Gratitude post #6 Toby!

I would feel very ungrateful if I didn't mention the smallest guy in our family, who is such a big part of our home. This little guy is Toby and if you have ever met him you probably have an idea how lucky we are to have him!
In march 2009 we gave up our first dog, Ke'Shaunte who was a pitbull, in an attempt to smooth over some trouble with some.neighbors. it was truly heart breaking for Joshua and I because she was our first baby. She was so sweet and we loved her! I swore after her we would never have another dog because of how hard it was to lose her, for some this may sound silly, but I have rarely felt such pain and loss.
In August the movie How to Train Your Dragon came.out and the main dragon reminded me so much of Ke'Sh that I just wanted to foster a dog for a bit to just ease the loss. On KSL.com classifieds there was someone who needed to find a home for small dog that weekend or they would have to take him to the pound, so we met up with the owner in Spanish fork and took Toby home. It wasn't love at first sight, in fact we were actively looking for a home for him. After 3 weeks we found a place for him and as I was making arrangements to do the exchange I noticed I wasn't having to sweep or mop as much. Then one day I saw Toby was following little Jer around the house, everywhere he went there was Toby. Everytime Jer dropped a morsel of food Toby quickly cleaned it up. It occurred to me this guy could earn his keep!
By this time he was really settled in and was comfortable. He would go outside with me and do chores. He would try to play with the cats, he even help herd the goats! Jerron could snuggle him and I didn't have to worry about it.
I was in love with our little mutt. Somehow he has become to perfect dog for us. He protects the animals from everything, including the sheep herding dog that is 5x his size that would sometimes come into the field. He knows when something is out place and he will take off and scare any animal that does not belong.
But the best thing about Toby? He is our little boy's best friend. He puts up with everything and loves every moment of being here, mostly. He sleeps with our little boy, he cleans up after him, he protects him and most of all he just loves him! He lights up when he meets new people and brings out the light in others. We truly are blessed to have him.