We think Gus is SOOO special.  He is not a 'working' dog, as we live in town, but he gets alot of exposure to nature/outdoors.  All of us hike or run several times a week, and Gus is everyone's favorite companion on these excursions.  We have several nature, cross country, mountain bike trails near our home.   Gus goes with us without a lead now on these trails.  When we encounter groups of other people (and dogs), we generally stop and tell him to sit near us.   When the dogs come along on the trails, he gets so excited, but generally tries to stay seated, or at least stay with us.  He certainly makes some excited rushes sometimes, but you can tell he knows he should not.  When we pass by another hiker/runner by himself, we just keep going, and Gus may take a run around the other hiker, and usually gets a hello and a pat, and then he comes running to catch up.  When we get toward any parking lot, he willingly 'leashes up' to go through any cars, etc.   In short, he loves going on the trails and through the woods and fields, and does what he's told and stays near.

At home, when we walk the neighborhoods, all of the neighborhood dogs are now buddies with Gus.  We have a very old and worn out, and mostly blind Boston Terrier next door, and whenever Gus goes out, he always runs over next door to see if 'Edie' is out and wants to play.  There are a three old labs (one is a mix) that all get along great with Gus.  Whenever they're on walks, etc, they get let off leash in our yard, and they have lots of fun playing.   In short, he's very comfortable around other dogs.  He also seems to know when to stay clear of dogs that may be aggressive.  He just seems to know.   If our neighbor dogs are off on a walk, they visit, and then Gus follows them to the property line, and then lets them go on (if we call to him).  He just seems to know 'his yard.'

He's very good around all sorts of people.  He walks downtown on a lead without any issues.  Several stores let him in, and he just stays with us and soaks in all the attention without being hyper about it.   I think a telling story about how calm and socialized he is for just turning 6 mos is when we went to visit my sister's home in KC.  First, there was the hour long car trip.  Gus is a champ in the car.  There were several families there (about 20 people in all), including my niece, her husband, and their 16 mos old baby, Millie.  Gus made the rounds and was a bit wary about seeing where he could go with approval, etc., and would look to Andy and me for the ok.    Within minutes he would be sitting near our feet just acting like one of the crowd.  He then just laid down between our chairs unless someone would bid him to come over, and he would, and would act like a perfect gentleman.

With the baby, you could tell he really liked her - they were on the same level, etc.  Gus was very gentle and would come up to inspect, etc.  At first, the baby did not want anything to do with Gus, and would get scared and cry.   Millie's parents are used to pets and animals, and were very low key about it, and saw that Gus was being a good dog.  Eventually, Gus won her over, and she would come and pat him, and he would sniff her all over, in her face, etc., and the baby would think that was very funny.  Gus got his tailed tugged and pat in a baby like way, and he took it like a champ.

Finally, I would note that Gus is a very family oriented dog and loves his people.  When its hang out at home time, he needs to be in the room, and usually touching you, or close enough to touch you.  He likes car rides, and especially riding in Andy's old pick up.  It's got bench seats, and he sits right next to Andy.  I need to get a picture of their two heads next to each other in the back window of the truck as they're driving.  Gus loves being hugged/kissed, etc.  He's a big teddy bear.  Now, Andy lets him sleep where he wants.  Sometimes it's in his kennel.  Sometimes it's in Andy's bed.

Andy was very ill recently (he's all better now), but Gus would stay with Andy in his bed and lick his face, etc.  Gus knew Andy was sick, and he wanted to take care of Andy.

I hope you got the picture/profile of Gus in his new Black Watch plaid collar.  He got it for Christmas (and of course he had a stocking on the mantle with his name on it).  I think he knows he looks handsome in it.  You can tell he feels naked without a collar. 

On the practical front - as you know he came to us potty trained.  He does not tear up the house.  He likes his kennel.  He will 'come' (most of the time), 'sit', 'down', and is pretty good w/ 'stay.'  We are also working on fetch w/ balls and frisbees.  Overall though, he just seems to 'know' what he should be doing, in general.  It's hard to explain, but I'm sure you know what I mean.  

In sum, we are thrilled with Gus.  He's a great member of the family.  He is Andy's best friend.  We hope you steer us to one with a similar temperament in the next litter.  We would love a tri because we think Gus is so pretty, but this sort of temperament will be what we will look for primarily.  We don't care male v. female.   You've got quite a match there with Oscar x Daisy.  Plus, all the work you put in with the dogs before, during, and after whelping really comes through.  We can't wait for our forthcoming 'pick of the litter.'

Joel

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