Brains & Beauty!
Around 7 months old Kelly started taking him to an agility trainer, who normally didn’t accept any dogs that had not been through formal obedience training first, but she gave Traverse a chance and was impressed with his desire to work and learn so Trav started going to agility. He was good, learned fast, ran fast, obeyed Kelly and loved the workout! Because of how far away the agility trainer was at that time and our work hours we weren’t able to continue taking Trav. It was a shame because he had it in him to be our first champion, as it is he has no CD’s, in his name, but he has always been a champion!
Through the years Traverse loved to play Frisbee, he loved to stand on the back of the couch and play king of the mountain, I’m sure it was him who taught Tyler to do that! He amazed us with his ability to reason, even though it is said that dogs don’t have that ability, I have witnessed Trav do so! He enjoys sitting next to you and holding hands (paws) with you for as long as you want!
Eleven years later, he still makes us laugh, he is still a lover, and he still loves to go for daily walks, but insists on a belly rub before going! Our walks have gotten slower paced and sometimes shorter, but he still keeps us walking everyday, and has learned over the years to live for going camping! He doesn’t run as often anymore, but he still enjoys playing a game of catch, and still commands respect from all the other Sympa’s!
He loves to be wherever we are, and will lay on the floor next to you and watch what you are doing for the whole day in between short naps and once in a while he will moan to let you know he is here and wants your attention. It’s never a bother to stop what you are doing and give him a belly rub for all the heart rubs he gives us!
He may be, “Just a dog!”, but he is the best thing that ever happened to our family! Without him we would have never found the joy that a bunch of Shelties can give to a person’s life!
Memorium
I n
TRAV
Sympatheque Traverse Un Drole
6/15/1997 - 1/21/2012
(Story told by my Dad, whom Traverse lived with until we helped him cross the bridge)
While on vacation looking for something to do on a rainy day we went into Traverse City and went to the mall to look around, little did we know that our lives would be changed forever from that day on! While at the mall we came across an 8 week old puppy that said, “Take me with you” to Kelly and Jan! They convinced me that we needed to talk about getting this tiny puppy. We spent the rest of that day and the next day discussing what was involved in having a dog in our lives. Upon convincing me that I wouldn’t have to take care of the puppy, the next day was the beginning of the Sympa gang!
Traverse was named after the place we found him, Traverse City. Kelly was taking French in school so we decided on a French name for him, Sympateque Traverse Un Drole, which means Sweet Traverse the clown, he made us laugh right from the first few minutes we had him! It was my idea that he had to have a name that gave him unique initials, which he lived up to! We had no idea that Traverse was going to lead us into a life of shelties!
It was apparent from the start that Trav was going to impress us with his intelligence right away by his desire to learn and to please us. He learned everything fast, he learned commands in French, Kelly taught him a big repertoire of tricks that he picked up very quickly, he also learned some sign language as well as learning to spell, and he learned how to flirt and steal hearts within his first month with us! He has always been laid back and gentle, and always a lover.
