I'M 1 YEAR OLD ALREADY!

Show Time!...

Boy, what a day, this was! And it started early… Actually, I was a bit puzzled with my owners inviting me to get in the car at that time in the morning… But, what the heck, I just love going to the park! Only, we didn’t go to the park… The car kept going and going and it seemed we would never get wherever we were going!
It was the 10th of May of 2008 and I was almost 7 months old.
Finally, the car stopped and I got out … Well, that surely was a different kind of park! There were dogs alright, but loads of them! Some pretty noisy, too…
That was when I saw my cousin Zoe (SeaLords Sleepless in Seattle) and her owner, and we went to join them. I thought that playtime was about to begin, but no, our owners just kept brushing and brushing us!
Then my younger owner changed my lead and took me to meet a tall gentleman I had never seen before… He looked nice though, even if he was a bit nosy… You don’t just meet someone and start snooping in his mouth and getting your hands all over! But, as I said before, he looked like a nice guy and I let him do whatever he wanted… Well, it was a short relation anyway… After having a couple of little runs and having been put in that weird position by my younger owner, we went away.
My owners looked pleased, I have no idea why, but if they’re happy, I’m happy too!
Afterwards, I finally had the chance to play with my cousin! Our owners had been eating, and before going back to that strange park, we went to a large ground where Zoe and I could have some runs and play a bit with each other.
Then, it was time to return to where all those other dogs were. We stayed there for a little while longer. I was taken to meet another gentleman and after that we went to the car and headed back home! I was knackered! I slept most of the way but I still overheard my owners commenting I had been the best puppy of the breed and second best in the group, whatever that means… They looked very pleased about it though.
Anyway, it seems that was my first Dog Show…

Growing...

WOW! I’m growing fast! Just look at me! I’m bigger than Claudia! I’m almost 6 months, now. Life is easy around here… I just don’t understand why, sometimes, my younger owner insists on putting me in some strange positions… It seems it has something to do with training, or whatever… It’s a bit uncomfortable, but I play along, anyway… It’s a dog’s life!

The arrival

When I got to my new home I had some sort of reception committee waiting for me. There were Claudia, the Golden Retriever, a nice and quiet blonde lady, and Ralph, the Whippet, a nervous skinny guy. They both received me in a friendly manner, although Ralph looked a bit suspicious at first. But soon we got used to each other and started a good playful relationship, even if my personal preference always went towards Claudia. Maybe because I detected something motherly about her… Anyway, she immediately became my favorite “target” when I was in a playing mood, which is most of the time, I must confess!... Initially, she looked a tad bored with my advances, can’t imagine why, but it didn’t take her long to join the game and we became the best playmates.

The beginning

How did I get to Portugal?... Well, my owner had been looking for a Bobtail, or, shall I say, an Old English Sheepdog, because, now, we have our tails in their full glory. But, going back to the story, as I said, my owner had been looking for one of “us”.
There aren’t many breeders of OES in Portugal. As a matter of fact there are only two permanent breeders dedicated to my kind, and only one of them dedicates herself (herself because she is a lady) exclusively to this breed.
Anyway, he searched the internet for some time, looking for a good litter from a reputable breeder. Finally, with the helping hand of that Portuguese lady breeder, he decided on the litter which I was part of. It looked to be a good combination of bloodlines. My father descends from a long line of American champions and was bred by one of the most successful kennels in Europe, and my mother has some of the greatest champions of the old continent in her bloodline. So, I should become a nice doggy, or at least that’s what my owner thought…
I arrived to my new home on the 19th January 2008, when I was about three months old. My owner went to pick me up at Oporto, where my breeder, who was entering a Dog Show, brought me to, along with my brother Lancelot. It’s funny that my owner, at first, was more inclined to my brother. He had only seen us in photos until that day. But then, I ended up being the chosen one! Something to do with having “more bone”, whatever that means…

Welcome!

This is the cyberspace of Toby (Liberty Gold de Bayroeth de Eden).

Toby is an Old English Sheepdog. He was born in Spain on the 15th October of 2007 and came to live in Portugal in January of 2008.