Nordy Murphy

Sir Winston Livingston Nordstrom III, known to his friends as Nordy, was born on September 15, 1992. Although he had several champions and grand champions in his pedigree, Nordy was the "runt" of the litter, and took several years to grow to his current weight of 13 lbs.

Nordy was a Christmas gift to his then-single mom Vikki. But four years ago his mom married Mark Murphy who is now the Mayor of Orange. Nordy LOVES his new dad (maybe even more than his mom); and now his friends have taken to calling him FIDO (short for First Dog of Orange). He says the best thing about being First Dog of Orange is getting to ride in parades and attend community events where he is always petted and hugged.

Another great thing about living in Orange is that his grandparents, Lois and Paul, (Mark's parents) also live in Orange; and they love to baby-sit. Grandpa Paul doesn't like for Nordy to have to spend any time alone - so if Mark and Vikki are going to be gone for more than a few hours, Grandpa or Grandma picks Nordy up and takes him to their house in Mabury Ranch for the day. And, of course, Nordy never needs to stay in a kennel when his parents are out of town - Lois and Paul are more than happy to adopt him for several days or a week until Mark and Vikki return.

Orange Park Acres is Nordy's home; and he enjoys watching all the wildlife through his picture window: raccoons, opossums, lots of birds, and even a coyote or two. The one visitor he doesn't seem to like, however, is Mr. Squirrel. Nordy rarely barks; but if Mr. Squirrel tries to join the birds at the feeder, Nordy barks like crazy until he runs back to his tree.

Nordy has in interesting talent that no one believes until they've actually seen it. Aside from the usual skills of sitting, speaking, rolling over and begging, he has developed a unique one all his own. He will gather up all his toys and arrange them in rows. Sometimes it's in a semicircle around a large plant, or more often in a sort of "conga line" - lined up against each other, all facing forward. He hasn't yet divulged his precise purpose in this project; but he does it with enough regularity for his mom and dad to know it's intentional.

Fortunately, Nordy's health is excellent; so his only visits to the Orange Villa Vet Hospital have been his regular check-ups, shots and an occasional upset stomach. He especially loves Dr. Dahlem; and all the employees spoil him when he visits. Brittany is another shih tzu that visits Orange Villa; and Nordy always try to visit the groomer on the same day as Brittany so they can spend some time together. Nordy wants to thank all the doctors and staff of Orange Villa for taking such good care of him over the years.