Nancy Young wrote:

> I know I already said this, my neighbor's kid brought one home, well
> if this isn't the friggin sweetest dog you ever met (okay, unless you had
> met mine, Rascal the wire haired fox terrier) ... oh, what a doll face.
> If I dare to get another dog some day, I'll SERIOUSLY consider a
> boxer, even though they are bigger than I like. Nice nice dogs.

I had Labs most of my life and always liked their friendly playful nature.
The first dog I got after I was married was a Bouvier des Flandres, a gentle
loving dog that was very protective of my wife and our young baby. She was a
bright and obedient dog, but that long hair was a challenge. We went back to
Labs. When the last Lab was hit by a car we picked up a mutt at the pound,
the most interesting looking mutt I ever say. He is half Shepherd and half
Bouvier. It's a pity that he never inherited the traits commonly associated
with those breeds, like loyalty, intelligence and obedience. The poor guy
came from an abusive background and it has taken 4 years to to overcome some
of his trust issues, but he has become quite affectionate, not that he wasn't
always friendly.

A few years ago we were contacted by a friend who was helping a friend who
was looking for a home for a neighbour's dog. The owner was a young guy who
had a business that he ran out of his house. He had a 2 year old and a new
born and a wife that was depressed enough to have to be hospitalized. The
dog was messing up because of neglect and need for attention. They brought
him down to see if we qualified as foster parents for this dog. He is a
Groenendahl (Belgium Sheep Dog). We fell in love with this guy, and he with
us. He got along great with the current mutt and with the neighbour's three
dogs, all of whom run free around here, but he quickly established himself as
the Alpha male. This dog is so bright that he scares me. He seems to know
what I am doing and where I am going before I know. He was well trained when
we got him. He slips up once in a while but a quick refresher to course and
he is right back to form. We have the hair issue with him too, but I it's
worth the time and effort to do regular grooming because he is so reliable.