Breed Love

As someone who has lived with a number of dogs over the years, starting in early childhood, I've often wondered why some people seem to be more, let's say open-minded for lack of a better word, in choosing their canine companions, while others are so passionate about their chosen breed, whatever it happens to be, that no other breed will do.

Certain breed devotees seem to be especially passionate about their breed of choice.  I've noticed, for example, that Boxer, Pug, and Bulldog owners seem to be particularly devoted.  A vendor I have often worked with over the last ten years just got a Boxer puppy a few months ago.  It's her third Boxer since I've known her.  She lost the last two to cancer, (I believe mast cell, which is very prevalent in Boxers), and when I found out that she had lost the most recent one, and offered my condolences, she had initially said she didn't think she could get another dog.  But when I talked to her again a few weeks later, she said she had news:  she was getting a puppy!  When I asked her what breed, she looked a bit sheepish and said  "A Boxer.  I know it seems ridiculous to get a third one after losing two in ten years to the same disease, but I just love them so much!" 

I told her it was silly to feel that way.  Love is a powerful thing, and it's often, as the saying goes, blind.  Why we love who and what we love is sometimes difficult, even impossible, to explain.

I have friends and family members who are the same way with their chosen breeds.  My best friend, J, has had three Beagles in succession.  My aunt & uncle had a procession of Bullmastiffs.  My grandmother and grandfather had four bulldogs during my growing up years, and even after my grandfather had passed away and my grandmother was really too elderly to physically handle a dog the size and strength of a bulldog, she chose not to have a dog at all rather than choose one of another breed.  She adopted a cat instead. 

I personally have never been all that invested in one specific breed of dog.  Growing up, from early childhood until college, I lived with a Lab, a Cocker Spaniel (mix), a Border Collie, and a German Shepherd (mix), all female.  All four were amazing dogs in their own way, and I am sure that the special affinity I feel to this day for Border Collies and German Shepherds was probably shaped at least in part by Missy and Reesa.  My first dog as an adult, though, was none of these breeds, but rather a male Malamute mix, with whom I shared an incredible, often adventure-filled, fifteen years.  

And then there are Tucker & Phoebe ...

It's bizarre to me how often I am asked by people on the street, vet's offices, etc. whether they are "mother and baby".  Aside from Tucker's gender making it impossible for him to be anyone's mother, it seems pretty obvious to me that they are not related.  Other than the fact that they are both little scruff-monsters, they could not look less alike.  The shape of their faces, bodies, the size and shape of their ears, the color and texture of their coats, the length of their limbs ... all very different.  

They do have certain similarities, also, but these are more to do with their temperament  than with any physical characteristics they have in common.   Take this photo, for example ... other than the fact that they are both freaking adorable (is it wrong that I say this about my own dogs?) I don't see much that would make me think they were related, do you?

I have mentioned before that when Tucker & I first found each other, his origins were unknown.  His confirmation suggested possible Italian Greyhound lineage, while his scruffy coat often prompted people to ask whether he had Jack Russell in him.  The truth was, though, nothing really fit.  I really had no idea, and I used to bemoan this fact incessantly, and say how I wish I knew what breed or breeds went into making him, so that I could breed more of him!  

I can't exactly remember, but I think it was about two or three years after I got him that I took him to be evaluated for his CGC, and it was then that I found out he was not some random mix of breeds as I had thought, but a Powderpuff Chinese Crested Dog.  The evaluator, who had also been a past AKC judge, was very sure of herself, and the breeders I contacted and send pictures of Tucker to confirmed it, although one who saw him in person said he was more of a hairy hairless.

Once I knew what he was, it was pretty easy for me to see, and for someone who considers herself to be pretty versed in dog breeds, I felt a bit stupid for not having recognized it.  Then again, if you Google Chinese Crested it's a little easier to see how I could have missed it.  Depending upon whether the dog's ears were taped as a puppy to stand erect or not, as well as the wide variation in coat types, from completely hairless to quite lushly coated, the difference in appearance from one to the other is often quite dramatic.  

Personality-wise, though, at least based on the comments of the Crestie owners I have talked to, they are much more similar.  And as adorable as he is, it is Tucker's personality that made me fall so hard and fast for him.  He is also the first dog I've ever had that has made me believe that, when the day comes that he's no longer with me, something I can't even begin to contemplate by the way, I may very well find myself unable to live without a Crestie in my life.  

Not that another dog, even another Crestie, could ever replace Tucker, nor would I expect him/her to.  But as crazy as it is for someone who grew up around working and sporting breeds of dogs, I am so nuts for this one dog that I just might be a Crestie-holic.  I mean look at that face ... can you really blame me? 

What about you?  Is it more about the individual dog, or is there a breed you are so passionate about that you can't imagine not having one in your life?