Bemusing Disaster! - Page 1

My dad got a big surprise yesterday...

Some background info on my dad,  his last dog passed away this summer, an elderly working line czech dog.  His sole companion for the last 13 years.  He did everything with her (except compete in any competitions, never did that) and she went everywhere with him.  Her obedience was phenomenal and she hasn't even worn a leash in the last 10 years except when going to the vet's or into a restruant (yes, there were several local restruants who did allow her to come inside, even though she was not a service dog)  She even went leashless when going into the local feed store, bookshops, the barber's...etc.   Dad lives in a small, cozy college community, the population is evenly mixed between retired folks, young families and college students.  Dad is retired, so he spends much of his time walking around town and campus and socializing with folks, he also helped a lot of people with training their own dogs and was the go-to-guy if someone had dog problems, even the local police knew him for this.   When my dad's dog passed away he received tons of sympathy cards and gifts and a lot of people cried.    My dad has always had one dog, had two once many years ago.  His dogs were always working line, high drive dogs which he was able to train to do a lot of tasks with.  Various jumps and obstacles, long sit-stays, long down-stays, send-away, fetch anything he told them to fetch, carried anything he told them to carry, heel off-leash no matter what distraction, instant re-calls,  etc. 

Yesterday the owner of the local feed shop called my dad and told him there was a guy there who needed help with training his unruly dog, would my dad come down and take a look?  So my dad walks down to the feed shop, and when he gets there the store is full of people...he stops and chats with some for a few minutes and finally manages to walk to the back where the checkout counter is, and asks about where this guy who needed help was.  The store owner told him that there really wasn't anyone there who needed help, that dad was actually there for a big surprise....then the store owner came around the counter with a 5 month old GSD puppy....and the whole store cheered.   Much of the town had pooled money together to buy my dad a new GSD puppy, and puppy food and other puppy supplies, and a congrats card with about 2 dozen names signed.

My dad was shocked,  spent about an hour just saying thank-you and getting lots of good will from folks.

But he was also shocked at the puppy....nobody in town has any real knowledge of German Shepherds.   What they got him was a black and light tan American Showline male pup, just turned 5 months old but could have easily passed for 7 months....he's huge, already 20 inches at the shoulder.   He's very sweet and laid back...and laid back...the pup has no toy drive, won't investigate a ball or bite a rag.   I have a poodle and he is just like her: sweet, likes to be held or sleeps at my feet, likes food but doesn't care a whit for toys, somewhat shy, clingy to their person, etc. 

No....the pup's parents don't seem to have any health clearances....and the puppy did not come with AKC papers....he came with "Dog Registry of America" papers....

Catch 22!  Dad can't say no because clearly the town made a big effort and was very excited for him.

So my dad now has a poodlefied American shepherd.   LMAO

Great story!  Maybe your Dad will get the best out of him and surprise everyone!

What a nice town, but yes too bad they weren't able to do more research before purchasing him the pup.

Well, maybe your dad will surprise everyone!

That is the nicest thing I have read in a long time.  My guess is your dad is going to make the most of that dog anyway!  What a great service he does for the breed!

thank you for sharing it here.

Darcy

Bet your dad uses his knowledge of dogs and the pup's food drive to make him into a fabulous GSD anyway. The dog may blossom unexpectedly, since some of his shyness may be enviromental rather than genetic. I have seen some wonderful Ambreds, although I would never buy one myself (except in a rescue situation to save the dog).

What a sweet story!  How highly everyone must think of your dad.  Bet that makes you feel so good!

I agree, I bet Dad & the new dog will be quite the team as the years go by.

Really, really great story.  Love all the planning and fund raising the town did for him.  GREAT story.

Thats AWESOME!!! Maybe since your dad is retired and not getting any younger, this pup might be just what he needed. I can imagine my mom trying to raise a young working line pup at her age....LOL

What a wonderful story. There are still good people out there even if the dog is sub-par I am sure he will make a great companion. Shoot he may develope late because if his size and get some toy drive  after all.

Hopefully the pup will end up healthy enough and keep your dad entertained for many years.

sweet story and from the sound of it, if anyone can bring this dog to his full potential, it would be your dad. lets just hope he has a lot of hidden promise! but it was a lovely gesture from people and a testament to your dads standing in his community.

Thank you everyone,  I'll show him your responses.  I do hope he does bring out the best in the pup.   He's still a bit mortified that he has an American Showline,  he's always been a die-hard fan of working lines, especially the Czech type.    It shall be very interesting to see what raising an American dog is really like in person.  My biggest fear is health issues....I sure hope the pup doesn't come down with any common American ailments.   So far he seems to be healthy  though....he LOVES food...my own dogs do not beg....but I went over to my dads and had some chicken, and later some icecream and this pup stared at my every fork/spoon full and attempted to get in my face a few times for the food.   So maybe he's got some guts afterall!  He also showed some interest in a stuffed toy and did play with it some...still not too keen on balls though.  

The pup seems to have a pretty good nose, and not skittish about walking on different surfaces or going up and down stairs, so I told my dad he should try working in SAR with this kid, as a way to give back to his community.   I hope he does....the challenge will be getting him to join a SAR group, dad is pretty good at doing his own thing but he's never joined a dog training group before, nor does he have any experience with scent training. 

I'll try to get some pics to show y'all,  and his new name is Benjamin.   So we can call him that, or Ben, Gentle Ben, Benjie and Big Ben when he grows up.  (He's huge.....I already said that right?  20 some inches at the shoulder and only 5 months)