Boris Zilberman’s friend was traveling overseas and left his Boston terrier behind in Boris’ care. Pretty quickly Boris fell in love with the breed.

So a year later when the friend returned and Boris decided to look for a dog of his own, he realized the Boston terrier’s characteristics were exactly what he was looking for. Size-wise, the breed was small enough for his studio apartment and Bostons have short hair, so shedding would be a minimal issue.

“I was looking for Boston terrier with a traditional look,” says Boris. That means a mostly black dog with white fur on his muzzle, between its eyes and on his chest and neck. It almost looks as if the little dog is perpetually wearing a tuxedo, hence the nickname “The American gentleman.”

Boris did a lot of research to find a reputable breeder and finally settled on one in Unionville. With Unionville being near numerous Civil War battlefields, Boris wanted to choose a historical name for his dog. He chose “Mosby” after John S. Mosby—a Virginian and colonel in the Confederate army who later served in President Grant’s administration.

Mosby seems to have developed some of the fearlessness of his namesake, playing with dogs of all sizes at the dog park. Though Mosby weighs less than 20 pounds “he thinks he’s huge,” says Boris. “He will take on anybody.”

As a result, trips to Simpson Stadium Dog Park often end with the need for a bath. “He usually ends up doing most of the rolling if he is running with the big dogs.”

Mosby has what Boris calls a “torpedo move” he uses as he plays, running directly at another dog and then leaping in to the air. Usually it just ends up with Mosby in the dirt, but one time when he jumped toward a large black lab the results looked and sounded disastrous.

The whole park heard the thud.

“It was like a wide receiver running across the middle of the field and getting hit by a big linebacker,” Boris said.

But Mosby popped right back up and started running around again as if nothing had happened.

Boston terrier’s are known for getting overheated quickly so Boris has to limit Mosby’s playtime during the summer. Especially since Mosby would likely never stop playing even as he’s panting away in the heat.

Most days Boris just takes Mosby for short walks. Mosby stays focused during the colder months, doing his business quickly so he can get back into the warm apartment. But in the spring and summer when the squirrels come back out, Mosby enjoys chasing them as far as the leash will let him.

“His main goal in life is to play,” says Boris.

So Mosby also spends a lot of time in the apartment playing fetch, chasing his toys down the hallway in the apartment. His long back legs give him power and he covers a lot of ground very quickly. He also jumps high and can leap far, which makes Boris wonder how Mosby would do in an agility class.

Though Mosby is only a year old he has been a quick learner and has not caused any major problems in his house like puppies are known to do. He has never taken an official training course but Boris worked with Mosby on clicker training early on. Now Mosby knows most of his commands like sit, stay, shake and “bang bang” (which usually results in him just laying down rather than playing dead).

He also isn’t much of a barker, only using his voice during play time or when he senses danger around the apartment. He will also whimper when he wants his food, but this is only a last resort if Boris has ignored all of Mosby’s other attempts to remind him that it is dinner time.

When it’s not play time “Mosby is a really chill dog,” says Boris. He will lounge on the couch, often digging at his blanket and wrapping himself up in a little cave. Then when he gets up, Mosby does what Boris calls “his old man routine,” yawning and stretching as he gets himself ready to play again.

Though Boris has thoughts of one day getting a buddy to keep Mosby company, the two of them couldn’t be happier together right now, playing every chance they get.

If you have a dog you would like to nominate as Del Ray Dog of the Week e-mail me at adam@voteprime.com (Nominations of your own dog are encouraged).