This week's special pup belongs to a friend here in Hawaii. Megan is a fellow military wife, and her sweet Cabo is full of life and as sweet as can be. :) I'm so happy that she agreed to share her furry baby with us. Let's see what she has to say...
What kind of dog is Cabo, and how old is he?
Cabo is a Boxer/ American Bulldog. He is 2 and a half years old.
What is Cabo's story? How did he come to live with you?
After Josiah and I got married we decided that we wanted a dog to keep me company and guard the house when Josiah left on trips, so we spent several weeks looking at different puppies online and at the Humane Society. We loved all the dogs that we saw but none of them seemed to be exactly what we needed, so we didn’t take any of them home. This was no small feat for a girl who wants to adopt every animal she sees! Finally, we saw an ad for a litter of 7-week-old puppies. The picture was a gorgeous silver and orange brindled pup looking over the side of a cardboard box. I knew I wanted to see these puppies. One problem. The price on them was $400 each and we didn’t want to pay more than $200. We decided to call them anyway and when Josiah mentioned that we really couldn’t pay more than $200 the owner said, “Oh, don’t worry about it, I put that price up there because I wanted to find good homes.” Yes! We drove over to look at the litter immediately. There were four pups with tan bodies and black faces, the silver and orange brindle and a dark brown and orange brindle. The silver pup turned out to be a girl and we knew that we really wanted to get a boy. We held every one in the litter. Each one had their own special personality. We stayed for at least an hour and a half playing with each puppy and trying to decide which one we liked best. I was standing and holding one of the more docile boys when I turned and looked into the corner and saw Cabo doing flips over himself and chasing around a leaf. I picked him up again and new that this was the right one. He slept snuggled in my arms the whole ride home.
How did Cabo get his name?
After bringing our sweet little puppy home we started the task of finding a name for him. I went through lists of dog names and thought through the names of characters in some of my favorite books and names of some favorite classic authors, everything from Harper (Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird) to Gatsby to Sebastian. Nothing fit. Ever since we began to look at puppies we had had an idea that we would like to name it something that was meaningful to both of us. We had just gotten back from our honeymoon in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. We loved the idea of embodying this wonderful memory by naming our cute little puppy after it. Cabo has turned out to be just as wonderful as that special memory.
What are Cabo's favorite things to do? Any silly things he does or crazy quirks that make him unique?
Cabo is pretty much always ready for whatever comes his way in the day. Whether it’s watching a movie on the couch, going to the beach to play or going for a long hike or run. If he gets bored with what the humans are doing he loves to pull out his squeaky toys and throw them in the air for himself or sit down and chew on them and try and make a melody out of the squeaks. When we go to the beach Cabo likes to try and “save” anything in the water whether it’s a leaf or a human. He will swim out, gently grab whatever is in the water, and swim back to shore and lay it out on the sand. Needless to say, we don’t always want to be saved but it’s hard to convince Cabo of that. Cabo also loves to be vocal. He doesn’t bark that much unless someone is coming up to the front door but if he wants your attention, especially when someone is in bed too long for his taste and he wants to get up and start the day, he will sit with his face about a foot from yours and “talk” while he wags his tail. Somehow he always seems to be able to convey exactly what he wants.
What makes Cabo so special to you and your family? Particular times he's really "been there" or special things he's done?
Cabo seems to be able to worm his way into the affections of almost everyone he meets. I am no different. He touches my life everyday and makes it plain that he would rather be with me than anywhere in the world. He makes me feel special and meaningful everyday. A few months ago he really showed me that he knew where his place was and didn’t want to leave. I was working on a school project very late and one of my neighbors forgot to close the gate in our yard so Cabo got out. Getting into the road is only a matter of walking down our driveway, but Cabo stayed sitting in the front yard all night till I got home around 2 am. As soon as I opened my car door he couldn’t stop licking me and trying to “talk” to tell me about what had happened. As for being there for me, he is unmatched by any human. He is never too busy for me and always is up for being my friend and doing anything I want. I can’t count the times he’s been a sport and come to the grocery store with me, waiting patiently until I got out just because I didn’t want to go alone. His understanding of what is going on in my life never ceases to amaze me.
What a special guy! Thanks again, Megan, for sharing him with us! :)
P.S. I could use some more volunteers for special pup features. :) Let me know if you'd be interested. Leave me a comment or e-mail me at TailsToTell [at] Live [dot] com
