The neighborhood’s animals we love
Lose your job? Break up with the boyfriend? Blubbering over a sappy movie? Funny how that ever-present furry family member can fix the world with a big sloppy kiss some days. The Advocate this year received an unprecedented amount of entries into the annual Best Pet contest. Each submission, accompanied by photos and amusing anecdotes, confirmed the power of a pet’s unconditional love. Though we could only highlight a few in the magazine, the whole collection, which you can see on our facebook page had us oohing and ahhing, laughing and crying for days.
Slew Devil Photo by Can Türkyilmaz
Slew devil
His extended family gave Slew Devil the nickname “Slew Dog Millionaire” because he tends to act like a puppy more than a horse descended from virtual royalty. Slew’s papa was none other than the legendary Seattle Slew, 1977 Triple Crown winner. True to his roots, Slew Devil raced as a young-un before moving to a show barn in Florida where, following a jumping accident that ended his professional dressage career, Lake Highlands High School graduate Karly Kilroy bought him. About a year and a half ago, she moved Slew to White Rock Stables where he is adored by many, and it is easy to see why. When our photographer showed up for a shoot, Slew was a total ham — obediently and repeatedly running, posing and pausing for a treat. “He loves people and wants to be near people all the time,” Kilroy says. “He follows me around, neighs at me when I walk into the barn, puts his face close to mine. He is very patient with children, very calm.” He also loves watermelon.
Pepper Photo by Danny Fulgencio
Pepper
Focus on her face and Pepper is a familiar-looking, sweet-mugged black retriever, but zoom out, and you might wonder if Pepper got one of those perms popular in the 1980s. Pepper is a curly-coated retriever, the largest and oldest of retriever breeds, and she may well be the sole curly living in Lake Highlands, her owners guess. Her shiny coat feels like a lamb’s, and she garners much attention when she is out, owner Leslie Miller says. “I am sure there are others in Dallas — I know, because I am on a curly e-mail list — but I have yet to see one.” Pepper, who came to live with Miller, husband Jim and son Malcolm as a pup, has a quirky disposition and often exhibits human-like characteristics. “She loves to sit with her hind-end on our furniture like a person and she seems to enjoy all the people more than the dogs at the dog park,” Miller says. “And she burps with regularity.”
Sam Photo by Can Türkyilmaz
Sam
Susan and Hank Alterman used to be dog people, but many years ago, at the request of their son Evan, they adopted their first cat. Today they have four, each with a cosmetic imperfection. “One of our cats has part of an ear missing, another is cross eyed,” Susan Alterman says. A friend of hers first saw the notice about Sam. “She called me and said, ‘There’s a cat with only one eye up for adoption.’ ” For the Altermans, the missing eye was a selling point. Sam was rescued from an apartment complex dumpster and nursed back to health by a foster family. But he had a nasty eye infection that caused him excruciating pain. After an operation removed the eye just prior to his adoption, Sam felt like a new cat. Despite the missing eye, Sam is the best hunter in the family. “He can catch flies and mosquitos and geckos — he’s a great hunter compared with our other cats,” she says. “Sometimes he seems to be worried that he is alone, which may have something to do with those vision issues. He will stand in the middle of the room and make this noise that sounds like, ‘Hellllooooo.’ Then I’ll say, ‘Here I am, Sam’ and he will stop.” Sam also knows words, Susan says. She pauses, looks around and lowers her voice to a whisper. “Say tuna, snack, breakfast or dinner and he will ‘woof!’ like a dog.”
Avery Photo by Danny Fulgencio
Avery
As a pup, Avery narrowly escaped death when she was saved by an Austin-based shelter specializing in doomed causes. On a hot July day, those rescuers brought the healer-pointer mix, along with other rescues, to the Ikea storefront, hoping to find adoptive pet parents among the furniture shoppers. Linda Robles happened to be out picking up accessories for her home-staging business. She eyed the pitiful pups — getting a dog might have been preferable to her dating situation at the time, she says — but she didn’t really connect with any. Then her eyes met Avery’s. “Can I hold her?” she asked the foster, who seemed ecstatic over Linda’s interest. That was all it took. Within days, however, little Avery became ill and had to visit the emergency vet. Linda opened a credit card just to pay the $2,000 bill. It was worth it, Linda says now. “She is a very special dog. I love her.” The dating situation improved — Linda met and married Jose Robles, whose dog Zoe is like a sister to Avery, and moved to Lake Highlands. Avery, now 3 years old and 70 pounds, loves the water — she fetches sticks out of the lake for hours on end. But she would not go into the family pool. “It was that top step that just got to her,” Linda says. “She just couldn’t get past it. She would circle the pool and cry while the family was in swimming.” Last summer, Linda’s stepdaughter Jenn coaxed Avery onto a stack of floats, easing her into the pool. After that, she made progress — the top step, swimming in a tiny circle and back to the step. “Over and over and over, she would swim in that little circle compulsively. That lasted like all of last summer.” But finally Avery made peace with the pool. “Now she will swim and swim. I think she would swim until she just dropped dead if we would let her.”
Redgie Photo by Danny Fulgencio
Redgie
When it comes to family pets, there’s nothing quite as quintessential as the good-ol’ loyal labrador retriever. “That’s Redgie,” says Sesame Street resident David Eckel, owner of the 11-year-old who embodies all those loveable characteristics that have made dogs man’s best friend. Redgie wants to be included in everything the family does. She also monitors the pool to make sure everyone is safe. While she enjoys the water, she won’t go in alone. Even at her relatively old age, Eckel says, she is energetic. “And she is the only one in the house consistently super-happy to see me every day when I get home,” he jokes. “She is my best friend. Everything good you may have heard about labs is included in the package known as Redgie.”
Molly Photo by Can Türkyilmaz
Molly
When Kristen Harris told us that her dog, Molly, had something in common with Baby Jessica and the Chilean Miners, our little editorial ears perked up. We were not disappointed with the ensuing story: Steve Harris was charged with walking Molly while his wife and son, Blake, were at baseball practice. As man and dog made their way up Hilldale, just two doors from home, Steve stepped into the street to greet a neighbor. That’s when Molly, the 6-month-old wheaten terrier, disappeared into a dark storm drain. The neighbor screamed. Steve panicked. He would later admit that he was mostly worried about his wife’s reaction. The hole wasn’t deeper than the leash length, thank goodness, so Steve held on while neighbors, and oldest son Drew, who had been inside the house, went for help. Eventually Dallas Fire-rescue workers pulled the pup up. “The skinniest fireman on the truck went down the manhole,” Kristen Harris says. “By the time I got home, everything was OK, but Steve is no longer allowed to take Molly on walks!”
