'The secret is plenty of love.' Greenwich dog celebrates milestone birthday with family
Tibby's dog dad said the secret to his longevity is exercise, plenty of love, and home-cooked food.
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A dog from Greenwich spent Thursday with his family, celebrating something special: his 18th birthday.
Tibby is a Boxer breed mixed with Bluetick Coonhound. The life expectancy for a Boxer breed is between 10 and 12 years.
"Five years ago, I was pretty sad because I was looking up how long a boxer will live. I thought my dog was going to pass away," said Ray Sotelo, Tibby's dog dad.
Sotelo is a dog trainer and master dog hiker, which is how he met Tibby. Sotelo trained Tibby over a decade ago, but his original owner no longer wanted him after he was trained, so Ray adopted Tibby into his family. The rest is history, and along the way, Sotelo found Benny, a dog who had been abused, and started caring for him, too. Benny is now 12.
Their typical day starts at home in Greenwich. They get ready and travel to Westchester County in New York to walk the trails at a park. Then, it's off to Grandma's house, while Sotelo goes to work.
"If you have the patience and the dedication, and a responsible owner, it's just so rewarding to have a dog. They teach you so much. You can learn more about life and people. Everything that a dog is, is a blessing to humans," Sotelo said.
For his birthday, it's a yearly tradition that Tibby receives a steak dinner alongside his family. Afterwards, they'll sing him the happy birthday song.
