Kestra's little dog is impossibly adorable. Several dozen federal cuteness laws have just been broken and I'm going to have to call the authorities to put a stop to this.
This is our 5-year-old Golden Retriever, Marley. My younger son, pictured, named our Marley after Bob Marley (the boy has taste ). Marley weighs about 100lbs. He's a bit overweight, but a lot of that weight is due to being big for his breed. As you can imagine, he's the biggest, dopiest softie imaginable. He was also a complete and utter spaz for the first four years. To this day we don't let him off the lead/leash in public because he has no recall; he's far too busy wanting to make friends with every person and other animal he meets. This photo is about two years old.
I actually considered a Trek name at first, but decided to name her after my late parents. My mom went by her middle name Kay ("K") and my dad was widely known as Jim ("J"). It's a way to help honor their memory. They both loved beagles and my dad owned some when he was a kid. It would have been a Trek name otherwise.
Handsome guy! I'm mostly a cat person, but I love German Shepards. If I can get my scanner working again, I'll post pictures of the two I've had.
Congratulations. You have worsened my diabetes. I have an overwhelming urge to scrunch up Marley's face and say "Hey widdle fella! That's a good fella! Yes he is! Oh yes he is!" Then kiss him on the forehead, right in the middle, and then bury my face in his chest fur and make "rawr rawr" sounds.
Olivia the Wonderdog is a Mexican rescue. We call her a Mexican Crab Hound because she runs a little bit sideways, with her hind legs about 6" out of alignment with her front.
My "niece", Giada. She's my sister's dog, a Cane Corso (an Italian type of Mastiff). She's almost three, but still acts like a puppy!
My Sonnet: Sonnet was rescued from a puppy mill. She was pregnant when the rescue got her, and in their words, "just a little blob." She wouldn't move or react when people loved on her or talked sweet to her. She had 6 puppies and was a great little mama, and then they spayed her and put her up for adoption. At the time I was looking for my first dog. I wanted a shelter or rescue dog that was low-energy, and after months of looking, Sonnet seemed to fit the bill. She is awesome - I love her dearly. Since she came from a mill, I don't really know how old she is. We guessed about 3 when she was rescued, and I've had her 4.5 years now, so I guess at 7.5.
Here is Laika right after we rescued her from the pound. She's a border collie mix with some type of bird dog in her, I think lab because she will go on point when she sees a squirrel or bird in the yard. After playing ball with my oldest, they were both worn out. He taught her to play hide and seek. He tells her to sit and wait, goes and hides, and then yells " that will do!" which is her release phrase. She then tears around the house and finds him and proceeds to lick his face off.
Here's my Sammy boy: He was a bit of a handful as a puppy, and doesn't always get along with other dogs, but he's pretty well behaved in general. Of course since he's a Jack Russell he loves to jump, it's a problem when people come to visit. He's our family's third dog, and second Jack Russell. They have such personality and spirit they're hard to resist.
so many adorable dogs! *melts away* Jumping is a problem not restricted to Jack Russels. When I was a student we had 4 German Shepherds who - being sheepdogs - were overjoyed when I visited my family and their whole "herd of humans" was together again. Can you imagine the onslaught of 4 fully grown dogs (about 75 lbs each) with your hands full with a duffle bag and a transport box with 3 pet rats? Thank heaven we have a very sturdy fence to lean against! Pasha jumps, too, in spite of having arthrosis. He's incredibly skinny under all this fur but as he's extremely tall he weighs about 90 lbs. As much as I've tried, I can't get him to remember that he shouldn't jump at me (particularly when he has muddy paws). he always forgets his education when he is excited.
Hee, our oversized Marley was a jumper, and seeing as he was at his full size at about 8 months old, this was a problem. He only jumps nowadays if he completely loses it, and that's becoming increasingly rare. He doesn't mean any harm, but he forgets his size. For people who aren't dog lovers, seeing 100lb of fur, drool and muscle running towards them can be a bit disconcerting.