Winston TangoxWindy
Tuesday, February 28, 2017 5:43 PM
Debra:
I have been meaning to write you for over a year and share with you
pictures and the progress of the Collie puppy I "adopted" in August,
2009--from the litter of Tango and Wendy. "Winston" has been a complete
joy and pleasure. He is a total gentleman--calm, polite, sweet, and
happy--he truly has "poise." When I first got him, I enrolled him in an
obedience program (Man's Best Friend in Carrollton) and they called him the
"very special 1 dog in 1,000"--he quickly picked up and retained everything
from the training. I also had no problem with housetraining--he pretty
much did this on his own from day one--and I've encountered few accidents
over the past couple of years. He's to to be the smartest dog I've ever
met. When he goes to "Doggy Day Care," the staff said he takes on two
different "jobs"--he is the "puppy ambassador" who helps show the new
puppies how to play in the group, and he's also the "play monitor" in that
he barks and alerts the attendant if other dogs are fighting or doing
something they shouldn't be. In fact, he does have a protective instinct
in that he will bark when certain strangers go by, he'll check out others
who want to get near me, or he'll block other dogs from me at the dog park
(he especially doesn't like rollerblades or skateboards)--but he only does
those things when it's appropriate--I've had no problem walking him in
crowded spaces. Walking he can be trusted off lead although we don't do
that apart from the neighborhood. His favorite is to play ball--he
typically catches the tennis ball after the first bounce--and he's very
good at retrieval. He is also well enough behaved to take to restaurants
with an outdoor patio section that allows dogs. He knows not to beg or
demand my food. Overall he's very eager to please and although he doesn't
give a lot of affection, he loves to receive it--often rolling over on his
back for me to rub his tummy. He has always checked out from the vet in
excellent health so no issues there. As you can see from the pictures, he
does get a lot of compliments, for his physical beauty--but everyone who
gets to know him comments on how sweet and gentle and intelligent he is.
So I wanted to thank you for this fine addition to my life.
Alan