| Blou, a blue eyed Border Collie, spent several years living with a young city couple before moving to a farm in Ellicottville, NY where he worked for a short time. Because Blou hadn't had formal herding training like the other Border Collies there, he decided that farm life wasn't for him. He ran away and turned up on the doorstep of a ski house belonging to a lady from Cleveland. Rather than take Blou back to Cleveland with her, she dropped him off at the Monti Gallery to see if someone there could locate his owner. Blou was warmly welcomed by the Marketplace merchants and seemed to enjoy spending time there. He met new people everyday and his big blue eyes and warm disposition quickly won the hearts of locals and visitors to town. When his former owner was located, he said that he had been looking for a good home for Blou and would be happy to give him up to someone who would take good care of him. The rest, as they say, is history. Blou found a new home at the Gallery and has spent the last two years in the Marketplace brightening the day for everyone who meets him. In fact he became so popular that the gallery owner kept a supply of pictures of Blou on hand to give to all of his admirers. When he learned of the Pet Emergency Fund, the owner decided to print the pictures on a line of note and greeting cards which would be sold rather than given away with 100% of the proceeds to be donated to the PEF. Blou raised and donated $1000.00 during the first month of sales and became the spokesdog for the fund. Proud to be a mascot, Blou continues to sell his notecards through Code Blou which has donated over $5000.00 to the Emergency Fund in just over a year. Blou has made several TV appearances for the Fund and has been featured in numerous articles in area newspapers and magazines. |
