This is our dog, Buster, a male Newfoundland, age 1 yr, 9 mo.
My name is Kelli. I am a registered nurse who worked 11 years as a cardiac RN, and am now a stay at home mom to one almost 5 yr old little boy, and this sweet big dog.
What's the occasion for Coffee with a Canine?
Just returned from Buster's walk around the neighborhood.
What's brewing?
I love the smell of coffee, but never developed the taste for it, so for me it's just water. What's brewing for my husband is usually just good old Folgers medium roast.
Any goodies to go with the coffee?
Not this time.
Any treat for Buster on this occasion?
Buster just had a homemade doggie treat. Made from a mix.. just add water, mix and roll out the dough and cut the shapes with cookie cutters. My son loved this project. Tonight's treat was shaped like a dinosaur.
How were you and Buster united?
Buster came to us from a breeder, Great Basin Newfoundlands in Fallon, Nevada. We live in northern California so we drove and met them half way and picked Buster up when he was 10 weeks old.
How did Buster get his name? Any aliases?
We originally decided to name him "Tug", but our son was so opposed to that name for some reason. We had just lost our previous dog (a 13 yo Newf mix) about six months prior and he took it so hard. We wanted him to like whatever name we gave our next family member, so after vetoing "Percy" (from Thomas the Tank Engine) and "Corvette" (his favorite hot wheel), we settled on Buster (the name of the dog in Toy Story).
He has all kind of Bustery nick-names. Dust Buster, Busteroo, Bust-a-move.. you name it. My husband sometimes calls him Daggoo, the name of a character in Moby Dick.
Cat, squirrel, postman...?
Definitely cat, but what drives him really crazy are things with small wheels... skateboards, rollerblades, golf carts. He wants to chase them. We are working on that right now!
Tennis ball, squeaky-toy, stick...?
All of the above. Lately, he is fond of a rubber duck that my son picked out for him. He also loves a giant raw-hide.
Where is Buster's favorite place for outings?
More often the dog park, but once in a while we take him to a lake and he loves it.
Who are Buster's best pet-pals?
He has a buddy down the street, a giant breed Alaskan Malamute named Sasha. They are the same size.
Other than that, he has some canine cousins in the family that he loves to be around but live further away... Skippy, a 3 legged Border Collie, and Calvin, an Australian Cattle Dog, and Chipper, a shepherd mix.
What is Buster's best quality?
His soulful eyes and sweet spirit. He is so patient and gentle with our son.
What is Buster's proudest moment? Most embarrassing?
If we're talking from Buster's point of view, when he's most proud would probably be either when he gets a new rawhide and prances around with it, or when he finds the marshmallow we've hidden somewhere in the room for him.
If he's ever felt embarrassment, it would be when he got fixed and had to wear what most people call the cone of shame. We call it the satellite dish.
Visit Kelli's "Seriously..I think it needs stitches" blog.
--Marshal Zeringue
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