Way back in March was Raven’s fifth adoptoversary but with Peter’s impending birth and the busyness that comes with running a hobby farm, having a small clutch of children, work, and life in general, her special day was overlooked. Since she’s not a diva and is the least demanding dog I’ve ever met, she didn’t even let out a whine that we’d forgotten.
Raven is one of those special dogs that you come across and just know they’re special. She rarely ever barks and if she does, it’s out of concern for our protection, she has never met another dog who doesn’t immediately love her, she’s gentle with everything from kittens to babies to newborn calves, she’s the perfect running buddy, even if she’d leave me for dead if anything happened because she’s such a coward, and all she really wants out of life is to be loved.
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| Raven is the only one who’s happy about snow at the end of winter. |
Though it’s been a few short years that Raven has been a part of our family, it feels as though she’s always been a part of the clan. It’s so natural to see Raven in the background of the random picture I take, she’s always trailing behind me when I take a walk outside, and the only slightly pushy thing she does is to put her head on my lap when she wants a scratch on the nose.
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| Raven will fetch anything from soccer balls to tennis balls to snow balls. |
A lot of people might overlook her for being an ordinary, big black dog, but I challenge anyone to find a dog with more soulful eyes than Raven. Seriously, she can melt a person’s heart with her happy, apologetic, hopeful eyes.
One quality that we really struck gold with Raven is that while she’s the perfect family dog, she’s also the perfect farm dog. It’s rare to find a dog who doesn’t have an innate drive to hurt things that are smaller and weaker than them. Raven? She has cowered in front of a hissing kitten, then become their best friend when they realized how warm it was to cuddle up and share her bed.
Raven has seen it all–she’s stayed in hotel rooms, gone camping, sniffed newborn chicks, and run with me in road races. She might tuck her tail and shy at some things but after looking to us to make sure everything is alright, she takes it all in stride.
Since Raven was a rescue, our best guess is that she’s about a year old, which means she’s six now. We’re hoping we have years and years left with her and are looking forward to all the joy she’ll bring in that time with us. We are so blessed to have her running the fields around our house, sleeping at our feet, and being the best dog ever.
