WOOFINGTON POST

The Border Collie comes in at number

one. Because of their extraordinary
intelligence and high energy, it is essential
to give Border Collies an occupation or
purpose, or you may well fnd your home
wrecked upon your return from a long day
at work. They have an intense connection
with humans, making them ideal work and
home companions. However, keep this in
mind: Border Collies invariably will not
do well unless they are with people who
are as high energy as they are; they do
best with humans who can participate in
dog sports with them. Also, because of
their background as herding dogs, they
may be frustrated by small children, as
their inability to herd the children as they
deem ft is confounded. For the right
human, the Border Collie is well behaved,
exceptionally good at learning, and a true-
blue companion.
April 30, 2014 By: Landon Johnson
Whos the smartest?
Good people, not to mention good tippers,
do exist. Christina Summitt knows that for
sure now after what happened Saturday
night.
The paw-print tattoo on Summitts wrist
often leads to conversations with strangers
about her love of animals; shes a volunteer
with a pit bull rescue group and spends lots of
time fnding homes for animals of all kinds.
While tending bar at the Holiday Inn in
Clinton, New Jersey, Summitt got to chatting
with a friendly couple before the night got
busy. The man
asked her if she
had dogs of her
own; she confded
that her baby, a
Great Dane-black
Labrador mix
named Tucker,
was at the
veterinary hospital after having emergency
surgery hours earlier after he swallowed a
hard plastic ball. She was worried about him.
The man said something about surgery being
expensive. She confded the estimate was
around $2,700, but she would do whatever
she had to do for the dog, whom she adopted
in 2011. Summitt, 37, works three jobs --
full-time as a chef at the hotel, Saturdays
as a bartender, and as a food prep worker
two days a week at a deli in her town. Her
husband works full-time and Summitt has
three stepchildren.
The couple ordered drinks and dinner at the
bar. When it was time to close out their $80
tab, the man flled out the receipt with a tip
-- for $1,000.
Summitt said she started shaking and crying.
A tip that saves!
She showed the bill to her sister, who tends
bar with her, to make sure she was seeing
three zeros after the 1.
I went back over and said Sir, I cannot
accept this, what is this for, why would you
do this? she said. He told her to put it
toward Tuckers medical costs.
I just stood there in shock. I walked around
and hugged this couple. They said, Well be
praying for Tucker.
Hotel manager Michelle Satanik told CNN
she followed up with her comptroller and also
tracked down the customer
this week to verify that the
gesture was legitimate.
CNN has attempted to
contact the generous tipper
through Summitt, who
kept his name anonymous
for his privacy.
Apparently this man does
this quite frequently. Just a really nice guy
and humanitarian, Satanik said. I have
never ever seen a $1,000 tip like that.
Summitt shared the story on Facebook and
with a photo of the credit card slip and
a picture of Tucker being held by her
16-year-old stepson before they left the dog
at the hospital for surgery. A Facebook page
she follows called Why Bartenders and
Servers Hate People on Easter Sunday with
this caption: This is a place for us to vent
but every so often, especially on holidays,
we have to be thankful for the amazing
customers that are out there.
Summitt says shes since gotten messages
of support from all over the world.
publicly thank this couple in front world.
Bob The Traveler
Bob was born in South Australia in 1882,
and for some reason he loved trains. He
spent the early years of his life as a stray,
following railway workers to work, until he
was rounded up by a dogcatcher. It looked as
if he was destined for the pound, but luckily
for Bob he was bought by a kindly station
guard whod taken a liking to him. It worked
out well, as his new master allowed him to
ride the train with him in the guards van
every day. But, eventually, his master got a
promotion and he and Bob parted ways. Then
Bob started jump trains alone.
Bob traveled up and down Southern Austra-
lia, becoming a familiar and welcome sight
on trains across the land. Sometimes, when
Bob felt that he needed some privacy, he
chose an empty carriage and scared away
any passengers who tried to sit in it barking.
A New Mexico woman whose father
gradually lost most of his speech as his
Alzheimers advanced, says spending time
with the family pets often coxes small
snippets of conversation from the ailing
man. Lisa Abeytas father, Charles Sasser,
of Alburqurque, N.M., was diagnosed with
Alzheimers, a degenerative disease affecting
memory, about four or fve years ago, but
only began to lose his speech in the last six
months to a year, she said. Abeyta has written
about the familys struggles with the disease
numerous times, but it was a video Abeyta
posted Thursday to YouTube and Reddit that
moved thousands of strangers to share their
own personal journeys with Alzheimers and
dementia. The video captured the moment
Charles Sasser, a Korean war veteran, began
to speak to the Abeytas family dog, Roscoe,
at their home. Abeyta, a tech entrepreneur,
says that she has seen her father coo and
talk to his own two dogs, Molly and Cassy,
on numerous occasions, but was surprised
by his clarity and the ability to get out a
complete sentence, not just a word here and
there. Abeyta, a mother of three, began to
flm part of the hour-long exchange between
father and dog. With the help of her son, she
edited and uploaded the clip to YouTube,
primarily for her mother to share with her
friends. But within a day, people had begun
emailing and posting thousands of comments
on Reddit. The clip has been viewed over
162,000 times at the time of writing. Im
touched by the response to the video They
talked about how having a pet or connecting
with music really gave them back a loved one
with Alzheimers, Abeyta told ABC News.
Its been quite an amazing thing to hear
peoples stories. Abeyta credits her mother,
Pat Sasser, for taking care of her father on a
daily basis. The true hero is my mom. This
is her lifes work, Abeyta said. I shared the
video but my mom is the one is the one who
takes care of him by herself and I cant give.
Dog Helps Man Speak Again
Hi. I have a dog story that is special to
me because I believe it saved my life. I was
trying to deal with depression, anxiety and
social phobia. I was at a very low point
in my life, I had just gave birth to a new
baby, I already had 2 other children, and I
couldnt leave the house. Also when my
new baby was only a week old I found out
that his father wasnt who he said he was
(but thats another story). Anyways, I was
sitting on the couch in the little house I
was renting, crying my eyes out which had
become a regular event. I was holding my
son and wondering what I was going to do,
I felt so sad and alone extremely depressed,
and felt useless to my children and was
even considering taking myself out of
the picture. I began to pray, I prayed for
an angel to help me, to guide me, to make
my life better. I then put my son to bed
and then cried myself to sleep. The next
morning I woke with an unexplainable
urge...I was anxious and excited and I could
not get the thought of going to the Society
For The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
(S.P.C.A.) out of my mind. I tried to quit
thinking about it as another being in the
house is just more work but I couldnt, I
had to go! I got a friend to watch my kids
and I drove to the SPCA. As soon as I
pulled up a bunch of dogs came out into
their runs, they were bouncing and whining
and barking...all except one. She was the
most beautiful dog I had ever seen, she was
huge but I couldnt take my eyes off her.
She too just sat staring at me sitting there
in the car. I dont remember what any of
the other dogs looked like...I dont think
I even took notice of them except all the
noise and commotion they were making.
I got out of the car and couldnt help but
smile at her...her ears pricked up and she
cocked her head to the side. I went into
the building and asked what kind of dog
she was. I was told a 2 year old Lab/St.
Bernard cross (so you can imagine the
size). She said normally they would give
a big dog like that to a farm but because
she chases cattle (which was the reason she
was there), they wanted someone in the
city to adopt her...plus she seemed more of
an indoor dog. Well we went into the back
where the pens were and I walked straight
over to this beautiful golden brown/white
girl. I couldnt get over her size! She was
huge! I reached into the little hole of the
pen and she came up and fipped my hand
onto her head with her nose. I laughed
at this, she was strong, but yet so gentle.
She wasnt jumping or barking just sitting
there happy to have my hand on her head.
Thats when I saw it...just above eye level
was a little name tag...I had to look twice
because it shocked me...but yes there it was
her name and it was ANGEL!! I knew at
that moment it was meant to be. I said I
want her, I want to take her home with me
now. And so it was done, there she was, this
gentle giant in my little house. It was
like a miracle...suddenly I was out of the
house everyday taking Angel for walks. I
felt safe for the frst time in a long time.
And, I realized I was happier. I still had
moments of sadness of course but it was like
Angel could sense them...she always came
to me and put her head on my shoulder like
she was giving me a hug...on particularly
sad days if I was on the couch or my bed
shed get right up on my lap and curl up...I
Pick of The Litter
couldnt even move from the weight of her!
But she always cheered me up. She would
constantly check on the baby or lay at his
feet like she was protecting him. I put him
in a jolly jumper and Angel would lay at his
feet while he jumped on her. She would
even sleep as he crawled on her, pulled
at her ears. She was defnitely a gentle
giant. Then one day she got out and ran,
I couldnt fnd her and was very panicky
when suddenly a phone call came in. It
was a very nice man who had picked her
up and he said he was going to drop her off.
Well he did drop her off and the nice man
and I have been together ever since. This
Angel saved my life...if she hadnt came
into my life when she did I may not be here
today to share this story. I believe all dogs
are angels...no matter how big or small or
breed. They love you unconditionally, and
always seem to know when you need them
most. I still have my big girl and now my
family lives on an acreage where she can