Bella

Bella's another one who's been with me since she was a puppy, and she's still adorable! For a couple years she even lived around the corner from me (til I got priced out of Bed-Stuy*, of all places!) and used to walk with Aberdeen, my live-in dog and partner in crime. (More on him later but for now suffice it to say the experience built the tolerance of each dog.)

If you remember the video game "Sonic the Hedgehog," that'll give you a good idea of what Bella's like. She's easily my most hyper dog, bouncing off of furniture and walls at breakneck speeds. Outside she loves to play with balls and with other dogs. Her favorite thing is to get a soccer ball-sized inflatable in her small but powerful jaws and swing it around til all life drains from it. She'll also run around bouncing a soccer ball with her snout - a regular Pelé!

With other dogs, Bella definitely has the little guy's drive toward overcompensation. She doesn't ever get actually violent, in my experience, but she's definitely dominant; and I've seen her cow dogs that could probably inhale her. I won't say that she never gets annoying -- :-) -- but you've really gotta admire her spirit. And when she looks at you with those tadpole eyes, well, it kinda makes everything alright.


*--the part of Bed-Stuy called Clinton Hill by real estate agents. But the give-away is that there's no hill.