![]() As Jeremy reached for a chocolate chip cookie on the counter, I stopped him mid-reach. Once home, Neva took a big drink of water, ate some snacks, and then sprawled out in a sunny spot on the floor for a well-deserved nap. I think I’m going to order 60 more of those orange balls (she likes the orange ones, the yellow ones aren’t as interesting for some reason). ![]() He waved to me and I said, “Go!” as Neva flew down the hill leaving cold smoke in her wake. The moment Jeremy came to a stop, her front paw began to twitch. She sat in the snow, but her front legs were trembling with eagerness and you could hear Neva whimpering over the howling wind. Suddenly, all of her world became that ball. I had Neva’s leash in my hand and before Jeremy took off down the hill, he produced the orange tennis ball. For steeper sections, it’s more fun for all involved if we can take the hills unattached (no leash). On the way back down, we ripped (climbing) skins and locked into ski mode. It’s hard for her to control herself because the snow makes her SO EXCITED, but she is improving each time we ski with her. The whole way up, we worked on “heel” and “trail” to keep Neva from wandering in front of our skis or pulling orthogonally. I tucked it into Jeremy’s pack before we left the house. Treats don’t seem to have greater value than “sweet sweet freedom”, but we figured out what does (for now): her tennis ball. The last time she did it, she got stuck in a big snow drift and when I called to her, she ran back to me then ran to Jeremy upon my command. A couple of times though, Neva has veered off into the woods. She tears off like a maniac and usually ends up wherever he is. When he gets to a stopping point, he’ll call out and I’ll tell her to go find Jeremy and let her go. Other times, Jeremy will ski down first while I hold Neva on leash. Sometimes we ski down with Neva on a leash, which requires that the skier maintain a steady speed and remain in complete control so that no puppies or people are harmed. That pup is clearly happiest romping through the snow. Neva couldn’t care less about blowing snow or mature conifers dancing in the wind as if it were a rave. Still, we were happy to get outside and get the lungs pumping. Except this time the couple of inches of fresh snow turned into a ground blizzard even in the trees. It always feels worse in the parking lot because parking lots offer zero shelter, but once you are in the trees, it gets better. The winds were only gusting to 55 mph the other day, so we packed up the pup and some gear for a little ski tour. Remember what I said about everything being relative and how enduring terrible windstorms made the horrible windstorms seem not so bad after all? Right.
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