Buff was born in Michigan in the cold month of November. He was only 7 weeks old when we brought him home. The potty training had to be done on the paper-padded floor inside the laundry room. He would receive joyful cheers and endless treats whenever he did his business. What we didn’t expect was that he refused to do business outside, even in the springtime. He just held it and ran back to the laundry room to unload his burden.

 

Buff was a year and a half older than my son. Basically, Buff was our firstborn son. We took him wherever we could - parks, friends’ houses, and parties. Buff enjoyed the car ride in my convertible with the top down. The fresh air combed through his hair. He pushed up and lengthened his chest, looking like a general cruising through a parade.  Before Buff turned to a terrible-two, we went with him to a week-long dog school to learn proper behaviors. We couldn't be more proud when he graduated with a diploma. 

 

 

When our son was born, we were concerned that Buff might feel threatened about his alpha dog rank. To our surprise, it turned out Buff was very protective and treated our son like his young brother. When starting to crawl, our son was obsessed with getting into Buff’s water and food bowls. Buff never had any dramatic reaction to our son. There were times when my husband pretended to be mad at our son; Buff would instantly get in between them and voiced his disapproval. 

 

Buff was smart. It was our family ritual to play hide-and-seek. Buff never failed to find the one that was hidden.   Buff loved the interaction with people. Ball fetching and tug-of-war were his favorite games. He liked to project his warm welcome by greeting people with shaking hands, which always impressed our guests. One trick we liked to show off in front of our guests was “Leave it and Okay.” Buff would sit still, and I placed a biscuit on the floor. Buff would stare at my eyes intently, ignoring the biscuit until he was given an Okay.   

 

 

Buff was adventurous. Because of my job, Buff made Trans-Pacific trips three times between U.S. and China. He quickly overcame the stress of the long journey and embraced the local life. In addition to English, he learned to understand the command words in Mandarin and Shanghainese. 

 

We lived in Shanghai for almost fourteen years. It was always in my mind to take Buff back to the US with us. When we were returning to the U.S., Buff couldn't walk sturdily and had not been able to recognize us for a couple of years. The vet didn’t think Buff would be able to make the long flights. My brother and my sister-in-law live in Shanghai, and they adopted Buff. Four months later, Buff passed away peacefully in his sleep, at age 15.

 

People who knew Buff often say Buff had a good life and he was lucky. Buff did have a good life with extraordinary experiences. But I feel we are the lucky ones. Buff had enriched our lives tremendously with his love and charm.