Human: Judy
Canine: Wilson (“Willie”)
Location: Waukesha WI
Type: Boston Terrier
Our Story:
For about 35 years, I had shared my life with exotic birds. In 1998, my doctors insisted I find homes for my 5 feathered friends before I could be listed for a lung transplant. That unhappy task took me 5 months. I asked my doctor what kind of animal I could have and he told me that a dog would probably the best. After much research on-line and at the library and talking with two vets, I decided to look for a Boston Terrier. Our first Boston, Raji, came into my life in January 2000. Last summer, we went “Up North” to visit my sister at her new lake home. Her daughter-in-law told me that she had a friend who had a Boston puppy for sale. I asked her to get me some more information. That night, she kept teasing my husband about her friend bringing the puppy over to visit. The day before we were scheduled to go home, I asked my sister to contact her daughter-in-law and see if we could arrange to meet the puppy. We met the friend and his family and their 3 Bostons and 1 puppy in Eagle River. My daughter and I fell in love with the puppy right away. When I asked my husband what he thought, he said, “I’m not for it, but I can’t stop you from doing what you want.” I told him he was out voted 2/1. I named the puppy Boss after my favorite teacher in high school, my band director, whose name was Orville Matthias, but everyone called him Boss. We had quite a cramped 225-mile ride back home. Everywhere we stopped, someone wanted to buy Boss. About 2 days later, my husband asked if he could change his vote. Boss really brought Raji to life. Instead of laying around and sleeping all day, he now had a playmate to run around with. We had a very good life together for 9 years; however, Raji bit my sister’s 3-year-old grandson over the summer and we were forced to find him another home because our home owner’s insurance had been canceled. It was a very sad situation.
A few months later, I started checking our local shelters and Pet Finder because Boss was quite lonely without his partner. I found out that Bostons very rarely end up in shelters. The rescue dogs were either not good with cats, men, kids or not socialized. I decided to look for a breeder in Wisconsin. I found one in Friendship who had a 10 week old male for sale. I told my husband that I was not having any luck finding an appropriate Boston in a shelter or a rescue group, but that I had found one at a breeder about 150 miles from us. I called the breeder and we discussed the puppy. It turned out that he was a “black brindle” Boston, which is just what I was looking for. She said she did have 2 other parties that showed interest in him. I told my husband about him and showed him the picture from the kennel’s web site. He said, “That’s the ugliest dog I’ve ever seen,” and then five seconds later, offered to pay half as my birthday present, which was coming up in just a few days. My daughter and I drove up to meet the breeder and her puppy the next day. After visiting with the pup for a while, we decided to take him home with us. Naming him was not as easy as Boss. He was nameless for about two days. By then, I had gathered a list 2 pages long of possible names. The family got together over breakfast after church and we unanimously decided on Wilson (“Willie”). His father’s name was Buffa (boofa) Bad Boy, so we decided on Buffa’s Boy Wilson as his AKC registered name. Buffa is joker in Italian. The dogs took to each other right away. Boss will take a toy away from Willie and then walk away very slowly, looking back to see if he’s following him. They spend their day playing keep away with their toys and when they get worn out, they find a spot and take a nap together. At night, Willie sleeps upstairs with my daughter and her 10 month old kitten named Nimbus. Just recently, Nimbus has started to join Willie and my daughter on the bed for some cuddle time in the morning. Willie has just completed a 4 week puppy class offered by our vet and will move on to the next level this summer. Willie just loves to give kisses and has recently learned how to jump up onto the recliner for extra close attention. These are the most spoiled Bostons I’ve ever seen! We’ve taken them to an Admirals hockey game (that was a benefit for our local shelter), many pet stores and a St. Patrick’s Day event at our shelter. I get them children’s books at the library and read to them with lots of treats when they sit and listen. I also bake them organic treats and feed them holistic dog food. I have learned that love comes in fur, as well as feathers.
