Tag: Dog

Dog Play

Esther’s writing prompt: September 30, 2026: Play

Click here or here  to join in.

For this prompt I decided post stories about dog’s playing as well as pictures of dog’s playing. Some of the pictures are my photos. Some pictures I generated with the help of ChatGPT. My first story is about when our big Leonberger dog playfully greeted our neighbor by putting our neighbor’s head in his mouth like the circus lion trick.

Swallowing the neighbor’s head is impolite

A Leonberger dog is putting his paws on a short man’s shoulders while licking his face.
Our friendly neighbor and our big playful dog. I made the picture with the help of ChatGPT.

On one occasion, one of our neighbors came over to say hello to our big Leonberger dog Bronco. We’d had Bronco for a year by then, so he was big. As our neighbor entered our hallway, Bronco came running, and before I had a chance to stop him, he jumped up and put his paws on our neighbor’s shoulders. This man is somewhat short, so Bronco was able to lick his head, which he proceeded to do. Then Bronco did something we were totally unprepared for. You know the circus trick in which the lion tamer puts his head in the lion’s mouth? Yes, that’s the trick Bronco performed on our friendly neighbor.

Bronco was just playing and having fun, but that’s not how to greet a neighbor. I apologized profusely, but our neighbor said that it was perfectly all right and that there was no harm done. He looked a bit unnerved, and obviously he had not expected to be part of a circus act, but he said that Bronco was a wonderful dog and that he really loved the big galoot.

A Leonberger dog is putting his paws on a short man’s shoulders while opening his mouth big and putting the man’s head in his mouth.
Our shocked neighbor and our big playful dog. I made the picture with the help of ChatGPT.

Despite what happened, our neighbor was always very nice to Bronco. However, for us that first encounter was a red flag. We had to get the jumping-up-on-people problem under control.

Japanese Chin Sings Opera

We used to have a Japanese Chin called Ryu. One of the things that stood out about Ryu was his singing. Japanese Chins are famous for their singing—well, actually, it’s closer to howling, but Ryu’s was a beautiful howl, and he was very proud of it.

The photo shows the bottom half of a girl hold the front paws of a happy black and white Japanese Chin. The dog’s mouth is wide open.
Our happy Japanese Chin Ryu. Our daughter is holding his paws. This is my photo.

As soon as he discovered that he got a lot of attention for it, he started doing it quite often. Whenever we came home, he would sit politely, look at us intently—it seemed like he was clearing his throat, too—and howl. Like an opera singer, he would slowly turn his head to look at us, as if he were performing. In fact I think Ryu’s howling sounded just like a night at the opera—especially when the lyrics are sung in Italian.

We would say, “Good boy, Ryu,” and clap, and he looked mighty proud. Other people thought it was cute and wonderful, too, and they gave him lots of praise, and of course he loved doing it and got good at it. When Rachel played the harmonica, Ryu would howl along. They made quite a duo. “Good boy” might not be the kind of praise Andrea Bocelli would want, but Ryu was perfectly happy with it.

The picture shows the same hallway as above. However, in this case there is Japanese Chin howling, a girl playing the harmonica and a family of four standing in the background clapping their hands.
Ryu howling while our daughter is playing the harmonica. I made the picture with the help of ChatGPT.

Our German Shepherd Baby & our Leonberger Puppy Bronco

We used to have a German Shepherd called Baby. She came from a shelter and from not so good circumstances. Even though Baby was a shy and anxious dog at first, once we got our Leonberger puppy Bronco, her personality changed. She loved Bronco, and she took on the job of being Bronco’s adoptive mom. She played with him; she watched him; she was fiercely protective of him. Bronco was her puppy. She seemed rejuvenated, as if she had found an important job to do a purpose, if you will. It was beautiful to see her take care of Bronco and play with him. She became happier and more confident, and Bronco loved her.

A black female German Shepherd and Leonberger Puppy almost as big as her are lying on the floor playing with each other.
Our German Shepherd named Baby is playing with our Leonberger puppy. She was like his mother. Photo by me.

Tug of War the Not So Great Game

Photo of Baylor and Baby. They are laying down.
Our yellow lab Baylor on the left. Our black German shepherd named Baby on the right. My photo.
A close up photo of a yellow lab.
Our labrador Baylor (allegedly quarter mix with Rhodesian ridgeback) was a very playful dog. Our photo.
Yellow lab grabbing a thick rope with his jaws as a man on the right is pulling hard.
I sometimes played tug of war with Baylor. We had fun but I’ve learned that this is not a good game. It can make a dog aggressive. Baylor never became aggressive though. I created this image using ChatGPT.

Dogs at Play

A photo from a dog park. Our lab and our Japanese Chin are in the photo and so is one more dog.
Our Japanese Chin Ryu playing at the dog park. Baylor is running in the background. My photo.
Black and white Japanese Chin lying on a red sofa.
Our Japanese Chin Ryu on the sofa. My photo.
Our Pug Daisy is wearing a pink birthday hat.
Our pug Daisy. It is her birthday. My photo.
A toy duck and our Pug Daisy laying on her back.
Our pug Daisy taking a rest in the sun after playing with her duck toy. My photo.
Our Pug Daisy has her head stuck in a tissue box.
Playing with a tissue box is risky. Poor Daisy. My photo.
Illustration showing a man chasing a Leonberger dog.
Our big and strong Leonberger Bronco was playful. Once when I walked him the leash failed and he got lose. He had a lot of fun with me chasing him around the neighborhood. I made this picture with the help of ChatGPT.
Our Leonberger Bronco swimming in slightly brownish water.
Our Leonberger dog Bronco loved to swim and chase ducks and egrets. He had no regrets. My photo.
A dark brown and white mini-Australian Shepherd peering from behind a sofa.
Our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo as a puppy. He loves to play and run around. My photo.
Our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo is lying playfully on his side showing his belly to our Leonberger Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle.
Our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo loved to play with our Leonberger dog Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle. My photo.
Our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo is rolling and biting an orange volleyball.
Our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo love balls. Here he is playing with an orange volleyball. My photo.
Our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo is rolling and biting a soccer ball.
Our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo love balls. Here he is playing with a soccer ball. My photo.
Rollo is lying on his side facing Bronco who laying down.
Our little mini-Australian Shepherd puppy Rollo wanting to play with our big Leonberger Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle. My photo.
The photo shows a mini-Australian Shepherd biting a Leonberger’s tail.
Rollo loved our Leonberger Bronco, but he was all over him, biting his tail, swinging in his tail, sitting on him like as if he was a horse. Well, his name was Bronco. Bronco was very patient, but we had to intervene. My photo.
The photo shows Rollo surrounded by a plastic fence that constituted his baby jail.
When left Rollo alone with Bronco, we put him in a playpen that we called baby jail. We trusted Bronco completely, but Rollo could be obnoxious and for his own safety we thought baby jail / playpen was best while we were gone. My photo.
Leonberger is swimming with a ball in his mouth.
Leonberger is swimming with a ball in his mouth. Leonbergers are playful and love swimming. Stock Photo ID: 720242263 by Christian Mueller.
Two sand colored Leonberger puppies playing.
Two Leonberger Puppies at play Shutterstock ID:2141564415 AnetaZabranska
The picture shows a Leonberger running on grass chasing a green tennis ball.
A Leonberger dog is chasing a tennis ball. Leonbergers are playful but not fond of repetitive play, so throwing the ball will only work for so long. I made this picture with the help of ChatGPT.
The picture shows a little boy sitting on a Leonberger. The picture has a big red X over it.
Playing with Leonbergers is fine. They are friendly and playful, but don’t do this. Don’t do this to any dog. I made this picture with the help of ChatGPT.

My Other Responses to Esther’s Prompts

How to Capture Your Pets Special Milestones

A professional content writer by the name of Ryan Goodchild contacted me about me posting an  article he had written called “How to Capture and Cherish Your Pet’s Special Milestones Over Time”. The article is below. I provided some pictures.

Our Leonberger Bronco at three months old. Our Labrador Baylor and our German Shepherd Baby. Our Japanese Shin Ryu when he was young. Our son with our pug Daisy when we had just brought her home. Our Japanese Chin Ryu and Pug Daisy staging a protest against us travelling. The day we picked up our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo. He was nine weeks old. The other puppy is an English bulldog puppy. Bronco our Leonberger dog with Rollo our mini-Australian Shepherd. Our mini Australian Shepherd Rollo caught chewing up my shoe.

How to Capture and Cherish Your Pet’s Special Milestones Over Time

For busy pet owners balancing work, family, and daily routines, it’s easy to feel like a puppy’s first walk or a cat’s first confident cuddle happens and disappears in the same week. The tension is real: life moves fast, and capturing pet milestones can start to feel like one more task, until a forgotten “first” turns into a fuzzy memory. Pet memory preservation matters because those small moments build the story of a relationship, and noticing them strengthens emotional bonding with pets. With a simple, sustainable way to hold onto pet milestone memories, everyday “firsts” stay vivid.

Six Leonbergers with celebration hats are looking straight into the camera.
Six Leonbergers and a New Year’s celebration. Photo by friend Jen O’Keefe.

Quick Summary: Capturing Pet Milestones

  • Record pet firsts as they happen to preserve memories you might otherwise forget.
  • Keep basic health notes to track changes over time and support better pet care.
  • Save standout photos to create an easy visual timeline of meaningful moments.
  • Choose practical tracking methods to capture value without building an overwhelming memory system.
Our mini-Australian Shepherd puppy Rollo is lying on the grass.
Our mini-Australian Shepherd puppy Rollo on his first day at our house.

Make Milestone Photos Print-Ready With Quick AI Enhancement

Once you’ve picked a simple plan for capturing milestones, the next win is making your favorite shots clear enough to share, and worthy of prints. Pet photos often suffer from tricky lighting, slight motion blur, and soft detail (especially in low light), which can dull the look of a special moment. AI image optimization tools can quickly improve lighting and brightness, sharpen key details like eyes and fur texture, reduce blur, and enrich colors so the memory feels as vivid as it did in real life. When you want to go beyond quick touch-ups, an AI image upscaler can also boost resolution and clarity, helping you enlarge a photo while preserving detail and visual quality instead of ending up with a grainy, pixelated result. If you have a small or slightly blurry milestone photo you’d love to print, an AI image enlarger can be a simple way to make it look more polished without advanced editing skills.

The photo shows our big Leonberger on the left and our little mini-Australian Shepherd puppy Rollo on the right. They are in the backyard.
Our Leonberger dog Bronco meets our mini-Australian Shepherd puppy Rollo for the first time.

Build a Repeatable Pet Milestone Capture System

Your goal is simple: notice the moments that matter, capture them quickly, and file them the same way every time. A small, consistent system helps busy pet parents build a life story you can actually find and enjoy later.

Our mini-Australian Shepherd puppy Rollo is lying on a blanket.
Our mini-Australian Shepherd puppy Rollo soon after we took him home with us.
  1. Decide what counts as a “milestone”
    Start with 6 to 10 categories you will recognize instantly, like firsts, funny quirks, growth changes, training wins, health updates, and family moments. Keep the bar low so you record more often, not perfectly. When in doubt, capture it, because patterns only show up after you collect a few.
  2. Notice changes and jot a one-line note
    Right after the moment, write a quick caption in plain language: what happened, when, and why it mattered to you. The habit of taking notes on any changes like a shift in appetite or energy helps you remember context and can be useful later. If something seems off, flag it to discuss at a wellness visit.
  3. Capture a “set” in under 30 seconds
    Take 3 to 5 photos plus a 10-second video, aiming for one clear face shot, one full-body shot, and one scene-setting shot. Add one audio clip if it is relevant, like a new bark, purr, or happy whine. Multiple angles give you options even if one image is blurry.
  4. File it immediately using one naming rule
    Pick a single format you will never change, such as YYYY-MM-DD_Milestone_Keyword, and use it for every file. Create one main folder for your pet, then subfolders by year or milestone type, but not both. Consistent naming makes searching effortless months later.
  5. Store two copies in two places
    Keep one everyday copy on your phone or computer and one backup in a separate service or external drive. Turn on automatic uploads so your milestone set is protected even if you lose a device. A reliable backup is what turns cute captures into a long-term archive.
Five Leonbergers lying in the grass. They are wearing hats showing the American flag.
Five Leonbergers including Digory on 4th of July 2023. Photo by my friend Jen O’Keefe.

A Simple Rhythm You Can Repeat All Year

This workflow turns your milestone system into a light routine instead of a once-a-year catch-up. You will keep the story current with small touchpoints, while still creating time to enjoy what you have collected. It also reduces the stress of losing files or forgetting context as weeks blur together.

StageActionGoal
Capture (in the moment)Record a quick set and one-line notePreserve details while they are fresh
Weekly SweepPick one favorite, discard obvious duplicatesKeep camera roll manageable
Monthly Label + SortAdd tags, rename, move into the right folderMake searching painless later
Monthly Share or PrintSend one highlight to family or add to albumTurn files into lived memories
Quarterly Backup CheckConfirm two copies exist and sync is workingProtect the timeline from loss

Each stage feeds the next: quick capture creates raw material, weekly triage keeps it tidy, and monthly sorting makes it findable. The share or print step keeps motivation high, and the backup check keeps the whole archive safe.

Five large Leonbergers standing in front of some rock formations.
Leonberger meet and greet. Five sweet Leonbergers, from left to right, Kuiper, Caspian, Rilian, Austin, Obi-Wan. Photo by friend Ira Van Order / Velvy the Lion.

Turning Pet Milestones Into a Habit You’ll Keep

It’s easy to assume there will be time later to sort photos and remember the “firsts,” until later turns into missing details. The steady approach here, small, repeatable documentation with occasional organizing, builds motivation to document pets without relying on perfect memory or big bursts of effort. Over time, milestone tracking starts to feel simple and reliable, and continuous memory preservation becomes a comforting rhythm rather than a backlog. Small saves, done consistently, become the memories you’ll never have to reconstruct.

25 Leonberger Puppy Photos

This post is another themed 25 Leonberger photos. This time the theme is Leonberger puppies. Below is a list of previous themed 25 Leonberger posts I’ve made.

Also don’t forget to check out my new blog if you haven’t done so.

Below are the 25 Leonberger Puppy Photos

A photo of a Leonberger puppy wearing a red scarf.
This is a photo of our Leonberger Bronco when he was three months old.
A photo of a Leonberger puppy wearing a scarf. He has his tongue out.
This is a black and white photo of our Leonberger Bronco when he was three months old.
A black-brown German Shephard is playing with a young Leonberger lying on his back.
Baby (German Shepherd) is playing with our four months old Leonberger Bronco.
Ten Leonberger puppies sitting on a sofa. They are brown with black face masks.
Ten Leonberger puppies. My guess is that they are about two months old. Shutterstock-ID:561107710 by Akbudak Rimma.
Ten Leonberger puppies sitting on a sofa. They are brown with black face masks. An adult Leonberger is lying in front of them.
Ten Leonberger puppies with mama. Shutterstock-ID: 561107650 by Akbudak Rimma.
A Leonberger puppy with pink roses.
Leonberger puppy Stock Photo ID: 561111403 by Akbudak Rimma.
Leonberger puppy running through green grass. The puppy has its mouth open, and he is looking straight into the camera.
Leonberger puppy. My guess is that he is around two months old. Shutterstock-ID: 629624396 by TOM KAROLA.
A Leonberger puppy running in the snow
A Leonberger puppy running in the snow. Shutterstock Stock Photo ID: 2056502327 by Nikky de Graaf.
Two sand colored Leonberger puppies playing in the snow. The play seems to be a little bit rough. Like all Leonbergers they have a black facemask.
Two light colored Leonberger puppies playing. My guess is that they are three months old. Shutterstock-ID: 2141564415 by AnetaZabranska.
Leonberger puppy giving a Chihuahua kiss, but the Chihuahua does not look happy. The Leonberger puppy is much bigger than the Chihuahua.
Leonberger + Chihuahua Stock Photo ID: 2166660069 by cynoclub.
A very young Leonberger puppy sitting in front of a Christmas tree.
Leonberger Puppy Stock Photo ID: 2233375083 by VeronArt16
Two brown Leonberger puppies lying on a wood floor.
Two Leonberger puppies. Shutter stock Photo ID: 2294202331 by Olga Shusters.
A Leonberger puppy standing in the snow.
A Leonberger puppy standing in the snow. Shutterstock Stock Photo ID: 2390810457 by VeronArt16.
A Leonberger puppy running in the snow. A second one is behind him in the distance.
Two Leonberger puppies running in the snow. Shutterstock Stock Photo ID: 2390810463 by VeronArt16.
It is a close up so the white sofa is not obvious. It is just a white background and then the pink flowers are on the left of the puppy who is looking into the camera.
Leonberger puppy on a white sofa sitting next to pink flowers. Asset id: 561113224 by Akbudak Rimma.
A young Leonberger puppy, maybe two months, is running on grass in front of some bushes and trees.
Leonberger puppy running on green grass Asset id: 629624387 by TOM KAROLA
A Leonberger on a white sofa in front of blue and white windows with snow.
Leonberger portrait with cristmas background Asset id: 763087333 by Liliya Kulianionak
Maybe three months old Leonberger puppy looking straight into the camera.
Close up of Leonberger puppy  Asset id: 1835879938 by Sarah Hatton
Close up of two months old Leonberger puppy lying on the floor.
Leonberger puppy in front of white background Asset id: 1910154892 by cynoclub
Two months old Leonberger puppy standing on a white floor.
Leonberger puppy in front of white background Asset id: 2511987683 by cynoclub
A Leonberger puppy sitting on a white floor.
A Leonberger puppy in front of white background. The puppy is maybe three months old. Asset id: 2526895887 by cynoclub
A Leonberger puppy standing on a white floor.
Leonberger puppy in front of white background. It is a little older, maybe four months. Leonbergers aren’t fully grown until they are close to two years old. Asset id: 1973707379 by cynoclub
Young Leonberger on a white background.
Young Leonberger, maybe 4-5 months old. Stock Photo ID: 2170918265 by cynoclub.
Young Leonberger on a white background.
Young Leonberger, maybe 5-6 months old.  Leonbergers aren’t fully grown until they are close to two years old.  Stock Photo ID: 2192241957 by cynoclub.
Young Leonberger standing on his hindlegs putting his paws on a woman’s shoulders and giving her a hug.
Young Leonberger, less than a year old. Leonbergers aren’t fully grown until they are close to two years old. Stock Photo ID: 2089116934 by cynoclub.

What are your favorite animals

It is easy for me to answer the daily prompt “What are your favorite animals?”, it is Canis Lupus Familiaris, or dogs of course, especially Leonberger dogs.

Daily writing prompt
What are your favorite animals?
View all responses
Our yellow Lab Baylor is sitting on the left. Our brown-black German Shepherd Baby is sitting on the right.
ur Labrador Baylor and German Shepherd Baby. They were both rescues.

Dogs are very social and often quite intelligent. They are loving, loyal, fun, innocent, playful and they can provide protection whether it is physically or just via their barking, which alerts us to the presence of strangers. Dogs provide companionship and encourage physical activity since you need to take them for walks and play with them.

Our Leonberger puppy is sitting and looking into the camera. He is wearing a scarf, and his tongue is sticking out.
A black and white photo of our Leonberger Bronco at three months old.
Bronco is lying in green grass. Our house and brick wall are in the background.
Our Leonberger Bronco is in the front yard.

Among dogs my favorite breed is the Leonberger. Leonbergers are confident and brave gentle giants. They are great with children, very social and good companions and they can also be guard dogs. They are not aggressive and were not bred for that purpose, but their size, strength, courage, protective nature and acute senses make it a natural role for them. Our Leonberger Bronco protected the entire neighborhood by chasing off a peeping Tom. Leonbergers are double-coated, and they have webbed paws, so they’re natural swimmers as well. They are sometimes used in water rescue operations. But be careful, they are big, full of energy, and can be rambunctious when they’re young.

Below are various photos of our dogs

Our pug Daisy is on the lawn on the left. Our Leonberger Bronco is standing on the right.
Our Leonberger Bronco and our Pug Daisy
Our daughter 9 years old is holding the paws of our Japanese Chin Ryu. Ryu is standing on his back legs, and it looks like he is laughing.
Our Japanese Chin Ryu with our daughter who was 9 years old at the time.
Our Japanese Chin Ryu is sitting on the wood floor.
Our Japanese Chin Ryu.
Our pug Daisy is lying on her back on the gravel. There is also a toy duck.
Our pug Daisy loved to sunbath even when it was hot. Here she is catching some rays while lying on our old backyard porch, which had gravel.
Rachel kneeling on the floor and petting our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo who is on the left as well as our pug Daisy who is on the right.
Our daughter with our pug Daisy and our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo.
There is text above the wolf on the left that says “Canis Lupus, the grey wolf is a fearsome and courageous hunter in nature.”. There is a text above Rollo on the right that says “Canis Lupus familiaris, the dog, a close relative of the grey wolf, is sometimes less brave. This specimen prefers to sit in a stroller when he hears strange sounds.”
A gray wolf on the left. Our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo sitting in a stroller on the right. Whenever there was a sound that scared him, such as quacking ducks, or someone banging on something, he wanted to sit in Daisy’s stroller.
Our Leonberger Bronco is lying on the floor. Our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo is lying on his side wanting to be petted.
Our Leonberger Bronco and our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo.

All official dog breeds have a breed standard. If you want to show your dog your dog has to closely match the breed standard. Below is the breed standard for the Leonberger.

The physical breed standard for the Leonberger. There is also one for character/behavior. The AKC / the USA has its own breed standard for the Leonberger but it closely resembles the international one.

What Is Good About Having a Pet

Daily writing prompt
What is good about having a pet?
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In regard to the daily prompt “What is good about having a pet?” Pets can give you so many things, love, company, adventure, memorable moments, hilarious moments, protection, and playing with them or taking a dog for a walk is good for your health. We have dogs and have had dogs for decades. According to this article from the Mayo clinic dogs are good for your health. Dogs reduce work related stress, help manage stress, increase activity and help combat loneliness.

In addition, our late Leonberger dog Bronco protected us and our neighborhood from a trespasser and a peeping Tom who was terrorizing my wife and other women in the neighborhood. A Leonberger is very large dog, like a St. Bernard. The police could not solve the problem. The private detectives I hired did not catch him, despite the fact they were hiding in our backyard at night. However, one time when the peeping Tom showed up, I sent Bronco after him and that took care of the problem. Bronco probably just wanted to say hello, but a big bear-looking dog dashing towards you in the darkness can be unnerving. That scared him off for good. Bronco saved the neighborhood.

Bronco also saved other dogs and pets on several occasions. He detected when our Labrador Baylor was about to have an insulin shock. He protected our pug Daisy from an attacking German Shepherd. He found our runaway hamsters on a number of occasions. Below are some photos and illustrations of our dogs.

A photo of our Leonberger as a puppy. He is wearing a red scarf.
Our Leonberger Dog Bronco at 3 months old
Our Leonberger Bronco is standing on our red sofa. He is giving me a hug.
Me with our Leonberger Bronco. He was not yet fully grown.
My wife is sitting on a red sofa. Our large Leonberger Bronco is sitting in her lap. He is big and heavy, and she is barely visible underneath him.
Our large but cuddly 167lb Leonberger Bronco is sitting nu my wife Claudia’s lap.
A man sitting on a lawn chair and looking in between the blinds of our bedroom window.
The stalker / peeping Tom is sitting on a lawn chair and looking through our bedroom window at night. Illustration by Naomi Rosenblatt.
Illustration of our Leonberger running after a man wearing jeans and a purple shirt.
After the police and private detectives all failed our Leonberger Bronco is chasing off the intruder for good. Illustration by Naomi Rosenblatt.
Bronco has puffy cheeks. There is a hamster in each cheek.
Our Leonberger Bronco is carrying two hamsters in his mouth. Don’t worry they were fine. Illustration by Naomi Rosenblatt.
Our yellow Lab Baylor is sitting on the left. Our brown-black German Shepherd Baby is sitting on the right.
Our Labrador Baylor and German Shepherd Baby. They were both rescues.
Our son is sleeping on our beige leather sofa. He is holding our sleeping pug puppy.
Our son with our pug Daisy when she was a puppy.
Our Japanese Chin is sitting on the left in suitcase and our pug on the right.
Our Japanese Chin Ryu and our Pug Daisy are protesting our travel by sitting in our suitcase. They want to come with us.
Bronco is standing behind Rollo. Rollo is black and white and very small. They are standing in front of the kitchen.
Our Leonberger Bronco with our new puppy Rollo, a mini-Australian Shepherd.
Our Pug Daisy and our mini-Australian Shepherd barking at people passing by our house. Notice the joke.
Rollo, our mini-Australian Shepherd could be a pest. He loved biting Bronco’s tail and even swung in it as if it was a swing.
The joke in the photos is : Daisy says “Rollo do you want to hear a joke”, Rollo says “OK”, Daisy says “knock! knock!”, then they both start barking “Woof! Woof! Woof!”, “Woof! Woof! Woof!”
Our Pug Daisy and our mini-Australian Shepherd barking at people passing by our house. Notice the joke.

Rollo Six Years Old

Rollo our mini-Australian Shepherd turned six years old on October 12, 2024. However, we were at a wedding in Chicago, so we had to miss his birthday. We celebrated when we came home. In the past we’ve put a funny birthday hat on him. Unfortunately, he hates hats so this time I took pictures without a hat. To celebrate Rollo’s birthday, I am posting 20 photos I took of Rollo through the years, including some with our late Leonberger Bronco. If you’ve been following my blog, you will have seen many of these photos already but not all of them, certainly not the ones I just took.

The photo shows a mini-Australian Shepherd eating a small cupcake from someone’s hand.
Rollo eating a pupcake from our daughter’s hand. A pupcake is a cupcake for dogs.
The photo shows a mini-Australian Shepherd with his mouth close to a piece of bread.
Rollo reaching for a piece of a pupcake on the sofa.
A mini-Australian Shepherd wearing a blue party hat. He is not looking happy.
This is an old photo from his fourth birthday. He is unhappy with the hat.
On the left there is a big Leonberger dog bending his head down to sniff a small mini-Australian Shepherd lying on the grass.
Rollo almost six years ago. He had just arrived at our house. Our Leonberger Bronco is welcoming Rollo.
Our mini-Australian Shepherd is lying on the grass and looking into the camera.
Rollo our mini-Australian Shepherd puppy.
A Leonberger dog is standing behind a small mini-Australian Shepherd puppy. The photo is taken from a kitchen.
Our Leonberger Bronco with little Rollo.
A mini-Australian Shepherd puppy lying on a blanket and looking into the camera.
Close up of Rollo as a puppy.
The photo shows a mini-Australian Shepherd puppy biting his harness. He is being held by our daughter and he is looking straight into the camera.
Rollo on his first walk. It wasn’t really a walk. More like carrying him around the neighborhood.
The photo shows a mini-Australian Shepherd puppy peeking out behind a red sofa and looking straight into the camera.
Rollo peeking out behind the sofa.
The photo shows a mini-Australian Shepherd puppy biting an orange volleyball.
Rollo playing with a volleyball.
The photo shows a mini-Australian Shepherd rolling a soccer ball.
Rollo rolling a soccer ball.
The photo shows a mini-Australian Shepherd biting a Leonberger’s tail.
Rollo frequently bit our Leonberger Bronco’s tail, and he even swung in it like a swing. He climbed all over Bronco. Bronco was very patient with him.
The photo shows a mini-Australian Shepherd looking into the camera. He is next to a chewed-up shoe.
When Rollo was young, he loved chewing shoes. Here the artist is posing with his art.
The photo shows a mini-Australian Shepherd in a playpen with water and toys.
When we left the house we put Rollo in his baby jail for his own protection. We were afraid he would bother Bronco so much that Bronco lost his patience. Rollo ended up loving his baby jail. It was his own special house and no one else was allowed in.
The photo shows a mini-Australian Shepherd standing next to medical equipment and a paw covered by bandage.
When Bronco had a toe amputation and we had to change his bandage every day, Rollo helped out. He was a dog nurse.
The photo shows a mini-Australian Shepherd showing his belly to a large confused Leonberger dog looking into the camera.
Rollo liked to play with Bronco. Here he is asking for a belly rub.
The photo shows a mini-Australian Shepherd and a Pug and young woman in between them petting them both.
Our daughter with our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo and Pug Daisy.
The photo shows a mini-Australian Shepherd sitting in a stroller.
Sometimes there are scary sounds and Rollo wanted to sit in the stroller we bought for our Pug Daisy.
The photo shows a mini-Australian Shepherd on the left and a Leonberger dog on the right.
Two friends.
Daisy tells Rollo : ”On the left is our Pug Daisy and, on the right, our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo. They are both looking out the window. Rollo do you want to hear a joke?”. Rollo says “OK”. Daisy says “Knock! Knock!”. They both says “Woof! Woof! Woof!”
Daisy our Pug and Rollo are watching something from the window.

Our Leonberger Bronco and The Book About Him

Our Leonberger Bronco was born in British Columbia, Canada (nearby Vancouver), on July 3rd, 2007. That was 17 years ago today. His full name was Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle. His father’s name was Priamos Vom Dreiburgenland and his mother’s name was Justus Aria Von Drevas. He had four full siblings, or twins, Little Jonah, Love Ryan, LRV’s Moose, and Lakeisha Makita. That was his litter. Notice that all names begin with an ‘L’. He had 83 siblings in total. The breeder’s name was Julie Schaffert, who is a Leonberger Club of America certified breeder (since 1992), and arguably North America’s most prominent breeder.

A screenshot of Bronco’s entry in the Worldwide Leonberger Data Base
Bronco’s entry in the Leonberger Data Base. Click on the picture to visit the Leonberger Data Base.

About 8-9 weeks later he came to Dallas, Texas to be with his new family. That was us. 13 years later he passed away. The name we picked for him was Bronco. However, we were told that his name needed to begin with an ‘L’, so my wife said, “Let’s do Le Bronco”, intending it to be “Le Bronco”. It took us several years to change his name from “Lets Do Le Bronco”, which also begins with an ‘L’, to “Le Bronco”.

This is a photo of Bronco’s original birth certificate from LCA (Leonberger Club of America). It features his name, his pedigree, breeders, etc.
Bronco’s original birth certificate from LCA (Leonberger Club of America). His name at this time was “Lets Do Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle”.
Portion of original birth certificate from LCA showing the name to be “Lets Do Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle”
Close up of his name, which incorrectly was “Lets Do Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle”.
On the left our Leonberger Puppy wearing a scarf and on the right him almost 13 years later lying on the ground looking old.
Bronco at the age of three months and at the age of almost 13.

Bronco quickly grew to become a big dog. At one point he was 167lbs but his ideal weight was 135lbs. When he joined our family, we had two other dogs, a Labrador (or Labrador mix) called Baylor and a female German Shepherd called Baby. Baby was like a mother to Bronco, and she was fiercely protective of him. We would soon get two more dogs, a Japanese Chin called Ryu and a pug called Daisy. Once Bronco was older, we would get one more dog, a mini-Australian Shepherd called Rollo. Bronco loved all the other dogs, and he was very protective of them. He saved the life of our Labrador by sniffing out an oncoming insulin shock and he saved our pug Daisy from an attacking German Shepherd.

Bronco is standing on a red sofa and giving me a hug.
This is Bronco and me. He is about one year old. Not yet fully grown but still big.
My wife is sitting on a sofa and our very large Leonberger is sitting on her lap. She is essentially disappearing under him.
Bronco when he was 167lbs sitting in my wife’s lap. He went on a diet after this photo.
The dogs are standing. Daisy our pug on the left, Ryu our black and white Japanese Chin in the middle and our Leonberger Bronco on the right.
Bronco with our pug Daisy and Japanese Chin Ryu.
The dogs are lying on the floor. Daisy our pug towards the top, Ryu our black and white Japanese Chin in the middle and our Leonberger Bronco is towards the bottom.
Bronco with our pug Daisy and Japanese Chin Ryu again.
A painting of Bronco our Leonberger. His face is facing forward.
The portrait was drawn by Veniceme at Etsy (Natasha Dall’Ara) and it is based on one of our photos.

One thing that we are proud of is that Bronco lived very long for a Leonberger. The typical lifespan for a Leonberger is 8-10 years. Giant breeds tend to have a short lifespan. The Leonbergers who live at least 12 years are awarded the so-called Grey-Muzzle Award by the Leonberger Health Foundation International, and Bronco was a recipient. The Leonberger Health Foundation International (LHFI) is supporting research that aims to solve health issues in Leonbergers and other giant breeds. All proceeds from the sale of my book are donated to the Leonberger Health Foundation International. I can add that when Bronco passed away, we sent his DNA to the University of Minnesota to be used in research. This was facilitated by the LHFI.

A scan of Bronco’s Grey-Muzzle Award. The text says, “The Grey Muzzle Award for Leonberger Longevity is presented with gratitude by The Leonberger Health Foundation International to Bronco for Offering Hope and Potential for Longer Lives For Leonbergers Throughout The World.”
Bronco’s Grey-Muzzle Award.

Bronco was a very special dog, and he also gave us many amusing stories. Some of the stories were great, like when he chased off a trespasser / peeping Tom who had been terrorizing my wife and the other women in the neighborhood, but that the police and the private detectives I hired could not catch. Or when he saved runaway hamsters or saved the lives of other dogs. He also gave us some embarrassing stories, such as when he put our neighbor’s head in his mouth, like the circus lion trick, or pushed our German Shepherd into a storm drain. After Bronco passed, I decided that the world needed to know about Bronco, so I wrote a book about him. It is a tribute to him as well as a collection of funny stories. I also added information about Leonbergers in the book, their origins, care, training, health, etc.

On the left a trespasser sitting in one of our lawn chairs and looking through our bedroom window. On the right, Bronco our Leonberger, chasing off the trespasser.
Bronco is chasing off a trespassing peeping Tom who had been terrorizing the women in the neighborhood at night. Illustration by Naomi Rosenblatt.
On the left Bronco’s face has puffy cheeks because there are hamsters in them. On the right my wife is using her finger to give a hamster CPR.
Bronco with hamsters in his mouth. When he dropped them, they were unconscious, so my wife gave the hamsters CPR. They were fine. Illustration by Naomi Rosenblatt.
Our German Shepherd is in a storm drain. I am lying on the ground holding her around the chest as I am dragging her up. Bronco our Leonberger is acting crazy.
Bronco acting wild pushing our German Shepherd into a storm drain. I am trying to get her up. Illustration by Naomi Rosenblatt.

Finally, I would like to give an overview of my book about Bronco and Leonbergers. I intended to release the Book on July 3rd, 2022, on what would have been Bronco’s 15th birthday. However, Amazon was quicker than I expected. The Kindle version became available on the day I uploaded it July 1st, 2022, and the paperback version July 2nd, 2022, but I did not tell people about it until July 3rd. Well today it is July 3rd again. To read more about my book click here.

Screen shot of the Amazon from July of 2022. It features the “#1 New Release in Dog Breeds” label.
In July of 2022 my book was the number one new release on American Amazon in the category “dog breeds”
Sample spread of page 102 and 103 featuring two photos showing the interaction between our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo and our Leonberger Bronco.In the photo on the left Rollo wants Bronco to give him a belly rub. In the photo to the right Rollo is pulling on Bronco’s tail.
This is a sample spread from my book (The Life and Times of Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle). It is page 102 and 103. The other dog is our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo.
The gold and beige book cover features the face of our Leonberger Bronco and the text "The Life and Times of Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle. Stories and Tips from Thirteen Years with a Leonberger."
This is the front cover of the book “The Life and Times of Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle”. Click on the image to go to the Amazon.com location for the paperback version of the book.
The back cover in gold and beige feature a photo of a Leonberger in a snowy forest and an introduction to the book.
This is the back cover of the book “The Life and Times of Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle”. Click on the image to go to the Amazon.com location for the kindle version of the book.
The endorsements say “A wonderful tribute to the author's beloved Bronco. The stories are heartwarming as well as informative - a true glimpse into life with a Leonberger. D'Nae Wilson, President, Leonberger Health Foundation International.” and “A lovely tribute to Bronco, with lots of resources for general Leonberger information. Julie Schaffert, LCA breeder since 1992.”.
These are the endorsements for the book. Click on the image to got to the Barnes and Noble location for the book.

If you haven’t already, please take a look at my book

Sarah The Adventures of A Young Woman in the Wild West

The focus of this blog is Leonbergers but sometimes I post about books that are not about Leonbergers but that I loved, and I want to promote. This time I would like to promote Sarah (Women in the West Adventure Series) by Kaye Lynne Booth – May 7, 2024. This is a captivating wild west book with a female main character. I did not buy the book. I won the book in a book raffle organized by the author. I was lucky. It is a great book.

  • Paperback –  Publisher : Wordcrafter Press (May 7, 2024), ASIN : B0D32GQD8M, ISBN-13 : 979-8223446460, 314 pages, Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.1 ounces, dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.7 x 8.5 inches, it currently cost $20.99 on US Amazon. Click here to order it from Amazon.com.
  • Kindle – Publisher : Wordcrafter Press (May 7, 2024), ASIN : B0CWZHG1W8, 318 pages. It is currently $6.99 on Amazon.com. Click here to order it from Amazon.com.
The front features a young woman with red hair.
Front cover of Sarah by Kaye Lynne Booth. Click on the image to go to the Amazon page for the book.

Amazon’s description of the book

Sarah survived being abducted at fourteen and sold to the Utes.

She works hard to learn and be accepted as the squaw of the chief’s brother, Three Hawks, and she now looks forward to raising a family among the Ute tribe. But when a mysterious stranger, a lone Sioux warrior, she is thrown into a game of survival in the mountains of Colorado.

Hope and a streak of stubbornness take this optimistic heroine up against the adversities of the western frontier as she blossoms into a young woman and tries to make a place for herself in the world.

If you like strong female protagonists, you’ll love Sarah.

This is my five-star review of the book Sarah. Click here to see my review on Amazon.

A Young Woman’s Dangerous Adventures in the Wild West

I won this book in a raffle, so I did not buy the book from Amazon. Recently I’ve been reading a few Westerns featuring female main characters that was written by female authors. I’ve been awestruck by their intensity and compelling story telling, including this one. I think this might be a genre with a lot of hidden gems. Both women and men can certainly enjoy the captivating and fast-paced story about Sarah, or Hair-of-Fire, which was her Shoshone name.

Sarah was kidnapped by two men and sold to the Shoshone / Ute tribe. She became part of the Ute tribe and integrated into the Shoshone culture. She learned to speak Shoshone, but she retained her ability to speak English. Then one day she was abducted by a Sioux warrior that had been exiled from his tribe, and so began her complicated and tumultuous journey back to “white civilization”. She encountered a lot of life-threatening situations, dangerous animals, evil men, accidents and treacherous acquaintances as well as kindhearted men and women. Sarah is brave, cunning, and strong. She is a survivor with a good heart. That this book is fast-paced and intense is an understatement.

I also really enjoyed the depiction of animals in the book, including her loyal and brave dog Blue and her smart and strong horse Natsam-mayaapeh Beepi or “Beepi” for short. Blue really stole my heart. It seemed to me that the author had done her research well. It appeared that she was well informed about the frontier societies in the old West, she understood native American cultures, is familiar with the landscape in the area and she is a dog lover and horse lover. I highly recommend this book.

About the Author

For Kaye Lynne Booth, writing is her passion. It is a very strange time indeed when Kaye Lynne does not have at least three WIPs, in addition to her other writings, teaching and other life activities. Kaye Lynne lives, works and plays in the beautiful mountains of Colorado.

Click here to visit is her blog

25 Photos of Leonbergers with Other Dogs

In the past I’ve made a few posts featuring 25 photos of Leonbergers around a certain theme.

This is another post featuring 25 photos. This time it is photos of Leonbergers in the company of other dogs. Most of the photos are of our late Leonberger Bronco and the dogs he grew up with (our Labrador Baylor, German Shepherd Baby, Japanese Chin Ryu, Pug Daisy, and mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo). However, I have also included photos of other Leonbergers. A few photos from friends and two stock photos. I hope you will like them.

A black-brown German Shephard is playing with a young Leonberger lying on his back.
Baby (German Shepherd) is playing with our four months old Leonberger Bronco.
A young gangly Leonberger with a bandage on his knee is next to a little Chihuahua. The two owners of the little dog are a lady in blue jeans and a lady in white pants. The lady with white pants is also wearing a bandage on her knee.
Our Leonberger Bronco at the dog park at five/six months old. He is wearing a bandage on his knee because he got a condition from growing too fast. The two ladies are the owners of the little dog.
A Leonberger is sniffing a black dog. It is probably a black lab.
Our five/six months old Leonberger is sniffing a dog at the dog park.
Photo of our gangly Leonberger Bronco in the foreground with two Labradors in the background. A white Labrador on the left and a beige Labrador to the right.
Our not yet one year old Leonberger Bronco at the dog park. Bronco has not yet finished growing, he has not yet filled out and he is gangly. Not quite the Leonberger look yet. Our beige-brown Labrador Baylor can be seen in the background.
Photo of our gangly Leonberger Bronco in the foreground with two Labradors in the background. A white Labrador on the left and a beige Labrador to the right.
Again our not yet one year old Leonberger Bronco at the dog park. Baylor in the background.
Photo of our gangly Leonberger Bronco on the left. Our black-brown German Shepherd Baby on the right.
Our not yet one year old Leonberger Bronco at the dog park with our German Shepherd Baby.
Our Labrador Baylor on the left. Our Leonberger Bronco on the right but you can only see his behind.
Our Labrador Baylor behind our Leonberger Bronco at a dog park.
Our Labrador Baylor slightly on the left running towards the camera. He has a gray face from old age. There is another dog to left of him. Our Japanese Chin Ryu is also running towards the camera but slightly more to the right.
Our old Labrador Baylor running behind our Japanese Chin Ryu at a dog park. Bronco is not in this photo, but he was there.
Bronco our Leonberger is shown with a sunray over his head. Baylor our Labrador is on the left.
Bronco our Leonberger once sniffed out an oncoming insulin shock in Baylor and alerted us. Bronco was a hero.
An illustration showing me lying on the street. I am trying to pull up our German Shepherd Baby from a storm drain while holding onto our Leonberger Bronco who is jumping up and down and barking.
Once when Bronco was not so well behaved. He pushed our German Shepherd into a storm drain and I had to get her out while holding onto an agitated Bronco. Illustration by Naomi Rosenblatt.
Ten Leonberger puppies sitting on a sofa. They are brown with black face masks.
Ten Leonberger puppies. My guess is that they are about two months old. Shutterstock-ID:561107710 by Akbudak Rimma.
A pug running to the left with a Leonberger following. They are running through a wintry forest.
A Leonberger and a Pug running through the snow. Shutterstock-ID:1659034960 AnetaZabranska.
Two Leonbergers wearing festive hats and glasses.
Digory and Obi, two Leonbergers. Photo by Jen O’Keefe.
Two big Leonbergers next to each other.
Digory and Obi, two Leonbergers. Photo by Jen O’Keefe.
Six Leonbergers sitting in a row and wearing festive hats. A house with a big yard and a pond in the background.
Six Leonbergers from left to right: Caspian (Obi’s nephew), Austin (Obi’s son), Delfi, Obi, Digory, and Rilian (Obi’s son). Photo by Velvy TheLion.
From left to right; our pug Daisy, our Japanese Chin Ryu, and our Leonberger Bronco.
Our Leonberger Bronco with our Japanese Chin Ryu and our pug Daisy.
Two of our dogs in the kitchen. Our pug Daisy on the right and our Leonberger Bronco on the right. Pieces of a gingerbread house on the floor.
Our Leonberger Bronco stole and smashed a gingerbread house. He shared some with his little pug sister Daisy.
From the left to the right: Our Leonberger Bronco, our Japanese Chin Ryu, and our pug Daisy.
Our Leonberger Bronco with our Japanese Chin Ryu and our pug Daisy.
On the left, our Japanese Chin Ryu and our pug Daisy. On the right is our Leonberger Bronco.
Our Leonberger Bronco with our Japanese Chin Ryu and our pug Daisy.
On the left, our pug Daisy and our mini-Australian Shepherd puppy Rollo. They are in a dog bed. On the right is Bronco our Leonberger who is lying on the floor.
Our pug Daisy and our mini-Australian Shepherd puppy Rollo in the little bed and Bronco our Leonberger is lying on the floor.
The photo shows our Leonberger Bronco lying on a big read leather sofa and our beige pug Daisy is leaving.
Our pug Daisy and our Leonberger Bronco is sharing the big red leather sofa, but Daisy decided Bronco took up too much room.
The photo shows our big Leonberger on the left and our little mini-Australian Shepherd puppy Rollo on the right. They are in the backyard. Bronco is sniffing Rollo.
Bronco and our mini-Australian Shepherd puppy Rollo.
The photo shows our big Leonberger lying behind our little mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo. There is also a dog toy in the photo.
Bronco and our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo.
Photo shows our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo biting our Leonberger Bronco’s tail.
Our mini-Australian Shepherd puppy Rollo is playing with Bronco’s tail. Bronco did not like it but tolerated it. Well, when Rollo was swinging in the tail it was a bit much.
The illustration shows our Leonberger Bronco sitting in the middle. Our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo is on the left and our pug Daisy is on the right. Rollo says “They still talk about you”. Bronco answers “Yes I know”
One day Bronco left us, leaving Rollo and Daisy behind. Illustration by Naomi Rosenblatt.