Country Garden was blessed with being a benefactor with a $500 gift card for pet food and products to the grand prize winner and another $500 in other awards for all the runners up.
The 2018 winner is Sammy, of Harwich! Sammy is a Golden Retriever, who for the very first time took a swim in the ocean during the event.
Here is the interview we had with his mom, Jacquie Tarbell:
How old is Sammy?
Sammy is 2 and a half years old.
What town do you live in?
We live in Harwich.
Has he been blind his whole life?
He was born with round worm (poor breading). He was sold to a young couple who noticed something wrong with his eyes. They “returned” him to the breeder who took him to a vet to be put down. The Vet called my friend who runs
petswithdisabilities.org
for help. She rescued him and took him to her specialist. The specialist said it was the worst case of worms she had seen. They detached the retina from the eye. They dewormed him and took out his eyes and we are the lucky ones who he chose! As a side note, Pets With Disabilities is run by our good friends in Maryland and we always told her if you get a Golden, he’s ours. We rescued him sight unseen!
Does he have fur brothers and sisters?
Sammy has a fur brother and sister – also rescues. Coon hound mixes.
What is his favorite activity? Treat?
His favorite activity is exploring outside the gate in the back yard. He loves to explore. As a Golden, he loves all treats, but his favorite is carrots! They all go crazy as soon as they hear me pealing the carrots. No joke.
And, is it true, he has never been in water before? even a pool, or a lake?
100% true. We live within walking distance to the lake but he’s never wanted to go in, but when he hit Cape Cod sound and he loved it!
We asked if it was OK to use Jacquie's name and this was here response:
To see Sammy enjoying his swim, click on the video below.