Most of you who come up to the river have met Shasta. She may have eaten your frisbee, played fetch at the swimming hole (despite barely being able to swim), eaten your leftovers or, most likely, tried to snuggle into your sleeping bag.
I was EXTREMELY skeptical of getting a boxer nine years ago. Rumor was they hated water and couldn't swim...not exactly a glowing endorsement for a river dog. However, I lost a cribbage championship to my wife for dog picking rights and a boxer it was.
It feels cliche writing how perfect she was with my young daughters or how she loved the river so much that when we said the word 'river' she would run laps around the house tearing up the hardwoods. She also became the best fishing dog I could imagine as she provided companionship and never scared the fish by jumping in.
We lost Shasta to cancer this past fall. I took her down to Paradise Point two days before we had to say goodbye and got to watch her eyes light up one last time.
I was EXTREMELY skeptical of getting a boxer nine years ago. Rumor was they hated water and couldn't swim...not exactly a glowing endorsement for a river dog. However, I lost a cribbage championship to my wife for dog picking rights and a boxer it was.
It feels cliche writing how perfect she was with my young daughters or how she loved the river so much that when we said the word 'river' she would run laps around the house tearing up the hardwoods. She also became the best fishing dog I could imagine as she provided companionship and never scared the fish by jumping in.
We lost Shasta to cancer this past fall. I took her down to Paradise Point two days before we had to say goodbye and got to watch her eyes light up one last time.
So, I'm not a skeptic anymore. Boxers are great. We welcomed the next river dog into our family a couple months ago and my girls named her Roxie. (I lobbied for several more river oriented options but was badly outnumbered). Roxie is training hard to be river ready this summer. She has already chewed up one frisbee and REALLY likes to snuggle. She has big paws to fill.
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