Kayleigh & Muskwa

I'm back from Halifax--so tired I can hardly see straight so please forgive any typos in this post. I literally crossed the entire country yesterday--left Halifax at 7am East Coast time(3am Yukon time) and got here at 5pm Yukon time. I am wiped out. I haven't even plugged my camera in yet, but I did take lots of pics so they will be coming soon.

Yesterday was Muskwa's birthday.

Muskwa(aka: Rat Brain, Musky the Husky, HEY YOU NO, Dammit-I-mean-it) is now 8 years old. You'd think he would be past driving me crazy, but in typical Siberian fashion he still finds new ways to outsmart me, piss me off and generally keep things interesting. He is still the pack alpha male and occasionally must be reminded that he is NOT my alpha too! Currently he is rarely outside of his dog house. He is guarding a stockpile of moose bones, cuz his life is so hard that he never knows when I'll feed him again(insert sarcastic voice)! Muskwa was my introduction to huskies. He was 7 months old when I met Stuart. What a long, strange trip he started! Happy birthday, Rat-brain. You drive me nuts, but I can't imagine life without you!

Today is Kayleigh Kahoona's birthday! She's seven.

Sometimes she's a lab in a malamute suit--she plays fetch, comes when she's called and is generally pretty laid back. Unless you happen to have food or you are another dog. Kayleigh quite firmly believes that she should be the only dog on the planet. Other dogs are at best treated with indifference. Most often they met with outright aggression. She hates other dogs, thinks cats are snacks and still has issues with food. Her first owner starved her as a puppy. Dogs forget alot of rotten things, but I don't think they ever forget being hungry. Kayleigh is handful and a constant challenge, but she's made progress and oh, the things she has taught me. I'd never dealt with a starved dog before her or a dog aggressive one. I'd never dealt with a big dog with a serious attitude problem. Never had to confine one or train one quite like her. Now I've dealt with all those issues and some others.

I believe that's why Kayleigh's here--I took one look into her big brown eyes in the shelter and knew to the very bottom of my soul that she was meant to be mine. She had things to teach me. I'd like to think I had some things to teach her too, like that not all humans are mean and that life can be fun! I'm a better person and a much better dog owner because of Kayleigh. She's a good teacher. Happy birthday pretty girl!