Slowly, ever so slowly, Roxie is becoming confident enough to be more and more independent. Tonight, I hid a treat behind a baby gate that was against a wall. At first, Roxie was a bit confused, and then got frustrated and started grumbling, trying to get me to help her out. I just told her, "you got it", and turned away.
A few minutes later and she figured out of she squished just so, she could squeeze into the small space and retrieve her treat without knocking the gate to the floor.
This may seem like a really tiny step, and really slow since she just turned 5, but she's always deferred to me and never tried to be anything but my shadow- never tried thinking for herself or trying to be an individual who can do things separate from me... So this is pretty huge for us.
I'm sorta feeling like Ender today, lol. He had his fleet he could give instruction to and then send off, knowing that they could make their own decisions to improvise for the situation, and that's what Roxie is becoming. I always knew this quaking ball of fur had it in her
It just amazes me how far she has come. She used to be a limb to me, right next to me and never far enough to not be touching. Then she was a shadow, always doing only what I said and nothing else. She's still my shadow, but now she's a shadow who's also another being, if that makes any sense lol.
The only way Roxie could possibly get any more perfect is if she lived as long as me. I'm never gonna get a dog as awesome as she is, and I wish we could do more and have more time.