Chapter 1

May 2, 2000 - Today Zion’s Raven Out of The Mist gave birth to five adorable puppies.

Saturday, August 5th

As we are in Oregon for the Dive N’ Dine skydiving event anyway, I took the opportunity to visit with Bev Roth at Siskiyou Shepherds. We had spoke on the phone last week and she said that she was sitting for some puppies and recommended that I come for a visit to see both puppies and three full-grown Shiloh Shepherds. She said I needed to “touch” them.

It was a beautiful day in the Northwest and Bev did it right. She introduced us to the puppies first. While we played with the puppies, she just sat there on the ground with us and told us about Shilohs and these puppies. Lily was the cutest little bear cub at just about 12 weeks old. I wanted to take her home right away.

After a little play time with the puppies, Bev took us inside to meet the “boys”, Chaos and Riot. The look on my face had to have been priceless; at that point, I don’t think I had ever seen a dog so huge, nor so lovable. I was sold.

Monday, August 21st

After weeks of anticipation, Adrianne and Steve Taylor have agreed to let Lily become a part of our family. I will be driving to Oregon with my friend, Linda on Thursday to pick her up.

Wednesday, August 23rd

A little less than 12 hours from now I will be headed to Oregon to pick up Lily, our new Shiloh Shepherd puppy. Linda was going to go with me, but at the last minute the County Fair took priority. Will I be able to do this alone? I agonizingly wrestled with this question all night. I have never done a trip like this alone. Finally, Tyree convinced me that this would be our only chance to get this puppy….that we needed to get her NOW!!

Thursday, August 24th

Bright and early in the morning I loaded up and left Flagstaff, Arizona on the quest to pick up Lily of the West. I had a Teddy Bear strapped in the passenger seat for company (he drew quite a bit of attention from the truckers we passed) and a cell phone plugged in for emergencies.

I made it all the way past Sacramento tonight; tomorrow should be easy.

Friday, August 25th

After a little over 1300 miles on the road, I arrived in Salem late in the afternoon; several hours ahead of schedule. I was happy that I was able to find my way back to Bev’s without getting lost.

Soon after I got there, Steve & Adrianne arrived with the little ones and Raven. I couldn’t believe how much Lily had grown in the three weeks since I had seen her last. What a doll she was. We had a very enjoyable evening visiting and sharing dog stories. After the long drive, it was all I could do to stay awake.

Saturday, August 26th

Today dawned on another early morning for us. Today I would be taking our puppy home. Adrianne cautioned me earlier that Lily had a tendency to get carsick; so I was prepared with towels padding the seat under her. She just wasn’t quite sure what was up. She just sat quietly in the back of the Jeep, wondering what was going on. And, sure enough, as soon as we hit the winding roads in southern Oregon, I needed the towels. A quick pull over and cleanup and we were on our way again.

Finally, just before sunset, we pulled over and found a hotel for the night. Thanks to Tyree’s quick internet searching, we had several stops planned depending on when we finished for the night. At first I had planned for Lily to spend the night barricade in the bathroom. As soon as I turned my back, though, she let out the first squeaks of the day. Can't have that; so up on the bed with me she went. I think this was her plan all along because after that she was a champ and slept quietly all night.

Sunday, August 27th

Lily didn’t get sick one time today. I guess the best way to cure carsickness is about 1300 miles. Finally, we’re home. Tyree is anxiously waiting the arrival of our new baby. Boy is he surprised when I pulled his “little” 40 pound baby from the back of the Jeep. She settles in quickly and becomes a part of our family.

Tomorrow the County Fair starts getting really busy. No time to relax, Lily and Tyree get to spend lots of time together this week.

August 30th

Lily is doing great. She’s really sharp when it comes to learning new things. When we go out on walks, she already recognizes her yard when we come back. Just today her ears are really starting to stand up. It seems like every day there is something new.

September 4th

Tyree brought Lily to the Fair several times this weekend so I could see her. The long hours (sometimes 15 hours a day) make it difficult to spend much time with her.

Everyone was in awe at this special puppy. No one can believe that she is just 4 months old. Most people are amazed at a big puppy’s paws; not with Lily, they just couldn’t believe the size of her TAIL.

September 11th

Lily has been a great addition to our family. Right away she has found her niche and knows she can wrap her daddy around her little paw.

She’s growing rapidly. Last Wednesday she weighed in at 50 lbs. The doc pronounced her in excellent health and is looking forward to watching her grow.

This weekend was our first camping trip. You would think she had done it for years. She loved the camper and was the best puppy anyone had ever seen. We went down to the Drop Zone so Tyree could do a bit of skydiving. A lot of new people, dogs, hot weather and parachutes. Lily acted as if it was no big deal and that she did this on a regular basis (which she will).

In the afternoon we would sit real close to the parachute landing area so she could get the real familiar with the canopies as they landed. She was great. I had never seen a dog around canopies for the first time so calm. They are very brightly colored and come into the landing area very fast and loud. Not a problem. At one point we were waiting for a load and you could just begin to hear the plane in the area. Lily looked right up and started watching for the skydivers. She begins watching one and once it has landed, she looks right up to watch another one. She is going to be a very excellent Drop Zone dog….one with great manners and one that all the people will adore.

There were a lot of people around (probably 40 or more), she was never spooked and always friendly. Everyone fell in love with her. There is a store there that I do some work in when we’re down. Lily hung around as if she did it every day. Saying hello to the new customers just like the Wal-mart greeter and taking naps in the office. They all want us to come down every week so they can watch her grow.

The hot weather was a bit of a challenge. We stayed in the shade and didn’t do much playing; she was fine. The nights were very cool so that made sleeping easier. Lily loves her camper and completely takes over one of the beds. That is until about 5:30 am; then, she thinks it’s time to climb in bed with mom and dad. It’s her job, or so she thinks, to make sure we all get up on time.

September 16th

Lily loves flowers. Just down the street there is a yard that is full of them. Every time we’re out walking, she needs to stop and check them all out. Isn’t that cute?

She’s still getting used to hiking…we went on a 1½ miler today and she’s still sleeping it off. For all of her size (and that’s pretty big), she’s still just a little baby.

September 26th

Lily is growing like a weed!!! A week ago Saturday, I measured her height and she was 22” tall at the shoulder. This past Sunday, she was just over 24” and 56 lbs. WOW!! Tyree came home on Saturday from a week long trip down into the Grand Canyon this week with Dan. They were extremely surprised at how much Lily had grown while they were gone.

Last Monday Lily started kindergarten (basic obedience). Lily is progressing nicely. She is one of the younger students, but definitely not the smallest. She walks wonderfully on her leash and sits like a champ. We are now working on “stay”….lots of patience needed here.

Lily has discovered ball. She doesn’t quite have the ball drive that Hershey had. Actually, I had to teach her to play. She is getting the hang of it, even though only 4-5 throws is plenty. Her toy box is full and she usually likes to have most of the toys out all at once. Not a night has gone by without a few trips up and down the hall. It is turning into quite the ritual….also a very good opportunity to practice “drop it”, “sit”, etc.

She doesn’t show much fear of loud noises. This evening there was a thunderstorm roaring while we were out for her potty walk. When there was a particularly loud clap of thunder, she just looked up at the sound and never flinched. That was great to see. Last week, however, she was startled by a flower pinwheel someone had in their yard. I guess you never know what will be scary or not.

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Last modified: 9/12/03