There’s no doubt about it, we love our pets! We take them on our vacations, let them sleep in our beds (sometimes!), give them kisses, take them on long walks, and simply put- spoil them. But in return they give us love, they entertain us, and keep us company. They are our babies, and we even trust them with our babies! (the human ones)

It’s no surprise that these fur-babies are a big part of our lives, and end up making star appearances in many of our photos. They are woven into our engagement photos, our wedding day photos and eventually our family photos. We wanted to give a shout out to all of the awesome pets that have been a part of our past year, stay tuned for an even larger gallery featuring our favorites from over the past several years. For now, here are the stars of 2019 and stories about them from their owners:

This is Dug!

“Michael and I got Dug about a month after first moving in together. I thought Michael was crazy to want to get a dog together so soon, but he wore me down and after I saw pictures of Dug’s litter, there was no way he wasn’t becoming part of the family. We got him during our last year of law school and he helped us study for the bar exam, so we call him our honorary ”barrister.” Dug usually doesn’t bark at anything (he usually grunts instead). He made an exception during the wedding ceremony and barked several times during our vows—we didn’t care and have decided he must have just been voicing his support for the marriage! “

Here’s Amelia.

“She’s a redbone coonhound, and we got her from a rescue after she had delivered a litter of 9 puppies about 4 years ago. She treats our son like one of her own, and has the patience of an angel. She’s terrified of anything outside the apartment and loves nothing more than spooning on the couch. She’s the little spoon.”

This cutie is Lucy.

“She is 8 years old and we have had her since she was 1. We adopted her from a breader in Denver after she was returned 2 times and needed a new home. The last people who owned her said she had ‘behavioral problems’ like counter surfing – which naturally being a long basset hound made it easy for her to steal things from the counter. None the less, she joined our family! She has stolen and gotten into and eaten an array of things including firecrackers (not a cheap emergency room visit), Costco size bag of dry oatmeal, 2 lbs of dark chocolate (also not a cheap visit). 
She is the most loving dog I’ve ever met and loves nothing more than to cuddle, specifically under the sheets in bed.” 
She also has her own Instagram account! Be sure to follow @lucythefrenchbassetthound 

This big guy is Tobias.

“Tobias is 4 years old. I got him when Jim and I first started dating, and had wanted a Great Dane for years! He’s a typical Dane- very loving, lazy, and has no idea how big he is (165lbs). His favorite toys are stuffed animals :)”

Here’s Zoe!

“We adopted her from One Tail at a Time in Oct 2018. She’s a boxer/pit bull mix and has both personalities. She loves other dogs, sprinting around the dog park and snuggling. “

Meet Max and Reese.

“Max is the caramel male and Reese is the brindle female. I adopted Reese from Found in Chicago in December of 2014 prior to dating Nick. Once Nick became part of our lives he treated Reese like his own dog. We have tons of memories living in Wicker Park where we took Reese to patios for happy hour/ dinner, taking her up to the lake, and spoiling her at the dog store. 
We always knew we wanted another adult dog for Reese to play with but our place in the city was way too small. In June of 2017, we finally move to the suburbs and started to look for another dog to adopt. We found Max through a friend that worked as a volunteer at Its A Pittie Rescue in the area. Reese and Max have become best friends and compliment each other perfectly. We like to call Reese the “fun police” but she is also is such a sweet heart to anyone that comes over. Even through Reese is 10 years old, she is still a ball of energy and can run for miles and swim for hours! Max is basically a huge ham and the complete opposite of the scary pitbull stereotype. He loves his old man (he’s also 10) suburban life style. He loves to sunbathe by the pool in the summer, cuddle, and sleep all day.”

Possibly our largest star of 2019- here’s Otto.

“OT as his 1.5 year old baby brother Caleb calls him but his name is actually Otto. He’s a 2 year old Great Dane. I had just found out that I was pregnant shortly after our other Dane pup died. We decided it was now or never to get another… so Otto is only 6 months older than his brother Caleb and everyone thought I was NUTS to have a puppy to train while preggo. Since the boys are growing up together they are the best of friends! He is the ultimate protector, Worst snack stealer, funnest playmate, and the comfiest pillow Caleb could ask for!”

And Pocky!

“Our dog’s name is Pocky (named after the Japanese snacks). 
We adopted him from the Dane County Humane Society here in Wisconsin. He is originally from Alabama. We decided to adopt him because his bio card had read that he was anxious and that he had general fear but he was one of the quietest and calmest dogs in his kennel. He looked sad, but he didn’t cry or bark. He gently took his treats. He had skin issues, kennel cough, and pink eye during his time at the shelter. The shelter life had definitely taken a toll on him. I thought in that moment that we had to get him. Unfortunately, the day we visited, the adoption timeframe had already closed and it was just for observing. They said we could come the next day, but they couldn’t guarantee him for us. We endured a long work day, desparately hoping he wouldn’t be adopted. We got to the shelter right after work and he was there! We adopted him right away. The first thing he did while we were filling out the adoption forms was stuff his head into Justin’s backpack. A trait he does everytime there is a bag, purse, grocery bag. He just needs to stick his head inside.

The first night we got him, he laid on top of me and gave me kisses. He fit in right away and knew he was home <3. 
Since then, he has been such a joy and a real oddball. First, he gets off couches and beds by gliding off slowly. He never just steps off the bed. He is incredibly lazy. He sleeps in longer than us on weekends. He can sleep in till noon and not use the bathroom at all unless we force him to take a walk. He is a fantastic snorer. Incredibly loud and often times different sounds. He loves getting his teeth brushed. He starts drooling whenever he sees his toothbrush. He is scared of my sister’s two 6 lb yorkies (he is 65 lbs). He is incredibly clumsy, unathletic, and overall, he is just not graceful even though he is a super muscular dog. He starts smiling and panting – heavy breathing.. whenever we give him belly rubs. He always needs to sleep in the middle of us. If we don’t let him, he inserts his paw and shimmies between us and stares at us until we move. He loves being carried like a baby. Whenever he walks ahead one of us, he always turns around and makes sure we are following behind him. Sometimes, He waits until we catch up to start walking again. Can you tell we love him??!!”

Weighing in at a whopping 5 lbs… this is Mysti!

“Mysti will be 7 (😱) in March— but I’m in denial bc she’s my Forever Puppy.
We brought her home in 2013 when she was 9 weeks. The runt of her litter, she was the last one left because she was tiny with very a shy and nervous disposition. She’s a total princess pup now and I think is convinced she’s not our pet, but that we are her butlers.”

Meet the newest addition to their family- Harley.

“We adopted Harley about 18 months ago – she’s a rescue from Wilmette pet/adopt a pet. She was the runt of a liter of 8 puppies and we all fell in love with her sweet and laid back personality. She’s shy and a homebody but opened up to you and made all our kids laugh during our photo shoot (her love of salami overrides her shyness apparently), ha!”

And now- Peanut and Atticus!

“Ryan and I actually met at the dog park through Peanut (had him 8 years) and Vlad, who sadly passed. They were the reason we became a family 😉  We got Atticus 3 months ago after Vlad passed away. In Ryan’s words “Peanut thinks that he is a Great Dane. He is stubborn and a diva.” 😂🤣 Atticus is “Goofy and sweet. He is afraid of his own shadow. When he sees a big dogs he screams.” 

Sometimes the cat sneaks in too.

This is Vinny and Cammi.

“Cammi is the little black one – we’ve had both since they were puppies and adopted them both. Cammi is an old lady of 16 and Vinny is sprite 7 years old- they are best friends but move at very different paces.Vinny likes to sit on Cammi’s head every chance he can get and Vinny dances when he’s about to get food. Vinny likes to snuggle and Cammi does not- she’s old and cranky.”

This cutie is Olive!

“I’ve had Olive since she was a puppy. I got her after my previous dog had passed away. Simon is as obsessed with Olive as I am, and is a great dog dad. Olive is a very sweet dog who is happy to see everyone. When she gets really excited she makes noises like a monkey, which I’ve never heard any other dog make.”

Hooray for all of our favorite fur babies!

 

 

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