26. "The Daily Coyote" by Shreve Stockton

I first heard of Shreve Stockton and her pet coyote, Charlie, through her blog The Daily Coyote several years ago. I enjoyed seeing the photos, reading about Charlie's puppyhood and growth, and vicariously experiencing life in a one-room cabin in Wyoming. But eventually I stopped visiting the blog because I had a bad feeling that one day I'd open my browser window and read about Charlie being shot by a rancher or hit by a car. Yes, I'm morbid. Yes, I'm a pessimist. And yes, I have learned to shelter myself from the kinds of tragedies that I know will ravage me emotionally.

At any rate, I was proven wrong about Charlie, fortunately. He's leading what appears to be a blissful coyote existence with Stockton, her cat Eli, a hound friend, and various livestock in rural, windswept Wyoming. Stockton's still posting daily photos, and she's written a book, also titled The Daily Coyote, chronicling her first year with Charlie.

Her significant other, who kills nuisance coyotes for the government, rescued Charlie as a 10-day-old pup after shooting both of his parents, then delivered the orphaned coyote to Stockton's door. Not sure she wanted a commitment to anything more demanding than her free-roaming cat, she nonetheless adopted Charlie and set about learning how to raise him.

The book follows her trials and joys with Charlie: his determination to win Eli's affection, the challenges of keeping a baby coyote safe from hunters and coyote-hating ranchers, a bout with Parvo virus, the process of his neutering via band, aggression issues as he grows to adulthood and his wild nature asserts itself. As Stockton struggles to give Charlie the best life possible, she also grapples with issues in her human relationship. At times, her philosophy is a bit (I hesitate to use this phrase but can't think of a better one) New Age-y; for example, when Charlie is ill with Parvo, she tells him she understands if he decides he doesn't want to stay in a life without freedom, and it's his choice whether to live or die. But she seems very genuine in her beliefs, and there's no question that she loves Charlie and is extremely committed to giving him the best life he can have. Part of her struggle is learning to do that without sacrificing too much of her own well-being.

Some of the challenges she confronts with Charlie remind me of situations I've faced with Bishop--not the wild-animal aspects, obviously, but the amusements and frustrations of life with a high-spirited canine, especially to someone who isn't a natural "alpha."

I also have to confess that I'm darned jealous of Shreve Stockton, and not just because she has a pet coyote. She's found community, roots, love, purpose, belonging, and fulfillment in a tiny cow town in Wyoming. She's several years younger than I am and has published two books. I'm still fighting to find my niche, to discover both an internal and an external center, stability, long-term community. I often despair of whether these things exist. But reading about someone who drove through a state on a Vespa and decided, a month later, to move back, not knowing anyone, not having a job, having nothing but a profound sense that this is where she belonged--this inspires me and gives me hope, mixed with my envy.