Kuma lives his last great adventure | Articles

For several years, I have been sharing Kuma's great adventures with the wonderful readers of The Foothills Focus.

This year has been a challenge for many reasons, including Kuma starting to show his age and we stopped his monthly column. Many of you reached out to tell us how much you enjoyed them and it is with great sadness that I inform you that we had to say goodbye to our beloved Kuma on June 21st. He had a stroke and took what little was left of our sweet boy.

Over his nearly 16 years of existence, Kuma has sat atop 14,000 foot peaks, snowshoeed in the Rocky Mountains, backpacked, camped, stayed in hotels, canoed, boated, swam with rangers…all while being loved and adored not only by us but by all who met him!

Kuma met people from all over the world. Every time we were in Sedona, we would meet someone from a new country. They would take Kuma's business card (don't all dogs have their own business card and blog?) and follow his adventures. I was touched by all the condolences from all over the world. Everyone is mourning our dog Kuma.

Everyone who met Kuma saw something special in him. Kuma converted a few “dog haters” as we learned most were simply afraid or had had a bad experience. He was sweet, well-behaved and such a good boy! Many visitors would come and want to take Kuma home with them. He was always happy to see them and sad when they left. It was almost certain that people would come up to him and chat with us just because we were there too.

As I blogged and wrote for Kuma, I got used to just being the “helper.” On more than one occasion on the trail, I would inevitably hear someone yell, “Kuma! Is that you, Kuma?” A human would come up and start talking to Kuma about his latest adventure column for The Foothills Focus. I would say, “Um, hi. I’m helping Kuma write his blog.” They would nod and continue chatting with Kuma. Yes, he was definitely the celebrity of the family.

Kuma loved everyone, but I loved him the most. Everyone loved Kuma, but I was his mom. I no longer hear his “awoofs” or see his curly tail, which was a barometer of his mood. When it flew high, he felt good! When it flew lower, he was tired or a little unsure. I miss his leaps in the air and his funny antics with the cat, who became Mowgli a few years ago after he lost Edmond at age 19.

Her sweet face is etched in my memory, as are all the wonderful adventures we had together. Some were crazy, some were sweet, but they were together. We were a happy family of four, and now we are just three.

You’ve read about the many places we’ve been with Kuma over the years, but what you may not know is that Kuma was my very first dog. I’ve always had cats. I used to say, “Cats rule and dogs drool!” For years, my husband tried to talk me into getting a dog. He would show me dogs all the time, show me pictures of dogs, and have friends tell me how great it was to have a dog. It’s not that I hated dogs, but I just didn’t see the point. Cats were easier. You could leave a cat without worrying about the mess in the house. No, I was good…until…Kuma.

I had never seen or heard of a Shiba Inu dog before, but we saw one at the Dairy King in Loveland, Colorado, where we lived at the time. I went online and saw this black and tan puppy in a pumpkin costume, and my life changed forever.

We gave Kuma a wonderful life, and he really did win the puppy lottery! But Kuma taught me so much. Before him, I was very competitive. Every time I worked out, it was to achieve a goal: to run faster, to go further. With Kuma, I learned to slow down and smell the roses…and the bushes, the trees, the dirt piles, and the mud holes. He was so curious!

My priority was to give him the best experience possible and we planned our vacations, birthdays, holidays and holidays around him. I became an expert at finding pet-friendly hotels and restaurants and between our Mazda Tribute and Nissan Pathfinder, we estimate Kuma has driven over 300,000 miles!

Kuma was happy to go on eight-mile hikes or watch TV with us. Being together was all that mattered, and what we did was secondary. Through Kuma, I met people. Without him, we would just pass each other, but with Kuma, we would stop, meet, chat, and he would take care of us.

I have seen and done things I might not have done otherwise, simply because Kuma needed new content for his blog! And it is these precious blogs, as well as my heart, where Kuma will continue to live. I am so happy with every memory.

But most of all, Kuma helped me understand that love is a four-legged word. I still love cats, but dogs are a whole different story. They weave themselves into the fabric of our lives… every inch of it. They demand more attention, but what we get in return is tenfold.

I had someone to eat with, take naps with, and someone always up for an adventure, even if it was just to run some errands.

Losing a pet is hard, but this one is painful and it burns. It will be a long time before the Grand Canyon sized hole in my heart closes. Hiking is not the same and I am in no mood to run. Alas, life goes on, but without my best friend. I take comfort in knowing that he is not in pain and is back to his youth with his brother, Edmond. He is meeting all sorts of new friends and I know that my family (mom, dad, and sister) will take care of him until we meet again.

This past weekend we went to Prescott, one of Kuma's favorite places to cool off. He loved Lynx Lake, so we hiked it in his honor. He didn't like Watson Lake because of the rough rocks and heat, but we hiked it for him. I agreed with him and decided that this 5 mile loop was long and hot! Kuma was with us in spirit. He knows we are hurting and miss him, but he was glad we made the effort. And once again, because of him, I will put one foot in front of the other. I will keep moving forward and will always be grateful for Kuma's gift in our lives. The years have gone by too quickly, but we have experienced a lot of life together in those years!

Kuma has loved this community and its loyal readers of The Foothills Focus, and we thank you for joining us on this journey! As Kuma would say, “Get out there! You never know what you’re going to find.”

Kuma's mother, Lorraine Bossé-Smith, writes her own blogs and offers a free monthly newsletter called The Fit Life. You can subscribe on her website, lorrainebosse-smith.com.