Cathryn J. Prince & Hershey and Juno

Who is in the photo at right and just below?

Cathryn J. Prince, author of nonfiction history and freelance journalist. Hershey, female, 8 1/2, chocolate lab. Juno, female, 2 1/2, yellow lab.

What's the occasion for Coffee with a Canine?

I have coffee every morning at my desk and the dogs like to sit underneath or next to me.

What's brewing?

Intelligentsia 'Black Cat' brewed in a machine that first grinds the beans.

Any treats for you or your dogs on this occasion?

The coffee is my treat, but I do give the dogs Peanut Butter treats called Gooberlicious. They go really crazy for those.

How did your dogs get their names? Any aliases?

My children named Hershey. Sometimes we call her Hershey Lou Hoo. My husband and I named Juno for the Roman goddess; her nickname is Juno Bug and we call her that quite often.

How were you and your dogs united?

Hershey was a gift as was Juno. Juno comes from Oklahoma. Before she was old enough to travel we'd watch her on puppy cam. We called her 'Orange #4' for a time, because she wore an orange collar and was identified as puppy #4. We liked her feistiness. My son still has her orange collar.

How do you dogs help, and how do they hinder, your writing?

Overall I'd have to say they help me in my writing: they keep me company and they just have this steady presence -- that is until Juno decides it's playtime. Then she is rather disruptive. She also hinders my writing when I have a call to make -- she will sometimes bark for attention.

Squirrel, postman, cat....?

Deer, squirrels, birds, UPS...all of the above.

Squeaky toy, ball, stick...?

Raw hide bones and an orange rubber ball.

What is each dog's best quality?

Hershey is wise. Juno is playful.

If your dogs could change one thing about you, what would it be?

That I would let more bread "accidentally" fall on the floor. They'd probably also like me to leave unopened jars of peanut butter everywhere.

If Hollywood made a movie about your life in which your dogs could speak, which actors should do their voices?

Judi Dench for Hershey and maybe Abigail Breslin for Juno.

If your dogs could answer only one question in English, what would you ask them?

Are you happy?

Visit Cathryn J. Prince's website and blog, and learn more about her new book, Death in the Baltic: The World War II Sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff.

The Page 99 Test: Death in the Baltic.

--Marshal Zeringue