Percy loves balls.
He loves snoofing out lost balls, befriending them and bringing them home to be one of the family. He does that around three times a week. Which is why we ended up with an over flowing box which, when I counted contained 107 in various colours, textures and stages of life. (It turned out that there were actually 110; Percy had stashed a few, presumably knowing this day was coming.
We did this:
Yes, we popped them in a box and took them to the nature reserve so that we could share the ball love. I posted on the local dog owners facebook page so people knew they were there and to help themselves.
The next day, Percy discovered his ball stash and was not a happy pup:
We had to let him choose one to bring back.
Two days later they were all gone.
And I thought that was the end of the story, but this has had two side effects:
- This is the most popular post on that particular Facebook group that I’ve ever seen…
- Pretty much all the local dog walkers now know Percy and greet him, asking how many balls he’s found this week, how many are piling up back at home or just telling him what a good boy he is.
And that makes me and him smile :o)
the pog blog 
What a heartwarming story! It’s so lovely to see how much joy Percy brings to the local community and how his ball collecting antics have made him a bit of a celebrity. It’s also great to see how you were able to share the ball love with others by leaving them out for people to take. It’s amazing how simple acts of kindness can bring people together and create a sense of community. It’s clear that Percy has a special talent for making people smile and I’m sure he’s loving all the attention he’s getting now. Keep spreading the ball love, Percy!
That’s such a lovely comment to leave – thank you! Percy’s objective in life seems to be to make people smile so I know we will be taking another box up at some point (we already have quite a collection!). What I’ve loved is that it’s started conversations with people – I think we’re a bit rubbish at that these days so pups and their humans have benefitted :o)