#SeattleAntifreeze: Local woman and a Husky puppy save each other

BOTHELL, Wash. — Amanda used to get black eyes. She thought she deserved them. The bloody noses too. But finally a look into her puppy's face made her say no. She wouldn't take it any more.

Amanda was young, vibrant, and social. That's probably what drew her boyfriend's attention. What later attracted his fists and his abuse is more of a mystery. Words like "love" came cheap; it eventually cost her much more.

She withdrew from her family and her friends. He controlled her. He bruised her.

Then she met Kyro. He was one of ten very young puppies abandoned by his mother. They were all beautiful, but there was something about "his fat Buddha belly," that made Amanda call him her own. The person who found the litter asked her if she could bottle feed him, care for him, nurture him. If she would be his mother. Yes.

When Amanda needed to escape, Kyro's walk was her excuse. When she would cry, his fur was her blanket. When she felt lost, he became her home.

Then a rage blew through the house, and a punch came down on Kyro. The fist landed right under one of his ice blue eyes. It threatened his sight, but it snapped hers into focus. This was wrong. It needed to stop. It was over.

That was three years ago. It's still tough for Amanda to trust other people, but she's no longer under someone else's control.

She's seeing life through her own eyes again. She's become a professional photographer. It's no coincidence Kyro is often her subject. They explore together. They are free.

When she first met Kyro, she felt the pull to save him. He paid her right back. "I don't know where I'd be without him," she tells me. She doesn't need to know.

Because now the eyes are blue. The nose is wet. Her life is finally what she deserves.
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Photos courtesy of Amanda. For more, go tohttps://instagram.com/goldilocksandthewolf/

She told me her story in the hopes she would empower and inspire others in her same situation.  For a list of resources in Washington, go to http://www.aardvarc.org/dv/states/wadv.shtml

After the Aurora Bridge crash, people in our area jumped into action, donating hotel rooms, blood, prayers, challenging Seattleites' reputation for being chilly. It inspired me to pass along stories of when we see people in the community coming together, or what I call #SeattleAntifreeze. If you know a story that should be told, let me know. mminglaven@kirotv.com

To read more stories, go to my Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/MoniqueKIRO7 and click where you see #SeattleAntifreeze in any of the posts.

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