Chinook

Chinook chose me – at a Siberian Husky Rescue shelter in Wellington CO in the spring of 1999.  Out of the dozen or so Huskies that were in this large fenced yard, he was the one who was absolutely relentless.  I thought he was going to jump into my arms.  This was when he was one year old – and more or less fully grown.  From that moment on, Chinook had my heart, and won many others along the way.  Chinook stayed with a friend and co-worker one weekend when I went out of town. I’m told he sang (husky howled) all weekend long unless he had one of her baby’s dirty diapers in his mouth.  Yes, “yuck” is a part of owning any dog, but the love far outweighs any unpleasantness along the way.  One Thanksgiving we were in Breckenridge and came into the tiny condo where Chinook had been waiting with the turkey slow-cooking in the oven while we skied for a few hours.  We made the HUGE mistake of taking the turkey out of the oven and then stepping outside on the deck to wipe the skis dry.  Yes, Chinook took the turkey.  I suppose it was only fair after leaving him in the small condo with the intensifying aroma of the roasting turkey while we were out playing in the snow.  Chinook logged many miles with me over the years.  At his peak we would take 5-mile walks on weekends or any week day I didn’t have to go to work.  He would of course know that it was a weekend and would follow me back and forth for every small chore until I slipped on a coat and picked up his leash.  As recently as this past winter when he was 13 years old, I was still doing face plants in the snow because he would feel so exhilarated in the cold crisp winter weather.  His final 4 years were with me and my younger son in a condo.  When Ben learned to play the national anthem on the electric guitar (think Jimi Hendrix), Chinook would sing along every time.  While our hearts ache for our sweet, loving Chinook, we will always have these and many more happy memories to look back on. Thank you Home to Heaven and Dr. Cooney for helping us.