Our baby mutt has grown up and in less than 1 entire year he has managed to grow to the evenly round score of well -- 5 score! He's 100 POUNDS now. I would have thought, given his giant breed mixes, that he would have reached that weight and more by the time he was six or seven months, but alas, he's a smaller more petite St. Bernard/Dane/Husky mix. Must be the Husky that kept him in his minute tiny frame. (It was fun watching Caity lift him so he could be weighed)
When Caity and I went to the Noah's Ark Animal Shelter adoptathon in February 2009, I was a board member of the shelter -- that means one thing: I was almost required to adopt a puppy. I knew it was a duty really, but then again, adopting dogs has never really been a foreign idea to me or anyone else in my family. With Caity Baby, adopting another dog was almost as easily as breathing in her next breath...she just does it, and we expect it. My question was "Why did she have to pick the biggest puppy in the place?" He was absolutely huge but he was also absolutely undeniably adorable! Those big sad blue puppy eyes - blue! We were goners.
So, King Leonidas got his name easily enough - - being named for the actor Gerard Butler who played the King in the movie "300". Remember the eyes? He's pretty too, and our King was pretty, and big, and hairy - - just like Butler. At just under 8 weeks King was a floppy 16 pounds and as he lived in our house, eating all we could give him, he grew. It wasn't too long after his fourth month that we discovered he had specific allergies that caused his hair to fall out all over his body - - for a St. Bernard that could be rather embarrassing. It was determined that poor Mr. King could no longer consume human food - - he had to stay away from all wheat and/or grains completely until we narrowed it down. ENTER Precise Pet food. Oh, I love Liz Levine-Morken of Precise! She found King (and the others) the best food for his terrible case of the hairlessness backside. He's all healed up now, and really, he doesn't realize he's missing out on too much - - he can have cheese now, so he's good.
For a hundred pound dog you'd think he's be a bit more aggressive, and I shouldn't say this because all the bad-guys out there may try to get past his ferocious roar to come into our yard or home - - KING is a wussie-dog! Seriously, if the bad guys came in he'd greet them kindly and probably show them his lately chew-toy (my new shoe) and he'd take them on a tour of the house where they'd no doubt meet up with the real guard dog - YUKI, the Chihuahua mix; now that dog will tear your leg off one bite at a time! (I can just hear King saying "Oh c'mon Yuki, they're nice, let's just forgive them and play!") Nope, not a guard dog - - not a fighter yet. I'd say he's more like the lap dog you wish your 10 pound dog was, or the 2nd best farter in the house behind Laura. King couldn't be scary and tough if you paid someone to train him. If Caesar was to whisper to King he'd find out that King probably likes High School Musical, soft jazz and key lime pie....I mean, it's not a bad thing, but it was just so completely unexpected. You hear the words Gentle Giant and you now have a new face to put with those words - - King's big woolly bully face. I love the way his jowls slap around and make that flapping noise...he just looks at me when I do that.
At 11 months and a few days, Mr. King (or Kingston, Kingness, Kingly, Hey-Dog, and/or Big Dog)hasn't even learned to hike his leg yet to pee. We think it's because Yuki (11 pounds) told him he couldn't. We're pretty sure that's it, and he doesn't mind. He just obeys...just obeys...and looks at you with those pretty blue eyes. We're still goners for this guy. He's got us all exactly where he wants us, which for King is the OTHER side of the bed because he's taking up one half for sure. Oh, and he's not picky either, he'll kick any of us out of our beds without prejudice - - any one of us.
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