Christina Gould likes to walk Murray, basically where he chooses to walk, since as she acknowledges, he's the boss.
Christina Gould loves Murray, her Cairn Terrier for many reasons but he can be a bit too curious at times. More on that in a moment.
Murray, came from a breeder (who named him) in Portland, Oregon about 7 and a half years ago. She feeds him a special "freeze dried human food almost" said Gould, "that I get at Pet Elements. They order it for me, but to be honest, this guy hasn't seen a drop of food that he hasn't loved," she said laughing.
His treats are dried chicken breast, 'Greenies', but not too many. "These dogs are so short to the ground they have a propensity to gain weight."
"Cairn Terriers have quite a personality," explained Gould," and he's the boss, he's very curious and affectionate. He's almost like a cat because he loves jumping up on my lap and cuddling. They love people and they run to anybody, so you have to be careful because they will just go with anyone. He hasn't met a stranger that he doesn't like."
But about that curiosity. "I lost him in the Westcrest Dog Park. They are ratters and there's quite a lot of bramble and blackberries there. So he went in there and I could hear him but he would not come out. It was later in the evening and the sun was setting. A couple of other people were trying to help me find him but he just kept scurrying back and forth and we couldn't see him. So then there's a caretaker there and he said, 'I'm sorry but we have to lock up the park. You're going to have to leave him here overnight. This is a true story. I was like 'Oh my god!' It was scary as all get out. So somebody gave me a flashlight and I ran ahead to get my car because they were going to close the gates and drove around to the north end of the park. But it was getting dark. I had the flashlight, nobody was around and my heart was beating and I get up to the gate and there the little guy was. 'Hi Mom! Where have you been!? I've been waiting for you!' There was no way I was going to leave him there overnight with coyotes."
Murray gets to go to work with Gould now and he's universally loved. "The mailman loves him, the water guy loves him. He gets a lot attention that way. People think he's really sweet."
Skyler, another Cairn Terrier is his best friend. But he's not necessarily that fond of his own breed apparently since his favorite toy, which he shakes pretty hard after eating is none other than a stuffed dog and yes, it's a stuff Cairn Terrier.
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