An update and some wildlife

I don't have time to write the next chapter of our trip today so I thought that I'd tell you about a few odds and ends. First and foremost, although K's health has definitely taken a step in the wrong direction, she's still having fun in life.

She and I take a hike in the woods each morning. Although her limp can be incredibly pronounced around the house, she forgets about when she's outside. She runs around having fun, with barely a hitch in her stride.

Some may disagree with our approach but we've decided to give K the freedom to have fun and do as she likes during our hikes. We realize that there could be bad consequences that could shorten her life. But, we think that it's better to live fewer days with joy than to live more days without the sparkle. I like to think that K agrees.

I do have to admit that I'm sad that I believe that, barring a miracle, our mountain biking days are over. I took this photo on our last ride up to Hug Hill about five days ago.

Ah, what adventures K and I have shared on our mountain bike rides. I am so grateful for every single one.

During the day after that bike ride, it seemed like something "happened" to K's formerly cancerous leg. Our regular vet thinks that it was a microfracture. We'll see what the oncologist thinks tomorrow. I am still holding out hope that K will be able to walk up to Hug Hill at least once again. However, it feels like too far for her right now.

But, I still revel in what we *can* do together. We take our evening hikes, usually with R and the Runner. I shall never cease to love the red hue of K's fur at sunset. I also love the sensitive side of R. In this photo, he gave her a long and searching look. I'm sure that this is a confusing time for him.

On the wildlife front, I captured some hilarious video of bears marking a tiny tree but I'll have to collate it into a presentable form for another day. I find that editing video is SO time-intensive.

Although I hesitate to call them "wildlife", we've been having a mouse issue in our house. I can't bear to kill any living thing so we capture them alive and take them into the meadow for release. I'm sure that some find their way back to our clearing. Here's one right after I released him.

My wildlife cameras have shown me that our bobcat is helping out with the mouse "issue"! Here, he arrived in our clearing, just outside our bedroom window.

One minute later, he departed with a mouse in his mouth. You can see the mouse tail hanging out of his mouth. I guess that the bobcat isn't squeamish about mice like I am!

He must have devoured the mouse in one gulp because he was returning to our clearing within another minute. Go Mr. Bobcat, Go!!!!

As a final note, tomorrow will be a long day with K's oncologist appointment and hours of driving. I'll try to post but please don't worry if I am delayed.

Oh, how I love our K. I think that tomorrow will be a tough one but I'm holding out a glimmer of hope that the oncologist will have a trick or two up her sleeve to keep K comfortable for a bit longer.