When Tragedy Struck For A Traveling Cat And Dog Duo, The Owners Had To Make A Brave Choice
Forget Marley and Me, A Dog’s Purpose, or any other Hollywood movie that has you crying over a canine that you’ve never even met: the emotional animal tale we’re obsessed with is the story of Henry and Baloo. When a young couple with a love of hiking decided they wanted some company for their adventures, they added a dog and a cat to their pack. And the story that follows is in equal parts heartbreaking and uplifting.
Meet the humans
The couple in question are Andre Sibilsky and Cynthia Bennett, and this particular part of their story began when they relocated to Colorado in the early 2010s. The pair eventually gave themselves an important mission: to help preserve the wilderness of the West for generations to come. But at first, their move was a pretty spontaneous one.
Moving on a whim
Cynthia told the BBC in 2018, “We wanted to head west, toward bigger mountains. We came upon Colorado and moved on a whim; there wasn’t a lot of planning involved.” Andre hails all the way from Texas, while his other half grew up in New Hampshire, but the nature lovers actually first met in the city of Boston. So what do they do when they’re not out exploring nature?
Day jobs
When he’s not hiking with his pets, Andre is busy working in the finance sector. Cynthia used to have a full-time position in event marketing, but the social media interest in the couple’s extra-curricular activities inspired her to cut back on her day job. She now focuses much of her time on pursuing her dream to become a photographer.
Taking the leap
Cynthia explained to the BBC, “Taking a leap as an artist is very scary. And it’s not very stable in the long side of things, but I tell my followers all the time you are changing my life and allowing me to do what I love.” Of course, Cynthia has a certain dog to thank for allowing her to do what she loves, too.
