as of july 2nd, i have learned that oré is not a husky-shepherd mix, but rather a fucking upper content wolf x shepherd wolfdog. wonderful. anyway, onto oré.

oré is a special little dog. she was the only puppy in her litter to not care about me; focused, no, hell-bent on escaping from her cage. so i gave her the life she's always been running towards. the first night i spent with her, she curled up next to me, and when i woke up she was on her back-- a display of trust. i had never felt so much love for something before. throughout her year and a half of being alive, she has displayed incredible levels of attentiveness, and constantly reminds me of why i chose her. she has never spent a night apart from me, and quite frankly, i never want her to. she has witnessed births, deaths, marriages, and divorces. she experienced her first ever snow, and was beyond thrilled. that day led me to move to the east coast, so she'd never be wanting for snow. despite her insane dietary history, she has always been healthy. which is a heavy achievement, as when i first got her she was barely weighing in at 4lb/1.8kg, and now she weighs in at 96lb/43kg. she's made a great deal of growing, and i've never been so . . . proud of someone. i don't see her level of sensitivity or communication skills, both through barks and nonverbal gestures, in many other people or animals. i worry sometimes, about the day when she won't be around to lick my feet to wake me up, or scream for more bones. the day when she stops showing me her belly during her naps, the day she stops being so excited for a walk that she does flips. but today isn't that day, and even as i type this, she's asleep next to me, showing me her stomach.