I should start by unequivocally stating that 'missing Kona' does not imply that I am considering replacing Kona! But, yes, I have to concede that Kona was a great dog. When I came across this photo of Webb putting socks on Kona, it did make me quite nostalgic.
Our first dog, Torrey, also turned out to be a winner of a family pet only that was after 2 intense years of surviving Torrey's puppy stages. But Kona was pretty great from the get-go.
Australian Shepherds are known as a very smart breed and I always thought Kona was a little too smart for our crew of amateurs. We flew by the seat of our pants in our knowledge and acumen as pet owners.
The 'dog experts' were actually our neighbors and I think they liked Kona more than they liked us! In truth, Kona may have saved the neighbors from procuring their own family pet since Kona was around to entertain their kids. I'm not sure if I bought their line about being on a waiting list for Bernese mountain dogs! 10 years later and that is one long waiting list!
But, back to Kona: Kona was steadfast. You could count on Kona. Her temperament was generally always good spirited. In fact, it was so unlike Kona to not happily greet us that her lethargy was the first clue something was wrong. Yes, Kona you are missed by a someone who isn't really into the whole pet drill. And that is saying A LOT!
