Once again, Shadow went missing. The first time was a few years back when my vehicle was rear ended by a truck and Shadow jumped out of the open car window. She disappeared for an evening. Ryder found her the following morning.

Today I rode to Grizzly Camp with my friends Cathy Foxley and Linda Sims. It was another beautiful day – a bit breezy but sunny. Cathy rode her pinto Rocky Mountain horse named Trigger and Linda rode her Icelandic gelding named Marley.

I was commending myself when it happened, that is Shadow’s disappearance. I didn’t give it any thought, that I chose to ride Raudi. There was a time when I would have instead ridden a different horse when out with others because I was afraid of what Raudi might do. I also then didn’t enjoy riding with others because I foresaw that everything would go wrong.

We rode our trails and then headed in the direction of Grizzly Camp. The trails are rutted from ATV use but are dry enough now to be safe. When finally, we came to the turn going up to Grizzly Camp, Linda remarked that Shadow wasn’t with us, and that she’d just heard a bark.

I then decided (rightly or wrongly) to keep going uphill, thinking that Shadow would follow. She did not, as we were going uphill or were stopped for lunch, reappear. Cathy and Linda ate quick lunches and we then headed downhill.

Ryder remained with us, as we passed the area where we thought Shadow might be. I figured that one, two, or three things could have happened. The first was that she’d gotten caught in a trap, for the boys generally set them out in the area where we’d last seen her. The second was that she may have been nailed by a porcupine. The third was that she went home.

We didn’t spend much time looking for Shadow; rather, we headed in the direction of home. It was an abbreviated trip because I took the shortest route back to our place.

All the while I was incredibly anxious. In fact, it was déjà vu all over again, because my angst was much like it was the previous time that we’d lost her. The other time, though, there were no traps around. Just busy roads. I tried to push the what ifs to the back of my mind and failed miserably.

I became even more apprehensive in thinking about Shadow’s habits. She, unlike Ryder, sticks close, so this was uncharacteristic behavior. This is why I presumed that she’d gotten caught in a trap.

We arrived home. Linda and Cathy tied their horses to their trailer. I ran into the yard and called Shadow’s name. There was no response. I continued on up into the house. I planned on calling Pete who was at the recycling center and telling him to come home asap.

But as I entered the kitchen addition I saw Shadow, cowering under Pete’s desk in the kitchen addition. I then realized that either something really scared her or she, in losing sight of us, became increasingly more anxious.

I went back to the base of the driveway and told Cathy and Linda the good news.

I could tell that they were relieved – most likely due to the fact that neither wanted to do that long ride again.

Again, finding her the second time around made me realize just how much I love this spunky midsized dog.

Next: 147. 5/29/22: Tyra and Hrimmi Converse