Pet Pride!

JD - For our Pet Pride post today we're going to take part in a game!

Max - We were tagged by our good - and super-cool - cat pal Bruce to list 7 reasons why we're pawsome!

JD - But we thought we'd approach it slightly differently! As Pet Pride is a great meme - that is wonderfully hosted by Bozo - to focus on why people are so proud of their pets we thought we'd hand over to our female human and let HER tell everyone why we're so great!

Max - We thought it would be interesting to see why she thinks we're awesome, he he he!

Female Human - Hi everyone! I'm very honoured to be willingly handed the authorship of today's post - usually I have to sneak on covertly, ha ha! Anyway, I think my boys are simply brilliant so it was hard to narrow the list down to just 7 items. Anyway, after much soul searching here is my final list of why my boys are awesome!

1 - My boys are very social! They are confident and really enjoy meeting and playing with all dogs, both large....

JD excitedly meets Charlie (aged 7) his Great Dane pal! Also in this shot is Ben (aged 8) their Alsatian pal.

Charlie gives JD a friendly sniff whilst Max looks on a little jealously and Ben simply poses for the camera! JD is convinced that this photo shows him to be almost as tall as Charlie (*ahem!*) and that his ambition to grow as tall as a Giant Schnauzer is coming along nicely.....!

....and small!

Stig (age 9 months) - "Wot-chew looking at JD? Eh? Eh? EH?!"

I love watching dogs having a really good game of zoomies or tug....

JD and Max surround Pippa for a good wrestle....

....but she shows she's the wrestle-master and with a lightening-quick maneouvre she fllips JD onto his back!!

....you can't beat that feeling you get when you watch a happy dog having fun! Dogs really do teach us to enjoy the simple things in life and not to focus so much on our troubles!

2 - I have made so many great friends as a result of my boys getting on so nicely with other dogs - they play with their pals and I chat with the owners! What a great and pleasurable way to meet like-minded people!

Lazy Sunday morning dog-and-human-meet at the local park!

3 - My boys get on very well together. We realise that we're probably quite fortunate in this respect but they really do enjoy hanging out with each other....

JD - "What do you think Max? Do you think Pippa has been here yet?" Max - "Oh yes, that's DEFINITELY Pippa's gorgeous scent!!"

....and it's also great to see them snoozing together at the end of an enjoyable walk or training session!

Max - "That was a tiring round on the agility circuit just now wasn't it JD? JD?" JD - "zzzzzZZZZ!""

4 - My boys have great names! Max suits his name down to the ground as he is the more boisterous of the two and likes to push his boundaries 'to the Max!' Because of his extremely cheeky character he has earned a number of nicknames....

'Karate-pup' because one of the most common phrases in the house when he was very little was 'Max! OFF!', which was always followed by a snigger and the phrase 'Max ON! Max OFF!', a play on words from that now rather famous line from the Karate Kid - 'Wax on! Wax off!'.

'Maxidian Order' is his Sci-Fi name - we just like the sound of this! Have a guess where it originates from.....!

'Maximilian' is what he likes to be called at the park in front of Pippa, as he thinks it makes him sound posh!

'DJ Maxy Max!' when he's 'helping' my husband with his music equipment.

DJ Maxy Max (with side-kick DJ-JD!) helps male human with his music mixing equipment!

And then on the opposite end of the scale is our super-placid JD - which stands for 'Just Dog' - who is the most laid back dog I have ever met! He's like a 'surfer-dude-dog' and if he could speak we're sure his favourite word would be 'whatEVER!' He's only ever been called JD because, quite frankly, that's the only name that he needs - and our little guy is perfectly happy with this!

Getting to know your pets as they grow and develop their own personalities is such a wonderful feeling.

5 - They make excellent slippers!!

Schnauzer slippers - cosy snugness!

6 - Because of my boys I enjoy my surroundings more! Trying to find interesting walks for them has meant that I have come across some amazing places that I wasn't even aware of before I got them!

JD and Max try their paw at rock climbing!

JD and Max gaze out over the sea whilst walking through the local nature reserve.

JD and Max enjoy a spot of beach combing!

Max poses impatiently at the top of cliff walkway - he's eager to get down to the beach!

7 - And finally - until you have owned a dog (or a cat!) I reckon you will NEVER understand the concept of unconditional love. It is an amazing thing - my boys loved me and my husband from the day we brought them home. They trusted us immediately and put themselves completely in our hands - that is an incredible feeling!

JD and Max on their first ever walk! Even with all the exciting things happening all around them they still wanted to stay close and happily accepted all cuddles!

They are wonderfully affectionate - even if I simply pop out of the room for a couple of minutes their tails start wagging every time I come back in - it's wonderful to have another living being who is always so pleased and so excited to see you!

Female human catches a quick snooze on the sofa - and JD and Max happily join her! JD has cleverly worked out that when the humans are asleep they won't notice him breaking the 'no dogs on the furniture' rule!

They love to be near us - their favourite place is always asleep by our feet. Sometimes I even end up with a Schnauzer sitting on my feet when I'm in the kitchen waiting for the kettle to boil!

JD - Aw, thanks female human! That was quite good....

Max - Yup - not bad at all! We might even let you post again at some point, he he he!

JD - We can now tag some of our pals to play this game too! We know a lot of you have already played, so we tag ALL of our blog pals who haven't, he he he!

Max - Yeah! We think all our pals are pawsome, but we'd like to know why YOU think you're pawsome too!

JD - Happy Pet Pride everyone! Don't forget to play too - it's great fun!

Join in the fun at Pet Pride....