Bodhi Sky is here
Bodhi arrived in May of 2013, ironically only a day after Masai arrived into our home 3 years earlier, delivered by the same person that had brought Masai, who took the last leg of his trip. How’s that for weird and meant to be?
We found him online, in a rescue, in Ohio. Bodhi was born deaf, or at least we suspect. I had been exposed to deaf dogs briefly, and I was interested in adopting a dog who probably had less of a chance to be adopted, because of his deafness. That difference didn’t bother us at all, and we hit the jackpot with Bodhi! He lives up to his name (from Bodhisattva = a being on the path towards bodhi or Buddhahood) every day in his way of loving everything and everyone around him.
Being deaf, he is all “feeling”. Sensitive to touch (but does not jolt when you touch him if he’s sleeping) in a way that hearing dogs aren’t. He is a bit in his own world because of his deafness, and even at almost 11 years old now, he behaves like a puppy in the way he loves to play and in his innocence.
He had been found in an empty apartment, with no food or water for weeks (that’s the story I remember hearing from the rescue that found him) and was approximately a year old. We felt he’d be a good addition to our household, as he’s pretty submissive, and with a dominant female dog, we thought it would work out very well. And for the most part, it did.
When he arrived, he was non stop play though, and Masai enjoyed that to a certain extent, then she got tired of his rough ways. He played too hard and did not have an off button, and couldn’t tell if she yelped because he could not hear. So that was a bit challenging but with some management, we worked it out. Over the years, Bodhi played with Masai less and less. In truth, she really never liked to play much, except when very young; she has always been much more focused on people. They are her love and specialty.
We had three cats at the time, and while Masai introduced herself very politely to them, Bodhi started barking non-stop at them (he was separated in a different room, but could see them thru the full glass door). He eventually learned to calm down, probably also because he did whatever Masai did, and over the years he became a bit scared of them, as the cats would swat at him and wanted no interaction whatsoever. He is still today very wary of cats!
Bodhi was, and is to this day, the most loving and kind dog. He is just love, all the time. While Masai is also all love, like all dogs really, she can express different personalities, and has always needed a lot of interaction, activities, and games to keep her mind entertained. She loves to go to new places, and needs that newness in her life.
Bodhi on the other hand, is so simple, and loves the same things over and over again, and never gets tired of the same things, the same walk, the same food. He just loves everything!
When he arrived, he was out of shape and had a hard time keeping up during our walks and hikes. But he became strong in a matter of weeks, and is still now, at almost 11 years old, super strong and active. I don't think he got the memo that dogs age. He still looks like a puppy and acts like one. I think being deaf has sheltered him somehow, as he’s in his own world a lot. And ironically, Masai is now deaf too because she’s almost 14.
Bodhi has been a little accident prone. He’s just a bit careless. I joke that Masai has a great sense of self-preservation, and Bodhi has none. The first year we had him, we were hiking by a river, and both dogs crossed to the other side before we could stop them. It was probably fall, so we had hiking shoes, not water shoes. Masai came back pretty quickly, and Bodhi disappeared for a few moments, and then we heard a horrible “THUMP” and we realized in his zest to come back, he had climbed up a hill and tried to get back down to get to us faster, but in the process he fell several feet on large flat rocks!! We both held our breath for a moment, wondering what we should do, and then we saw him cross the river like nothing had happened. He seemed completely fine, and even though we cut our walk short, on appearance, he had no lasting effects. The vet did not find anything worrisome, but the next day, he had a HUGE bruise on his side that told the story. We felt terrible for him!
Another time he was attacked by coyotes, and was bitten on his behind. We were in our tiny home in eastern Washington, and it was summer, and Bodhi was outside on the deck. Masai and I were inside, with the door open. All of a sudden we both heard a cry, and she ran out and I ran after her. All of a sudden I see Bodhi run to us, and he seemed fine, but on a closer look, he had scratches and a couple of superficial bites near his tail. He either saw the coyote(s) and ran to them, or he was out walking around (both dogs never strayed, and always stayed close to us even though we had an open 20 acres of land) and the coyote attacked. He was a bit nervous for a day, but then was back to his cheerful self.
Over the years, Bodhi has what the vet diagnosed as severe arthritis, which was first misdiagnosed as pancreatitis, as he had these bouts of trembling and shaking which we could not figure out. Long story, many vet visits, and a set of x rays determined his back is a bit off and is very very tight. So now he can’t run a lot or go for long walks, which we don’t anymore anyway because Masai at almost 14 is pretty slow. But Bodhi wants to run and play, and then he feels it the next day. He’s on a lot of supplements, mostly a combination of turmeric, MSM, and other herbs which have helped him a lot. But we still have to make sure he takes it easy. He still has that on/off button, and outside on walks, he’s all ON.
After our move from Portland OR to the dry terrain of eastern WA, there was a big shift for all of us. The dogs had to adjust to living in a tiny home and very close quarters, after living in a regular size house prior. Luckily we took them out all the time, and they had a chance to see and experience so many different hikes and swim places in the four years we lived in Washington.
On a hike the Methow in the springtime. Below, another fun day by the river
While living in the Methow Valley, WA, we spent every day going on a hike or other walk with the dogs. They had (and we did as well) so much fun! Some walks were so easy and beautiful that we went a few times a week, but we tried to intersperse walks to places we hadn't been, and that was also incredible for all of us. Summer was definitely a place for investigating and swimming in the rivers, and we did that to escape the heat almost every day.
Todd and the dogs having fun
The best part is that there were no fleas in eastern WA, and the dogs recovered from years of flea bites, poisons, sprays (essential oils mix) etc. They were seriously affected by fleas in Portland and we were flea free and so happy! There were some very occasional tick, but even ticks are not rampant because it is so dry.
Bodhi admiring his kingdom. Our tiny home in the distance. Our land was 20 acres and consisted of a valley and two ridges. We used to walk up to the “sunset” ridge often, and that is where we were here. Stunning views.
When we moved to Maine, in the summer of 2022, our dogs had gotten older and were not as active. Well, Bodhi is very active still, but he really shouldn’t run too much, so we felt really lucky having found a place where we can walk the dogs down to the water in five minutes, on an easy and beautiful walk. It is really the perfect place to have our dogs retire and grow older (except for the fleas and ticks.)
Rolling on grass was something the dogs did not get to do much in eastern WA, as we did not have any grass, just a lot of dust. So here in Maine one of the first thing they got to do was to roll and roll and roll…
Bodhi was never much of a swimmer, but he enjoys getting in the shallow water a lot. Here he’s getting a refresher in the salt water for the first time in many years.
Stay tuned for the final chapter of Bodhi’s life coming soon 10/19/23
