Shadow was my lovely black lab/rotti cross, whom I adopted from the SPCA in Vancouver in 2003, when she was 3 years old. She was with me for only six years before she died very suddenly due to a brain tumour. The effect of the tumour was only noticeable 48 hours before she passed and it came as a real shock for me.
Why did it move me so much, and still does more than 1 year later? I think one reason is that Shadow was not an easy dog. She had fear generated aggression issues, particularly with men and she had separation anxiety. Noises scared the hell out of her (fireworks night was a horror for the poor dog). And she was one dominant lady who could be highly reactive to dogs who did not respect her. When she came to me she also had a lot of health issues that we overcame with the loving support of her holistic vet,
Dr. Richard Calland.
But, working with her every day, taking multiple training classes with
K9 Kinship in North Vancouver, and following a very consistent and firm but loving approach resulted in her being a fantastically loyal friend.
 |
| Very attentive - always! |
 |
| What a cute girl she was! |
 |
| She just loved to play fetch |
 |
| And to shake off the water... right next to you, of course |
 |
| Shadow loved the hiking in the area |
 |
| Look, how skinny she was when I first got her! |
 |
| Shadow was always ready for some fun! |
 |
| Always on the look-out for something interesting |
I still miss her.
No comments:
Post a Comment