โLuria , Iโm going to help wash the prairie dog.โ
โYes, that sounds good.โ
I chased after the maid, who was holding the prairie dog, with Daru.
The maid headed towards the servantโs bathroom.
Peeking inside from the changing room, the maid was preparing a larger tub.
Inside the tub, the prairie dog was sitting.
โIโm going to add water, so please stay still.โ
โKyuuui.โ
The prairie dog was standing on its hind legs, looking around.
โReally, itโs so calmโฆ For some reason, the animals around Lady Luria are always calm.โ
As the maid said this, she prepared the water.
While Daru and I watched, my mother came from behind.
โLuria , arenโt you going in?โ
โI thought it would be better not to interrupt.โ
โYes, but youโre going to wash it, arenโt you?โ
โIโm going to wash it.โ
โSorry, it seems like Luria wants to help wash it.โ
My mother spoke to the maid, and it was decided that I would wash the prairie dog.
โStay calm now.โ
โKyuuui~โ
I wet its whole body with warm water and started lathering it with soap.
โBe careful with the face, donโt get soap in its eyes or ears.โ
My mother told me from behind as I worked.
โGot it! Oh, thereโs a lot of dirt on its paws!โ
โPrairie dogs dig holes.โ
โI see~โ
After washing it clean, I wrapped it in a towel and held it.
โKyuuikyyui.โ
The prairie dog made a sweet sound and snuggled up to me.
โSo cute!โ
โKyui.โ
โLuria , arenโt you going to give it a name?โ
โA name, huhโฆ Hmmโฆโ
โYou can go with your intuition, like Leonardo. How about that?โ
โLeonardo, huhโฆโ
My mother seemed to recommend Leonardo, but personally, I didnโt like it much.
โWhat name would be good?โ
โKyuuui.โ
โHm? Do you want it to be Kyuuui?โ
โItโs just a sound it makes. It doesnโt mean it wants to be named โKyuuui.โ I think โLeonardoโ or something like that would be better.โ
โBut I think Kyuuui sounds better.โ
I placed the prairie dog a little further away.
โMom, call it. Luria will also call it.โ
โShould I call it Leonardo?โ
โYes, letโs see who wins.โ
I decided to let the prairie dog choose.
โLeonardo, come here~โ
But, sneakily, my mother was holding a nut in her hand.
โMm! Kyuuui, come here.โ
The prairie dog was looking between my mother holding the nut and me, confused.
โItโs undecided. Maybe both are good names?โ
โItโs just attracted to the nut!โ
In the next moment, the prairie dog rushed over as if it was charging and jumped into my arms.
โHm? It came all of a sudden?โ
โKyuuui~ Kyuu~โ
โโฆโฆโฆโ
As the prairie dog snuggled up to me, I thought for a moment.
โKyuuuiโฆ It came even though I didnโt call it. Maybe Leonardo and Kyuuui are both equally good?โ
โThatโs not true. Leonardo is the best.โ
The prairie dog, even though it saw the nut, didnโt go to my mother. So, Leonardo was rejected.
โHm? Do you want the nut?โ
โKyuuikyuui.โ
โI wonโt give you the nut. Do you want to be named Nut?โ
โโฆโฆโฆ?โ
The prairie dog looked up at me with sad eyes, as if asking, โWhy would you say such a cruel thing?โ
โDo you want the nut?โ
โKyui, kyuuuiii!โ
โLooks like you just want to eat it.โ
I almost named it Nutโฆ that was close.
Anyway, while feeding the prairie dog a nut, I asked again.
โHow about Kyuuui? Kyui?โ
โKyui?โ
The prairie dog grabbed the nut skillfully with both paws, eating it while tilting its head.
โOr how about Kyau?โ
โKyuuui~โ
I called it in different ways, watching for its reaction.
โLuria really wants to put โKyuโ and โKyaโ in the name. I think Leonardo would be better.โ
My mother said this, but I ignored it.
Leonardo is a good name, but itโs too hard for me, a three-year-old, to say.
So, it was rejected.
After calling it in different ways, โCarro โ got the best reaction.
โOkay, its name will be Carro !โ
โKyui, kyui!โ
It seems like Carro also liked the name, so thatโs good.
Saying this, Mother spoke as if resigned.
โWell, since the owner is Luria , if Luria is happy with it, thatโs fine.โ
โYep! Carro, nice to meet you!โ
โKyui, kyui.โ
Carro chirped happily and looked at the nuts in Motherโs hand while snuggling up to me.
After playing with Carro for a while, Mother spoke.
โBy now, Carroโs toilet should have been set up in your room.โ
โA toilet, huh?โ
โLuria will have to teach Carro how to use it properly, okay?โ
โLeave it to me. Carro, follow me.โ
โKyui!โ
I got on Daruโs back and headed to my room. Behind me, Mother, the maid, and Carro followed.
When we got to my room, I saw the newly installed toilet. It had sand in it, making it easy to handle waste.
โCarro! This is your toilet!โ
โKyui kyui?โ
โWhen you need to go, you do it here.โ
โKyui~?โ
I could feel that Carro didnโt quite understand yet.
โLet me show you how itโs done.โ
โDonโt!โ
I tried to show Carro how to use the toilet, but Mother stopped me.
I was confused.
โKyuu~โ
It seemed like Carro was interested in Daruโs toilet. Daruโs toilet was bigger than Carroโs, but it also had sand in it, just like Carroโs.
โThis is Daruโs toilet.โ
โWoof!โ
โCarro~?โ
โHm, is it your toilet, Luria ? Itโs over here.โ
In my room, the toilet is next to the bed.
โThis is it!โ
โKyuu~โ
โItโs nothing to brag about, but Luria hardly ever has accidents.โ
โKy?โ
โItโs true. Since I stopped wearing diapers, Iโve only had a few accidentsโฆ I can count them on one hand.โ
โKyuu~โ
Carro looked at me with admiration. As a three-year-old, I felt proud.
โAnd this is Carroโs toilet. I hope Carro can use it properly, just like Luria .โ
โKyuu~โ
It seemed like Carro understood the toilet situation.
At least, thatโs what I thought at the time.
The next day, when I woke up, Daru was already in my bed as usual.
โGood morning.โ
โWoof woof!โ โKyui~โ
Carro stood on the headboard on her hind legs, seemingly keeping watch.
โThank you, Carro.โ
โKyui~โ
When I thanked Carro, she puffed out her chest proudly, as if she had done her job as a lookout.
โAlright.โ
I picked up Carro and got out of bed, only to find a black, round object on the floor.
โHm? Carro, did you do this?โ
โKyuu?โ
Carro seemed to ask, โWhat do you mean?โ
It seemed like she didnโt fully understand the toilet concept yet.
โWell, it canโt be helped.โ
Using a poop scoop, I cleaned up the mess and put it in Carroโs toilet.
I also sniffed the smell.
โHmm, itโs round and doesnโt smell too bad.โ
I was glad it seemed healthy. When an animal has a stomach issue, it gets all messy, which is troublesome.
โKyuru?โ
Carro tilted her head at me. Cute.
But I needed to teach her how to use the toilet properly.
โCarro, you do your business here.โ
โKyuu~?โ
โYou do it in the toilet.โ
โKyuu.โ
โLook at Daru.โ
โKyuru?โ
I pointed to Daru, who was struggling in his toilet.
โLook, Daru uses the toilet, and heโs doing a great job! Just like Luria .โ
When I petted Daru while he was using the toilet, he looked a little troubled but kept pushing.
โWoof woof~โ
Daru usually goes to the bathroom outside when we take him for walks. But today, it seemed he was doing it to show Carro how itโs done.
โI hope Carro can use the toilet like Daru.โ
โKyuru~โ
Carro watched Daru intently as he pushed through, and I watched closely too.
โAhh~โ
Daru, looking a bit embarrassed, finally finished.
โOnce youโre done, itโs Luria โs job.โ
Daru scooped his poop and the sand into the covered box. After that, the maid would come to take it away.
I also put Carroโs poop in the box for demonstration.
โAlright, Daru, Carro! Letโs go eat!โ
โWoof woof!โ โKyui kyuiโ
โAfter that, letโs take a walk inside the house and show Mom the encyclopedia!โ
For some reason, Mom has a lot of encyclopedias.
Iโll look up things like the prairie dogโs habits and what they eat, just to make sure Iโm well-informed. After all, Iโm the one taking care of Carro.
โWoof.โ
โHm, Carro, do you want to join Daruโs walk?โ
Daru is big, so he goes for two walks a day.
โLuria canโt go outside, but Carro can come with me.โ
Carro jumped onto my shoulder and chirped.
โI see, you want to be with Luria . Thatโs fine.โ
Saying that, Carro chirped happily.