At this year’s Humane Society’s Bow Wow Around Town event, where paw-ticipants met for a fun two mile walk, with their dogs sporting free doggie scarves, I greeted a family arriving for their first time.
Sara and her 9 ½ year old daughter, Eva, brought their 2 ½ year-old Golden
Retriever, Gus, and Grandma Becky had leashed up her dog, Koda.
The beauty of seeing them together illustrates the joy of growing up with animals as companions and passing these skills onto the next generation.
“Having a pet teaches children responsibilities,” affirmed Sara. “Eva has learned how to groom, bath, exercise, and feed our dog. She knows that a pet is not an object, but a part of our lives who has needs and it is our responsibility to
care and love them.”
Eva first met her dog right after his birth. Each week, at her horse riding lessons, she ran over to check on the irresistible Golden Retriever puppies.
She kept asking her parents for one paw-ticular puppy. They gave her every excuse in the book not to buy him: “We are not ready for a dog; we have to grieve the loss of our last one; we can’t afford a dog; our lives are too busy for a
dog.”
But all the while her parents were harboring a secret.
“Like Eva, I was sold on the puppies when I saw them,” confesses Sara. “I purchased one and kept him a secret from Eva. For eight weeks, every time we went to see the pups, Eva begged for him.
It was hard to keep the secret while watching her bond with him. It was obvious to everyone, he was her favorite and she was his. So, on the last day of school,
before Eva arrived, we snuck the puppy home. This was one of those rare times when you can surprise your child with a puppy and make their deepest dream come true.”
The surprise did not go quite as planned. Eva could not believe her eyes. She was so convinced that they could not have one that she was concerned it was “puppy-napped” for a few days for her to play with! When Eva learned the truth about his new owner, her, she was over the moon with
excitement.
“My dad named our puppy, Gus,” said Eva. “We are not sure why, but we all agreed that it fit.”
Gus’s favorite game is “keep away”, it is the dog version of “tag” with a toy. He brings Eva a toy, then promptly runs away with it.
“I always try to get the toy,” admits Eva, “but he usually wins! He is my shadow and follows me around the house, everywhere I go, and he loves to cuddle. He also lays at my
feet while I'm eating dinner, reading, talking on the phone, or watching TV.
The family loves it when, “Gus grabs his tire toy,” said Eva, “and we play tug of war. I get down on the floor, hold one end, he the other, and then he slides me back and forth mopping the floor with me. We all laugh and he smiles.”
Because Eva rides and jumps horses, and she has also seen dogs jumping hurdles on YouTube, so she went into the garage and made a hurtle
with broom sticks and crates.
“My dog is amazing!” said Eva. “He did high and low jumps, then super tall ones! So my dad made us a four level jump out of PVC pipe. Gus is a great jumper, but Grandma’s dog just runs under the bars!”
And what does their dog do that makes Eva giggle? “He sleeps on his back with his legs in the air up against the wall. And even though he acts brave, he’s scared of the vacuum cleaner and runs, cowers and gives
it ‘the’ eye.”
Gus would love to be a lap dog, but now that he is 89 pounds, they don't allow him. He knows not to do it to their family, but family friends are a different story!
“When we are camping,” said Sara, “Our dog knows that our friends are dog lovers and he climbs into their willing laps! He has them pegged!”
“Gus always seems so happy,” adds Eva, “and that makes us happy. He is a good guard dog, and we love him
so much!”
Gus paw-ticipated in this interview, all the while focusing his beautiful brown eyes and Golden Retriever smile on Eva.
“It was our first Bow Wow Around Town walk” said Eva, “It was fun and our dogs loved walking with the other dogs.”
“It is beneficial socializing dogs with dogs,” said Sara, “of all kinds and sizes. So, we plan on making the third Saturday of September an annual family event. When Eva grows up
maybe she will join us with her dogs and children too!”
Tale
