………….rescued by shadow
PB had recently taken to reading. As soon as I put my book down he would grab it. As he reads at snails pace I would be fast asleep before he even finished the page, so reading together did not work out. Also, after his eye surgery I was not sure if fine print was a good idea. It was decided, PB needed company.
We were hoping to get a female companion for PB, but Shadow intervened. He had been at the shelter for two weeks; he was returning from a walk as we socialized there. He was hunched over and covering, skin and bones. We were told he had an eye condition too, and without further ado we rushed him home. When he got home he slept through the day. He would eat and sleep, he did not care for walks. He would jump on the couch when he saw me there and curl up on my lap. He was so tiny and so cute. If I reached out to pat his head he would tremble and shake even as my hand approached, so after a few attempts I stopped. I’d let him sit on my lap and stayed as still as I could. His little pink tongue would stick out as he snored.
After a few months I decided to tell him a story; he hadn’t ever barked and I thought there was a fair chance that he would respond in protest to the crazy stories I tell. Nursery rhymes distorted with princesses, bean stalks the evil green grocer stole from, the cow who jumped over the moon and sent it flying into space, you get the drift. Shadow would tilt his head to one side and listen. After a short while he would shake his head from side to side and lay it down in my lap again.
His bark was still nowhere to be found and he still did not like PB and vice versa. I thought if he barked PB and him would communicate better. Instead of occupying opposite corners of a room, they just might decide to get together and chill. So, I barked, and I have a mean bark. But I was watching Vampire Diaries and instead of barking I howled. Yup, I howled and Shadow howled right back at me !
We now engaged in conversations where he participated equally. His howl would vary in intensity and tone, and soon enough PB joined with a bark. It was not long after that I heard a really gruff bark from the depths of Shadow. It had been quieted for too long and as it appeared for the first time it startled even him and shook me.
From then on the rest was easy. Shadow became independent and assertive, he was a dog on a mission. He did not curl up in my lap any longer. But he has reverted to his old self recently and trembles and hides. I cover him with a blanket and hold him till he stops. The vet says he is fine, I guess the past is never completely put to rest.
