A dog's life: study reveals people's hormonal link with tail-waggers

[trof]

13. I was not allowed to have a dog as a kid.

We lived with my grandparents.
Mom was divorced. This was in the early 40s.
Granny had been bitten by a dog when she was young and had a phobia about them.

The first thing I did when I got out on my own (college) was get a dog.
I have always loved dogs.

I got Hilda from the pound in Tuscaloosa.
They said she was a German Shepherd.
She looked like a large rat.
Almost hairless and skin and bones.

I cleared it with my two roomies in our tiny apartment and brought her home.
After a few weeks of decent food she blossomed.
Her coat came in a beautiful silver gray.
Smart as a whip.
Loyal and protective of us to the core.

When anyone dropped by our pad I had to 'introduce' her to them, tell her they were OK, and then she was alright with them.
If you hadn't been 'introduced', you entered at your own risk.
God, I loved that dog.

She was the first in a long line of German Shepherds through 30 or so years of marriage and family.

My daughter, an only child, says "Whenever I see a German Shepherd I feel like it's my brother."

We've gotten too old to properly care for one.
But I still love tham.