Dog Who Loves To Go On Adventures Now Has The Sweetest Traveling Companion

“I call them brothers, but I think Baloo thinks that Henry’s his mom.”

Henry wasn’t the first dog Cynthia Bennett thought to adopt. When she and her boyfriend went to meet some puppies at an adoption event in 2014, Bennett originally had her eye on a golden retriever mix. But then she noticed Henry.

“We looked around and Henry was just sitting there,” Bennett told The Dodo. “They said he was only 3 and a half months, but he was like five times bigger than the other 3 and a half-month old puppies. And he had these long legs, and the body type of a wolf or husky.”

Dog kissing woman inside tent
Cynthia Bennett

When Bennett went into the pen to meet him, Henry made a beeline for her. “He just curled up into my lap and went belly up and flipped his head over my arm,” Bennett said. “And from then, I decided that he was coming home with us."

Dog getting tummy rubs
Cynthia Bennett

Bennett and her boyfriend are avid hikers, and they’d specifically moved to Colorado so they could go on outdoor adventures on the weekends. So they were delighted to discover that Henry loved going with them.

Dog wearing packs while hiking
Cynthia Bennett

“I think we only had him for three days when we took him on our first hike, which was to Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs,” Bennett said. “He found the steepest, tallest rock around, and he ran up to the top of it to look over the edge.”

Dog and woman on top of mountain peak
Cynthia Bennett

“We call him our little mountain goat,” Bennett added. “He scares us to death, because he goes up to the highest cliff or the highest rock to climb up and look over it.”

Dog on top of cliff in national park
Cynthia Bennett

Then, a couple months ago, Bennett and her boyfriend decided to extend their family.

“I really wanted a rescue kitten,” Bennett said. “I’d looked for five months, and I saw lots of different kittens, but none of them really had the right personality or fit. I knew that I wanted to take him anywhere — camping, hiking.”

Siamese mix kitten looking up at the camera from the ground
Cynthia Bennett

Bennett finally found a Siamese kitten mix named Baloo at a local shelter. Similar to Henry, Baloo attached himself to Bennett at their first meeting.

“He ran right up to me,” Bennett said. “And he was the one who played, but he wasn’t the most rowdy.”

Kitten on harness out for a walk
Cynthia Bennett

But it was Henry who Baloo seemed to adore the most. The moment Baloo met Henry, he loved him — he wanted to play with Henry and snuggle with him. Not only that, but Baloo refused to be left behind when Henry went out for a hike.

Kitten lying on top of dog's head
Cynthia Bennett

“If I touch Henry’s leash, [Baloo] will start screaming at the door,” Bennett said. “He’s very vocal.”

Seeing how eager Baloo was to get outdoors, Bennett started harness training him — but Baloo turned out to be a natural.

Dog and cat snuggling underneath blanket
Cynthia Bennett

“I get a lot of questions about how we got him used to it,” Bennett said. “But he really loves it. He really wants to go outside.”

Dog and cat cuddled up in sleeping bag together
Cynthia Bennett

“He’s definitely not the kind of cat we can leave home alone on the weekend anymore,” she added. “I think he thinks he’s more a dog than anything.”

Cat on top of dog's back while hiking
Cynthia Bennett

Bennett thinks that Baloo also views Henry as his mom.

“I call them brothers, but I think Baloo thinks that Henry’s his mom because he constantly looks for a teet,” Bennett said. “So he’ll go in, and you can tell he’s looking, because he’s nuzzling under Henry’s armpit.”

Dog and cat snuggling in sleeping bag together
Cynthia Bennett

Baloo is so attached to Henry, Bennett got the idea to plop him onto Henry’s head for a photo — and she was amazed by the result.

Cat lying on top of dog's head
Cynthia Bennett

“He just flopped down and bear hugged Henry’s neck and head,” Bennett said. “And Henry just laid there.”

Cat lying on top of dog's head
Cynthia Bennett

Now Baloo goes on every adventure that Henry does, and Bennett couldn’t be happier with how everything turned out.

Dog and cat sleeping together in tent
Cynthia Bennett

“Henry has become the best big brother and always checks on him to make sure he is doing okay,” Bennett wrote in an Instagram post shortly after she’d adopted Baloo. “He couldn't be fitting into our little family any better and we just love him to the moon and back.”

Woman holding dog with cat in backpack
Cynthia Bennett
To see more photos of Henry and Baloo going out for adventures together, you can follow their Instagram page.