added.
Iris’ two favorite things are sleeping and playing — and at daycare, she’s managed to combine both. And the confidence she’s built from these interactions has been contagious with the younger, nervous dogs.
“She brings shy puppies out of their shell who don’t know how to play with other dogs,” Magyar said.
But even though Iris plays and cuddles all day long, she saves her love for the most important person in her life: her mom. And having Iris has brought Magyar more joy than she could’ve ever imagined.
“She’s just a huge personality, so it’s never a dull moment when she’s around,” Magyar said. “And the best part of the day is picking her up from daycare and her kiss attacks — then being able to cuddle her until it’s her bedtime.”