We always wanted Gus to be a farm dog, he always wanted to be a farm dog. People have all sorts of ideas about small dogs, and many small dog owners were outraged that I dared to bring Gus into the pasture with the border collies, they warned me he would get cold, tired, overheated, stomped on or crushed.
None of these things happened, Gus was savvy and alert in the pasture, he moved when he needed to move and charmed when he needed to harm. One morning the sheep began moving towards the gate, where Maria was bringing in hay. Usually, the border collies stopped them, but Red and Fate were on the other side of the barn.
As the sheep moved towards Gus, he sat down and barked at them. The sheep, astonished at this little dog, halted and started. Gus didn’t budge, he looked quite proud of himself, and from that day on, he had no fear of the sheep, although they weren’t about to be herded by him either.
But this was no small accomplishment, and in his time with us, and until he got sick, Gus always came into the pasture, even in the cold snow. He just wanted to be a dog and be treated like a dog, not a doll, and that is what we wanted also.
Gus had a great spirit for such a little brat.
This is such a great photo, Jon. Such an iconic image of both the farm and of Gus, the farm dog. The composition is so balanced and “right” with the blocks of color – green in the background, red to the side, clay in the foreground – with the main focus being both the herd of multi-hued sheep, and the little big dog holding them there, and his shadow behind him giving him even more heft. Just awesome in its simplicity but it says a lot. Maybe this one should be for sale – for the Gus Fund? Just a thought.