Zinnia came with me to the dentist the morning; I had a scheduled tooth cleaning. She is much loved at Cambridge Dental; I was once sent home for forgetting to bring her.

In the office, there is a photo of her visiting as a puppy, and there is a photo of Red with aide Ariel, an avowed animal nut who just got three goats because she loves goats.

She also got some chickens, most of whom were eaten by a fox.

But Ariel’s main passion is for dogs. She loved Red, and there is a photo of her and Red that I took hanging in her office. Ariel makes going to the dentist fun; she is the heart and soul of the office.

She always cheers up patients, joking with doctors, and comforting kids, and she shrieked with joy when she saw Zinnia. She is a truth-teller in her own funny and lively way.

Ariel can even make you laugh with your mouth open and a drill in a tooth.

Maria, who does not care for dentists, loves Ariel; she says she would always go where Ariel is.

Zinnia trotted in with me as if she owned the place. She made a beeline for Ariel and then went looking for me. She is happy to wander off and visit people, but she gets worried if she sees or hears me.

She came into the cubicle with me, lay down for a while; they walked around, comforting patients, palling around with Ariel, then coming back to check on me.

Everyone is comfortable with her, and now that it’s cooler, she is cruising around with me in the car, resting her head on the windowsill, taking in the world.

I had to see what the Leica could do with the light in the dentist’s office (see the backlighting from the sun. I love silhouettes, another new dimension for me with this camera. The photo is Ariel hugging Zinnia.)

After the dentist, we went to the Mansion and lit up faces to lunch at Bob’s hot dog stand. As Zinnia got out of the car, a pit bull who did not look friendly came rushing at her, only to screech and turn suddenly around and rushed back to her owners when she was close.

It turned out that she had a shock collar on and was zapped before the two collided. Zinnia was astonished, and I think she was about to lie down when the other dog ran back. I feel bad for pit bull owners in some way.

Everyone is so afraid of their dogs. Very few pit bulls are dangerous, but people seeing one charge their dog can’t know that. I do know that and was a bit rattled. No harm done.

It is a joy to bring Zinnia places. She is at ease wherever she goes, never thinks of running off, and always keeps an eye on me. She is a Joy Spreader, and that is always a lift.