At just two-and-a-half years old, Calgary rescue dog Milo already has thousands of fans around the world — and once you’ve seen him in action, you may just become one too.
“He’ll grab you a bottle of Coke out of the refrigerator. He’ll climb a tree. He’ll jump over a fence,” said his owner Jessica Gardiner on Friday.
That’s just the beginning of the long list of tricks the Border Collie Australian Shepherd has already mastered.
Milo knows 95 tricks and counting.
Gardiner started posting videos of her talented pup and his smart older sister, Shadow, on various social media platforms like Reddit, TikTok and Instagram, and they have garnered hundreds of thousands of views.
“We’ve had, oh gosh, I think over 80 viral videos now,” Gardiner said.
She isn’t doing it for the internet acclaim but to share a little love and some smiles during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I figure they give me so much joy, why not share a little bit of that with some people that are going through some very difficult and uncertain times right now?” she said.
Gardiner’s journey as a dog trainer started in 2016 when she rescued Shadow, who is now five years old. Shadow helped her make it through one of the toughest times in her life.
“I’d actually got her for a very special reason,” she said. “I’d actually lost my son at 35 weeks into my pregnancy and it was really, really hard on us, and I remember turning to my husband and saying I needed something to cope.”
Gardiner rescued Milo about a year and a half ago and works with him about two hours a day. He learns new tricks and perfects the old ones.
Gardiner’s daughter and son have already taken a page out of mom’s training book.
In the last few weeks, the Gardiner family expanded by another four legs, and this latest addition to the household is sure to garner even more internet love.
Meet Anakin: