Shyla's Third Gotcha Day!

Yesterday was the third anniversary of the day we met Shyla. We didn't have a big celebration because we were too focused on R getting well again. Sometime soon, We'll go for a celebration outing sometime soon.

On that day when I met Shyla, I had no idea what an amazing journey I was embarking on. She was far less confident than I expected - indeed, she was truly fearful of almost everything. I wanted to "fix" her fearfulness immediately so I called a trainer to get to work.

It turned out that it has been a long but wonderful evolution from the fearful Shyla to today's Shyla. Now, she appears "normal" to most people, and that is the biggest victory that I could ever imagine. She's happy in her life and comfortable with the world. I honestly had moments over the years that I didn't believe that she would reach this point.

Most of all, we've bonded. Our bond is deep because we've been through so much together. We've both learned to muster the courage to put one foot in front of the other, even after major setbacks. We've become a team, and I love her with all my heart.

I feel like an incredibly lucky human to have had K and then to get a second dog who I love so very much - Shyla.

Yesterday, Shyla was the only pack member who wanted to hike up to see the full moon rise with me. We sat on a ridge in the midst of the most heavenly sage scent. The forest was completely quiet, and we watched for the first glow of the moon over the eastern ridge.

To my surprise, the moon was pink! I'm sure that it was due to the smokey haze from wildfires but it felt magical as Shyla and I gazed at it.

Happy Gotcha Day sweet Shyla. You are a gift to all of us.


P.S. R seems much better today. He's still not back to normal but I now feel confident that we're headed in the right direction.