In 2007, she was found on the roof of a van in a supermarket parking lot and taken to a shelter. She was about one year old, fat and missing most of her fur when she was found. She also had a serious respiratory problem. After about a month of fostering by an agility friend of mine, Grem's fur had grown back. She had been nursed back to health and lost some weight. Her foster mom emailed me a photo and story and asked if I was interested in her. I wasn't really looking for another dog but she was really my type (small, long legs, smooth coat, etc.). So, I went to meet her. She got along fine with my other dogs and that was that. Grem's foster mom had named her "Olive" but that was too girlie for me. I'm not fond of human, gender-specific names for dogs. Based on her mischievous personality and size, the name Gremlin seemed more appropriate.

I did a fair amount of agility training with her but decided not to compete with her. I just didn't have the time or money since the dogs and I traveled so much at that point. My focus had shifted from agility to my website (RoadsideArchitecture.com). This video from 2010 shows us at a training session in Staten Island, NY.

Grem was always been great with other dogs and people of all ages. She was a quick learner and knew many tricks. She snored when she slept and would eat anything. In her youth, she was obsessed with hunting rodents and lizards. I had to be careful with her off-leash outdoors since she would take off and run for miles with apparently no concern for my whereabouts. When I adopted her, I thought she would be a Chihuahua-like lap dog but she was nothing like that. Grem was my smallest dog but she was huge on personality. Before she went deaf at about 16, she was a barking maniac. In her youth, she had more confidence than any dog that I've ever owned. She would take on a bear. She was the last of my dogs that lived in New York City with me. She had been in 48 states, multiple times, and saw it all. She had a great life and it was a joy to know her.