[inglor]

Whose got what? Tell us a little about your four legged family members

Mine:
12 year old Golden named Hunter the Four Legged Rug. Sweet well mannered dog, especially since he was raised by a push over...
Hunter was my wife's before we got married so that is her baby. smart as a whip but would rather lay on the floor. Gets on the couch when we are not there and tries to sneak down when we get back. I always know when he has been on the couch... he is sitting by the door trying to not look guilty, a quick check usually finds the couch still warm...

Wife wanted another dog, she wanted a King Charles Cavelier Spaniel, I wanted a hunting dog. We compromised and got a Boykin Spaniel http://www.boykinspanielclub.org/ Boykins are small enough to get into your lap and painfully cute but are natural retrievers so we got the best of both worlds. Bailey is now 1.5 years old, she also answers to Biscuits, BooBoo, and Bailey Beans. She, on the other hand, is my dog, sleeps in the bed, goes to the hunting camp with me, rides around in the cab of the truck with me, answers to me, follows me to the guest room when I snore too loud. However, shedding is driving wife crazy, we have white tile floors...
Best dog I have ever been around, haven't tried to train too much and she still has good manners. Was retrieving at 8 weeks. She had seizures after her 6 month shots and we were afraid we would have to put her down. We took her to the Auburn Vet School and they couldn't find anything wrong ($1000 later). Put her on medication and she has been fine since.

Bailey can clear a 4 ft. fence but just runs around to the front door and scratches. Hunter on the other hand will run if he has the chance, though he is too old and slow to try it now.

Hunter didn't like Bailey at first and we were worried about them but he gradually warmed up to her and now they entertain our 6 month old daughter when they play.

Both dogs have been good with our daughter, at least no problems. Hunter just ignores her, but Bailey likes to lick her feet when she is in the high chair, much to our daughter's enjoyment

Inglor

[Yavanie]

Shadow Underfoot ('cause that's where he always is).

A black lab we got from a group that rescues labs from animal shelters and finds homes for them. Like adopting a child, we got interviewed and they came out and inspected the house/yard and quizzed us about dogs we'd owned and what we thought we were getting into.

Anyway, we got him for the kids but he's MY dog. After all, he knows who sets aside the goodies for the kids to put in his dinner, who walks him, bathes him and talks to him. The kids do feed him, clean up the yard after him and play with him. He does sleep with me (haven't had cold toes since he came to live with us). We knew he was the right dog when my then 9 month old crawled right over him and he just licked the child's ears. Now he is the official baby face cleaner after (and sometimes during) meals. He also makes sure no food hits the floor when I am cooking. I don't ever have to look for him but I do have to look where I step, always under MY feet. Anyway, he has us well trained. He was almost a year old when we got him and that was just over a year ago. Didn't even have to house train him, but did have to insist that he bark to go out (not just sit at the back door looking pitiful). I think his previous owner must have beat him or something for barking too much. Well, he got over that REAL quick (he doesn't really bark much, just to go out and when it's time to EAT!).

I always said when we got a dog it would be female so I wouldn't be so outnumbered, but alas, I am still the only female in this house, if they would only see me as QUEEN instead of MAID.

[artanisoflorien]

Yay! A string about dogs. I was thinking of starting one myself. After all, the cat-lovers had theirs, right?

I have an Alaskan Malamute, female. Her name is Juneau. Until last month, I had two, Juneau, and a male named Viking. We had to have him put down though. He was 13 years old, and had endured a lot a weird health problems throughout his life. His hips finally went out on him though, and there wasn't a whole lot that could be done for him. He was in a lot of pain, and my husband and I just couldn't see keeping him alive and doped up just to make us feel better.

Both of those dogs have been wonderful pets. My husband and I got them the first year we were married, so for many years, they were our children. Malamutes are absolutely beautiful…they look very much like wolves. And they are sweet dogs. A little high-spirited and stubborn, but smart and good-natured. They are HUGE dogs though. Before he started failing, Viking weighed nearly 110 lbs and his shoulder came up to my waist. They're sled dogs, which means they have a natural instinct to pull on any lead. So walking them was always an adventure. I could tell about the time I was dragged on my stomach all the way across our yard but that's another long story.

[Amlee]

Baylee Boy aka Hoover

He's daddy is German Shepard and his mother is Peckanies(sp). I will put a picture of him later. But he has the coloring of the shepard and the size of his mama.

But! He thinks he is ten foot tall and bullet proof.

[Andreth]

I've got three Goldens and our male, Max Dog is by far the best dog I've ever had. People come out to look at the puppies and the minute Max comes trotting around the corner of the house, they're sold. They want a puppy. He's five now and usually moonlights as a footrest underneath my desk. He also plays centerfield for my sons when they're practicing baseball. They'll hit the ball and he'll fetch it and bring it back to them.

Our female Katie is one of those devious-smart dogs. We tell her not to do something and she'll usually try at least one alternative method before giving up completely. She's also completely disgusting in so far as dragging up dead things. My husband keeps telling me this is because she's from a field trial line and is what makes her a good hunting dog. I still say she's just a disgusting dog. Last hunting season she drug up an entire deer head. I walked outside with the kids to catch the school bus and it was like a scene from The Godfather. And 8-point buck's head, horns and all, sitting on our front porch. None of my neighbor's laid claim to it though. Still have no idea where she found it at.

Our third dog, Stubby, is one of Max and Katie's puppies. She was born with a birth defect, missing her front left paw. A lot of breeders will put puppies like that down at birth, but we had her tested and x-rayed, etc. and our vet gave her a clean bill of health except for the paw. So we kept her. She's the sweetest natured dog we've ever had, which almost makes up for the fact that she's spoiled rotten and completely useless. I called her Stubby as a joke when she was born and it just stuck - poor girl. We had a prosthetic leg made for her and I've spent the last year trying to get her to keep it on. We just had to have a new one made for her since she's grown so much in the last year and I think she hates this new leg even more than the old one. She prefers hobbling around with three legs instead and she's actually pretty fast once she gets her momentum going.

[Moralanqua]

Jack russel names Angus aka Bumfluff and a Rottweiler pupster named Kara Mia. Odd pairing but it works. They belong to my folks. Afrocat scares both of them.

[BittenBuggy]

Well dang, its about time we had a doggie thread!

I've always had dogs, generally lots of them. Right now, I have 6, 5 of which are back in England with my brother in law.

Romeo - He is our megamutt. You can't tell for the life of you what he is, but it sure is a pretty boy! He has hip displasia (sp?) so he hobbles about pretty much on his two front feet. He is one of the smartest dogs I've ever had. When he was a puppy he used to open the lower cabinets of my kitchen and pull out the peanut butter jaws, unscrew them (without creating teeth marks) and eat all the peanut butter. We had to finally start putting rubberbands around the cabinet knobs to keep him out. He's the second smallest of our 5 in England, nearing 160 pounds.

Daisy - She is a GIANT lab/Dobie mix. Well, I say giant for her breeds. She is about 145 (our smallest) and she's a beautiful chocolate color. She has that lovely slim grace of a Dobie and then the color and eyes of a lab. She's a purty girlie! She is also extremely refined. She is one of those animals you can coo at, and then she'll look at you like you're an idiot.

Bailey - He is a Newfoundland mix. He is the sweetest dog ever - though he lives in mortal fear of men. We got him when he was a year old and he had been badly beaten, somebody had carved their initials into his side and cut off most of his ear with scissors. So, he hates bald men (especially) and baseball caps. And occassionally he'll get freaked by my camis if its dark. He's 198 pounds of dog, and has quite an imposing bark - but he runs under the bed peeing every time he gets scared.

Ranger - He's our biggest (at 233 pounds - total muscle on this Swiss Mountain Dog/Newfoundland mix) and our alpha-dog among the animals. He is VERY protective, especially of our kids. He used to stand over my daughter's car seat when I put it in the front yard so I could work, and everytime somebody would pass by, he looked like he would eat their faces off.

Lily - She is a complete brat! Also a Newfoundland (mix - again)She'll do what you ask her to, but she makes sure that you know she hates it. But she's the only one who will cuddle with you, all 200 pounds of her, when you're not feeling well or are upset about something. She is very intuned with people and emotion. But still a brat!

Petal - She is our newest addition. We foster dogs as well as have our own, and I just couldn't pass her up! She was picked up on an interstate on the border of Georgia and South Carolina. She is a wee Pittbull, only about 25 pounds right now. (But getting bigger) She was three weeks old then the clinic gave her to us to take care of and we decided to keep her after about 2 months. She is the cutest thing in the world. And she has a ton of 'personaility' She is very independant and hates to be picked up. She wants to be a big girl all the time. By far, mommy's favorite - though dont tell the other dogs that

[Viv]

The hubby and are are the registered property of two very superior chihuahuas, Louis (the sun king) and Xena (the warrior princess). They treat us well most of the time, so long as we behave properly and see to their every whim.

[Aerin]

My favorite dog was a yellow lab named Molly. She was my favorite and only person that I could talk to when I got dumped by my boyfriend...(only happened twice) but, she was the best. we would go for walks, and she would sit in the passanger seat of my 'stang, and stick her head out the window....I loved her. Someday, when I have a huge farm, I am going to have a bunch of dogs just like her! Right now, my flat is no place for a big dog...

[estellabrandybuck]

I have a Shetland Sheepdog named Fluffin that I've had since she was a puppy. She's very sweet and surprisingly gets along well with my two cats...go figure.

[Sorcia]

Currently Labradors only, had a Cocker Spanial when I was a kid. Right now I have six dogs here at the house with me and a few others with co-owners. Guess the litter due this weekend will bump up the numbers(cough). Besides the 'shedding'(and I think the yellows do more so than the blks) they really great all round dogs. No fuss, no muss and have stomachs like steel traps
Inglor-a Boykin...wow, thats certainly different
Yavanie-thanks for giving a homeless Lab a second start. If people didn't backyard breed, we wouldn't need rescues but unfortunatley we do need them.
Please, everyone-spay or neuter your pet dogs...they don't need to make babies(the pounds are full of unwanted dogs(and cats).
Cheers

[DreadLadyFreya]

Currently we have one fur-child (as opposed to our two human children), our dear Sam-not-so-Wise (aka Sami, SamSam, or Sami-NO!) As far as we can tell she's Black Lab, Dalmation, Cocker Spaniel and Pit Bull. Get's her coloring from her Lab & Dalmation genes - black w/ a black spotted white chest & tummy - she's roughly the size of a Cocker, with the head & chest of a Pit Bull. Yeah, an "interesting" combination! We got her from a local shelter. One look at her at and I was lost. While all the other dogs were barking and jumping around in their kennels, she just leaned up against the gate with this look that said, "Love me! Please?" She is the sweetest, gentlest dog I've ever had. She's wonderful with our boys, and SO patient! My two-year-old thinks she's a pony and tries to ride her on a fairly regular basis, she'll stand there for a while and when she gets tired of it she'll just walk away or sit down. This, of course, makes baby slide down onto his bottom which starts a whole 'nother "game."

Up until recently we had another dog, a Beagle, named Frodo (yes, Frodo and Sam, we did that on purpose *LOTR geek alert!*, and, for the record, before the movies were even a twinkle in PJ's eye ). He wasn't quite a "polar" opposite to Sami, but he was quite the prima donna, and stubborn! Of course, that's what makes Beagles such good hunting dogs, their tenacity. Let's just say it was a good thing he was cute, that (and the fact his birthday was our wedding anniversary) was what kept him around! Unfortunately, he fell terminally ill at a rather young age (8 yrs old), and set sail for the Undying Lands (aka doggy heaven). Whoa! Sorry to end on a downer. As our 5-year-old says, "It's okay, we still have Sami!" (Ah, to be that innocent and see things in such simple terms.)

[FairlightMuse]

Tim and I have an Irish Wolfhound named Bradamante, who is the most excellent guard dog. I have a pitbull, called Jack-Daniels, ( he came with that name!) who hates Tim, but loves Bradamante. Bradamante we actually went shopping for. It took us a year to find a registered wolfhound with the perfect color.
Jack was a gift from my brother, who was getting married and found out that Jack didn't like his fiancee!

[NancyBrooke]

God I love dogs - the little ones who think they rule the world and the enormous ones who are so easy going they might as well be drooling rugs.

Boykin spaniel, that's a new one on me. Sounds like we have similar tastes, Inglor. And like the other retriever owners out there mine, (a flat-coat = http://www.fcrsainc.org/) is part rug, part guard, and all love. My husband says she has four brain cells - sleep, retrieve, eat, love.

We wanted a flat coat for their temperment primarily - lovey and calm like a Golden but a little more active - though less than a Lab. She's been fantastic, and, at 11, takes a lot of abuse from the toddler good-naturedly, poor dear.

She's a great girl.

My parents have a Cardigan Welsh Corgi - what a character he is! Great dog; good for anyone who wants a smallish dog with a big dog personality. And very playful and charming.

[inglor]

Nancy , we sure do have similar tastes. I tried to talk my wife into a Flat Coat, but we settled on the Boykin. Boykins are a little more common here and there happened to be two litters when we were looking. Though they are still uncommon

Boykins are a Southern dog, breed was founded in Camden, South Carolina as a duck retriever that wouldn't tip the boat. I described them as a shorter, stockier all brown Springer Spaniel but larger than a Cocker

If we ever got a divorce (God Forbid), wife could rake me over the coals for that dog, I might have to walk, but I'd keep the dog

Inglor