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You are here: Home / Pet Blogging / Dog Blogging / Early Morning Open Thread: Bingo

Early Morning Open Thread: Bingo

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From commentor Patrick II:

Bingo is my mom’s dog. Mom is eighty eight now and we had been looking for a companion dog for awhile. My cousin Pam found Bingo sleeping in a snowdrift, and brought him home. Pam already had three dogs – so she called Mom and asked her to give this dog a try for a week and see how she liked him. The week has been two years now, and Bingo has become a best friend to a very nice lady.
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Bingo is a mutt – the vet said he is half lhasa apso and half springer spaniel. I am not sure how the vet could tell, but to me he looks like Benji on stilts. The vet also said Bingo had been living wild for at least several months and had probably existed mostly on mice.
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Bingo doesn’t have to catch mice to survive anymore. He spends most of his time now listening to mom discuss the latest gossip, guarding the front yard against various interlopers — particularly the neighbor’s cat — , sleeping on the easy chair, playing fetch, and entertaining the grandkids when they come to visit. He is very bright and quickly learned the few tricks (sit, shake) that my niece taught him.

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In the evenings Bingo likes to play. If he brings the small rope and puts in your lap he wants to play tug-of-war. If he brings a squeaky toy, he wants to play fetch. If no one wants to play fetch with him, he takes a squeaky toy in his mouth, rips his head side to side, releases the toy, and “throws” it across the room, where he fetches it himself. Eventually we give in and throw it for him – he is not easily deterred.
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From sleeping in a snowdrift to gentle companion, Bingo has been a gift for our entire family, and especially for the kind lady he lives with.


Reader Interactions

36Comments

  7. 7.

    bkny

    what a nice story for first thing in the morning. and that photo of him and your mom is perfect. how lucky they are to have each other.

  9. 9.

    Annie

    Bingo, Bingo and Bingo was his name……….Perfect story first thing in the morning :-)

  11. 11.

    gogol's wife

    Beautiful. Almost got my mind off today’s dental work. And you can see how much love and grooming went into making him look the way he does now!

  12. 12.

    gnomedad

    Haha, somehow he looked large-cat sized until I saw the photo with Mom and the chair.

  14. 14.

    geg6

    Wonderful morning story and what a cute doggy (cute mom, too!). I love these pet stories. They keep me sane on the days like today where every headline is just one more piece of evidence that this country is on a downhill slide, thanks to the insane minority party.

  15. 15.

    Violet

    Aww…what a total cutie. I just melted when I saw that first picture. What a cute face. And a great story. That photo with your mom is just perfect. They are both lucky to have found each other. Awww…….

  16. 16.

    bystander

    This is the only way to start the day. Thanks, Anne Laurie and Patrick II. Marvelous story, marvelous pup, and Patrick’s mom is marvelous for offering Bingo the very important job of companion.

  18. 18.

    Jim Parish

    Bingo definitely has a Lhasa Apso face. (My Buster is a Lhasa Apso mix, too, and he plays catch with himself that same way.)

  19. 19.

    Tim, Interrupted

    Just a perfect, happy dog rescue story. Love that Patrick’s mom is so happy with Bingo and likewise. I don’t care what mix he is; he looks like he’s just exactly what he is supposed to be.

  21. 21.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    Thank you for the wonderful story of Bingo, a lucky dog who has a great life now.

  22. 22.

    patrick II

    Thank you all for your kind words. In her email to me, Anne suggested that Bingo may not be a mutt at all, but a Tibetan Terrier. After looking at some pictures and reading about Tibetans on the net, it seems a real possibility. The dog is smart, kind and energetic and now about 25 lbs. (15 lbs. when found) so Bingo fits the description of a Tibetan at the breeders site. It seems a good that that we may have found out more about him from sharing him with the Balloon Juice community. Thank you. Although he couldn’t mean any more to mom, mutt or not.

  24. 24.

    wonkie

    He looks like a giant Maltese!

    What a smart boy to suurvive his ordeal ad I am so happpy that he has a home now.

  27. 27.

    Kristine

    Thanks for a great story. Bingo is a cutie–I especially like the photo of him and your Mom. The one of him looking out the window is lovely, and a little melancholy. I wonder if he ever remembers sleeping in snowdrifts?

  29. 29.

    Paul in KY

    Either he’s alot bigger than I thought, or granny is a hobbit.

    Cute dog, looks really intelligent. Hope he guards the yard for many a year.

  30. 30.

    TaMara (BHF)

    @patrick II: I think Anne L. made a good call on the Tibetan Terrier. Loved the part where they are made for cold weather. That could be why he survived sleeping in a snow drift. No matter if he is or not, he’s still the cutest thing going on B-J this morning.

    Edit: @Paul in Kentucky, thanks for the laugh.

  31. 31.

    patrickT

    @Paul in KY:
    Mom’s about 5′ tall. The dog is bigger than he looks, I think because we associate that face with the smaller lhaso apso. He is about 25 sleek (underneath the fur) lbs., has long legs, and stands about two feet tall at the head.

    patrick II

  32. 32.

    Mary G

    Did I ever need that. Yesterday was exhausting and I just wanted to go back to bed this morning and pull the covers over my head. Bingo has put a smile on my face I didn’t expect. Also, I lost my mom last year and I pulled out a picture of her on the sofa with my cat Sophie. It’s a happy memory. Thanks, Patrick II.

  34. 34.

    trollhattan

    Late to the party but need to add my kudos to all involved. What a lovely outcome.

  35. 35.

    asiangrrlMN

    @patrickT: What a beautiful story and a gorgeous dog. I’m a bit teary-eyed here. The two look as if they were meant to be.

    And, I, too, took Bingo to be about cat-sized before seeing the pic of him with your mom!

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