PINEDALE — What do you get when you mix a border collie and a golden retriever?

You get the best dog there is, who helps you with the hardware store, who herds roosters, who stands upside down and with his head upright.

His name is Coop and he has the door greeter position at the A to Z Hardware Store in Pinedale all lined up, so don’t even think about applying. The position has already been filled.

Coop is not an abbreviation of anything, nor is it a nickname.

“I wanted something simple, you know?” Coop owner Trish Grove told Cowboy State Daily. “Something that would be easy for the kids, because I have a lot of grandkids and he’s very attached to all of them.”

Coop likes children so much that he often follows them from the hardware store all the way to the local library, which is less than a mile away.

“I looked up one day and he was nowhere to be found,” Grove said. “I almost had a heart attack. Turns out he had followed some kids to the library, and they were all sitting there reading a book.”

Can I take that package for you?

Grove has since given him a brand new collar, one that not only has his name in big letters, but her name and phone number as well. No more spontaneous outings.

Coop is fine with that, because there’s only one thing he likes more than running around with kids: going with Grove to work at A to Z Hardware Store, where Grove is the store manager.

“He is lost on the days he can’t come to work because I am off,” she added.

Unless of course they’re outside. Coop knows exactly what to do when he sees that mean old rooster running around trying to chase Grove.

“Coop would never hurt him, but he’s my protector,” Grove said.

So if the rooster gets too close, he gently chases him away.

At work, Grove has taught Coop a few tricks. He takes empty boxes from the front of the store to the back. He picks up trash from the store and brings it to the front to be thrown away.

But everyone’s favorite trick is when he brings small packages to the counter for customers.

“He picked it up on his own to some extent,” Grove said. “I mean, I encouraged it, but he caught on really quickly.”

If customers don’t immediately notice, Coop gives them a gentle nudge to let them know he’s there and ready to get to work.

Once he has a package in his mouth, he immediately runs to the counter with it. He stands on both hind legs to place the package on the counter for the cashier to carry.

Then he walks past the cash register for the expected Scooby snack.

“There’s just a few people that don’t understand what he’s trying to do,” Grove said. “But they generally do and they like him. Especially because we have a lot of repeat customers. And it’s a small town, so we have a lot of repeat customers and word of mouth has definitely spread around town.”

Puppy love

Grove has been the manager of the A to Z Hardware Store in Pinedale for 23 years, and she says dogs have been in the store for as long as she can remember.

The owner had a couple of dogs that stayed in the back of the store, just like her. After her dogs passed away, she decided her next pet should have a job in the store, instead of just hanging around.

She discovered Coop through a Facebook message from a woman from Afton.

“She posted a picture of him on Facebook,” Grove said, scrolling down her phone to a photo of Coop as a puppy. “See that face? How could you pass that face up? So I said I would.”

Grove’s daughter happened to have an errand in Afton, so she picked up Coop and brought him home. He’s been entertaining everyone ever since — and Grove has all the videos to prove it.

There are videos of him as a puppy carrying boxes backwards. There are videos of him chasing caterpillars. And there are videos of him in strange poses.

Like that time he stood on his head, chewed on one leg and wagged his tail high in the air.

But someone off-camera called his name and he immediately straightened up, as if no one had seen his crazy pose, his ears pricked.

“He’s a loser,” Grove said. “He thinks he’s a lap dog, but he’s too big. When I sit in my chair, he literally lays on my legs like he’s some kind of lap dog. But, man, you’re too big.”

That’s what you get when you mix a border collie and a golden retriever.

An irresistible, loving dog who will tempt anyone he meets with a treat or a belly rub – or both – as long as he can wag his tail.

Renee Jean can be reached at [email protected].