Kato was my first Eskie, my first obedience competition dog, and my first show dog.  Needless to say, he was very special to me.  He taught me so much, and I was lucky to be loved by him.  Not knowing any better, I bought him from a pet store, and unfortunately he had a lot of problems which stemmed from that young experience.  However, we worked through things over the years, and we came to understand one another.  He also had a multitude of health problems, so its a good thing I never bred him.  I know he came from a puppy mill or backyard breeder, as his UKC PAD Pedigree showed his mother had 55 puppies, his grandmother 42, his sire 214 and his grandsire 268, by the time Kato was 6 months old.  This upset me very much, but Kato was the dog who nurtured my love and understanding of American Eskimos.  He is the reason I fell in love with this breed and became so involved with them.  And he was the one who always knew how I was feeling, and how to make me laugh.  He was my goofus clown dog who made up his own games, could never get or give enough attention, and adored puppies and children.  He was a very good boy, and he was loved so very much.  He will never be forgotten, and I will always be grateful for what he taught me by loving life so freely and loving me so completely.

~*~