Maybe Fear This Reaper

If you think your dog is crazy, get a Husky, then you'll know crazy.

I'd just like to start by saying, I know better than to buy puppies on the side of the road, but when you see them so obviously in need of love and attention, it's really hard not to give them what they need.

It was July, it was scorching hot, and there was a litter of Husky puppies in the bed of a pick-up truck covered in urine and feces. I was on my way home with Grimm and my dad who had lost his best friend, Loki, in January. Dad was just starting to toy with the idea of getting a puppy, so when we saw a sign that said "Purebred Huskies any price considered" on the back of a truck, he was the one who suggested stopping to look. I kept driving, because I knew what would happen if I stopped: I'd get a puppy. Dad kind of insisted (not that it took too much prodding) and said he might like having a Husky and that they were really good-looking dogs. So I popped a u-turn and we went back. Dad stayed in the car with Grimm while I looked, made an offer, was turned down, and left.

I got home and spent an hour or so thinking about them, called some friends, talked to dad some more (he was team NO by that point), and talked about it with my boyfriend. Somehow, against all better judgement, I went back for a pup. I do not, at all, recommend this way of getting a puppy. This was not an ethical breeding situation, but my heart broke seeing them all so hot and just so disgustingly dirty. None of the puppies had any shots, which is apparently illegal when it comes to selling dogs in Florida. Honestly, I wanted to take them all and find them really great homes, but that wasn't in the cards for me.

Long story short, there was a beautiful white pup with the most piercing blue eyes and I wanted that pup. Turns out she was well... a she, so I knew better than to bring her home to Grimm who hadn't been neutered. All of the boys looked about the same as each

other and were the standard look you envision when you hear Husky. I'll be honest, I wasn't impressed but I'd already paid for a puppy so I was taking someone home. They handed me each of the males off the truck to hold, and Reaper ended up being the last one I touched. The others had squirmed and tried to go back to the truck, but Reaper hugged me and dug his nails in: he chose me. I took him home believing that he would become my dad's new puppy. Clearly, that didn't work out.

Reaper was born sometime in May, so I've arbitrarily decided his birthday is May 15th, 2022. So at the time of this post he's about 8 months old. He came home on Saturday, July 9th. Reaper is a generally skittish dog. He likes his selected people (me and my boyfriend) and is pretty much petrified of anyone else, even my dad who he's lived with since the moment he came home. Unless backed into a corner, he's not an aggressive dog, but he's always ready to run and hide. To be frank, he's a challenge for me any time we have to go out in public. As he's gotten older, he's gotten better about trusting me a bit more in scary situations, and I've started to find my voice when it comes to advocating for his space. If he never progresses in that aspect, it'll be okay. We can get through a vet visit when needed and go out on small missions to the pet store or a dog park, and that's enough for us right now.

Reaper has shown me just how important it is to love the dog you have, not the dog you envisioned them to be. He is an absolute sweetheart and snuggle bug with me and my boyfriend, and he gives the best kisses. He loves to talk at you when you're giving the other dogs attention, because he believes all of it should be for him. I loved him pretty quickly, because he just didn't give me the choice not to. He's stubborn, and silly, and has the attention span of a gnat. He's not necessarily hard to train, but his brain has to work harder than Grimm's ever does.

Reaper loves antlers, which we get from Allagash Antlers, and just about any treat we get from Wild Nourish Pet. When it comes to toys, Reaper is more the type to wait and see what everyone else is playing with, then he'll jump in. I will say, he loves to be chased though. I wouldn't be super surprised if his Embark results come back saying he's part Greyhound. He's a bit of a derp in pretty much every area, but when he runs he's so graceful. He can turn on a dime, leap like a deer over obstacles, and run circles around everyone else without getting dizzy. By far the strangest thing about Reaper is that he absolutely LOVES to watch dogs on TV. Agility, disc, flyball, rally, anything. He'd watch dog sports all day if you'd let him. He broke a TV by getting so excited watching agility once that he jumped up and bumped the tv.

Coming up next for Reaper and me:

• Training to run together

• Continuing to work on his reactivity/skittishnes

• Doing his Embark test

• Deciding on his AKC registered name

• Breaking in some Brooks trail running shoes

• Testing out new biothane gear from Evergreen Dog Co.

Thanks for learning about Reaper, and if you want to see more of him, check us out on Instagram at HerRunningTails, follow our hashtag #herrunningtails, or follow Reaper's special hashtags #livingwithreaper and #reapersreactivityjourney.

Thanks for reading this tail, and hopefully many more!

Danielle & Reaper