NYC Dog Show

Dede, Grandpa Bud, Brian, Karen, and Larkin went to see a dog show in NYC this afternoon. It made us miss Sera terribly (and we bought her a toy of course), but it was fun to check out all of the breeds. Here are a few pictures of us with some of the dogs we liked.

Our particular favorite from this show was the Leonberger. It's a relatively rare giant breed and as you can see in the picture below, he's enormous! This male weighed about 180 pounds, but he wouldn't hurt a fly. I asked what the breed was bred for, and I was told (honestly) that the breed was bred "to be a child's playmate". Wow!!! I was so pleasantly shocked and could completely see it, based on how gentle the dog was with Larkin. Apparently, the dog in the book Alice in Wonderland was actually written about a Leonberger (because the author had one and loved it), but when they did the movie, the producers switched it to an Old English Sheepdog. The breeders are really happy about that (since it kept the breed pure and not-over-bred). What a great treat to have met him. He's a bit big and hairy for my house, and I love my Sera too much to consider adding to our brood for now, but definitely check them out if you want a dog that's great with kids.