Beau is the "Alpha Male" of our pack. He was born in our sun room when his mom, a stray, came to stay for a while. He is a good guard dog and loves being with his people. He looks and sounds intimidating, but if the truth be told, he tends to shy away when someone approaches him. When people were selecting from the brindle male pups from Angie's (the stray dog's) litter, no one chose him so he was left with us. We think he is the most beautiful of all the brindle pups.

Dee Dee is Beau's sister. She is a big, goofy girl who loves to ride in the car and on the golf cart. She has a high energy level and gets very excited around people. She has some "Houdini" in her and loves to escape from our yard to chase the "critters" that live in the nearby ditch. All the additional height on the fencing is our attempt to keep this girl "at home."

Mr. Klaus is a rescue dog from our local Humane Society. He loves to run around the yard and bark at everything. He puts up a big fuss when anyone comes near our property or to our front door. His eyesight is keen, and even if someone is walking half a block away, he will see them and make a lot of noise. His bark will scare away anyone thinking of entering our garden or home without permission. He is our best and most respected guardian.

Buddy is a stray that never left. He showed up one night with part of a chain hanging around his neck. Someone called the local Rabies Control, and they came to catch him. Because they are a high kill shelter, our son opened the gate to our yard and let Buddy in. He has never left, although we have tried to find a home for him for several years with no luck. He was just meant to live with us. Buddy is sweet and loves people, but any animal that finds its way into our yard doesn't stand much chance of making it out alive. Buddy was starved for attention when he first came to us and still is very needy for attention and love. He wants everyone to pet him and is quite a pest about it.

Our son lives next door and Manning was his dog. Because of our son's work schedule, Manning spends most of the time with us. He is the only registered purebred in our pack. Manning is loving and sweet but is terribly afraid of thunder and must have "calming chews" to make everyone's life easier. He is smart as a whip and can open any gate. We have to really tie the gates up with extra security to stop Manning from opening them and going on a walk-about. Phil recently added a temporary fence with a gate to protect our new seedling bed because we didn't want the dogs stepping on the baby seedlings that are coming up. Phil had to add another lock on this gate as well because he caught Manning trying to open the fork latch with his leg. Manning is another reason why we need a heads up about those wanting to pay our garden a visit. We have to take off all of the "Manning proof" extra security straps on the gates to allow our visitors to enter the garden.

Lady Katie was the latest addition to the pack and was another "rescue." She was running loose in a nearby town, picked up by an individual who was concerned for her welfare, and was taken to the local shelter. Her previous owner didn't want her back because she was an "escape artist." During her time with us, she never tried to leave our property. She had a calm, sweet temperament and easy going personality. She didn't bark and learned how to "howl" with the other dogs when the ambulances drive by with their sirens blaring. She was a bit aloof and appreciated being in her own space. Our hearts were broken when we discovered she had cancer. We know she loved being a part of our family as much as we loved having her with us. RIP Katie. You will always be loved and in our hearts.