Peaceful Morning

All was peaceful on our morning hike today - the wind, Shyla's spirit, and my spirit. You can see from the lighting in these photos that a dark storm hung over the Continental Divide while the sun shined on us. The lighting in our neck of the woods was mysterious and dramatic.

Shyla was back to her normal self, full of energy and mischief. My post yesterday reminded me of something about K. Her thyroid produced progressively less hormone over her lifetime, as it withered from an autoimmune disease. I could always tell when her thyroid levels had dipped too low because she'd become very cautious about benign things, like the cracks between the boards of our deck. Increasing her thyroid supplement would completely eradicate her irrational worries. So, it's always worth considering that a pup might have a medical issue when they behave differently from usual.

Since Shyla was back to normal today, that is not a concern, thank goodness. I suspect that the whipping wind yesterday was a big factor in her fear yesterday, as several of you suggested.

Shyla wanted to run today. We practiced recalls when she was full of high octane energy.

After a little while, we headed toward a snow-covered north-facing slope that I've been checking for bear tracks over the past few weeks. It's tough hiking there, except in the early morning when I can walk on the snow crust. When I fall through the crust, the snow is up to mid-thigh!

The bears have stirred this early in the past - but the early risers never come into areas where humans hike until much later in the spring. We haven't seen any bear tracks yet - but I am looking forward to it. Bears are my favorite animals in our forest.

At the end of our hike, Shyla and I both gave thanks for a nice morning spent together. We both love exploring nature - making us a perfect pair!