Just a guess at the breed mix. Autumn and I are both a bit perplexed by this one. (Edit: Someone suggested that instead of a malamute/chow, this was a Eurasier. I took a quick look around, and I am convinced. What a gorgeous breed!)
However, he’s definitely very serious-looking, isn’t he? I think he’s concerned about the plight of the California sea otters. And perhaps he’s just a bit sad about the fact that because he’s a dog, he doesn’t file taxes in California, and thus can’t help them.
Maybe you do? And therefore, maybe you can help them for him? I promise, it’d cheer him up. (Expect to hear about this several more times in the coming few weeks, since I’m volunteering to help get the word out about the Sea Otter Tax Check-Off on this year’s California tax form. Please do visit the above site, and please do donate whatever you can when you do your taxes, if you live in California. And if you don’t, and you do live in the US, please let your Senators and Congresscritter know that you appreciate these animals, and that they should vote for the Southern Sea Otter Recovery and Research Act. The page above has all the details.)
Anyway… on to the dog!
Look at that fluff. This dog would be plenty warm for any three-dog night.
Lovely, soulful eyes.
Aww. Mom givin’ a little chest-skritch to her pup.
Oh my God what a ridiculous tail.
That looks like a eurasier! It’s a very rare breed in the US….and beautiful! I want one sooo bad.
My god, you’re totally right. I had never even heard of those before, but thirty seconds with Google and I’m convinced.
This dog reminds me very much of the one who starred in the television series ‘Father Murphy’ starring Merlin Olsen. I looked up the dog online and apparently, he had starred in some other television shows. However, it was reported that he was a Saint Bernard/Golden Retriever mix. I just don’t see it. He looks much like the dog featured in the pictures above—a combination of Malamute and Chow.
Anyway, I would love to hear others’ feedback. Eurasiers are a possibility; still, the coat of Eurasiers seems to be more poufy, like the coat of Chows, whereas the coat of the dog in these photographs has a lovely yet different ‘texture’.
I wasn’t aware of the TV show, myself. I just did a quick look-up and, to be honest, I totally see the St. Bernard/golden in him. Here are the only two pictures I found of him.
http://is.gd/yjepSd
http://is.gd/oq5nf5
First off, those ears are totally St. Bernard, and the face is very much a modified St. Bernard face. The fur looks very much like a mix between golden retriever and St. Bernard fur. In the second picture, he looks a lot like a slightly modified miniature St. Bernard! At least, to me he does.
As for the Eurasier thing for this pup, I do agree that it’s a lot less clear-cut whether he is one or not. (There’s more or less no way HE could be a St. Bernard/golden retriever: those two together would certainly never produce ‘up ears’!) However, check out this picture:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Eurasier_liegend.jpg
Looking at the texture of the fur, especially near the face (where I have the most pictures of the one I ran into on Polk Street) and around the tail (very distinctive). I’d say that the fur texture is pretty similar. And fur texture in some breeds can vary quite a bit, although admittedly it seems to be less so for the double-coated breeds, in general.
Thank you for your reply, Adam!
The pictures you found of the dog in Father Murphy do look, as you pointed out, like a St. Bernard indeed. I have the show’s First Season DVD and the dog must have been younger then, appearing more like the pup featured in your photographs. As for this dog that you came across, it has the most contemplative face—both cute and profound at the same time. I want one just like it!
Thank you for your thoughtful and thorough response and for posting these wonderful pictures of the dog for people like myself to admire. I am now that much closer to narrowing down the breed-mix of dog that I will eventually adopt!
Lol well, If I did not know any better I would have thought someone had ran off with my dog just by looking at these photos here. My dog looks just like this on here. She even the same breed as well. I would have never thought of it. Kinda crazy. Maybe they come from the same litter, Haha.
I have a chow/golden mix and he looks just like the eurasier pics, but a good deal more handsome. I’m not prejudice, people say this to him so often he thinks his name is “your dog’s so pretty”.
He was a rescue and if they hadn’t neutered him he should have started a breed. (except I’m too aware of death rate in pounds). Whatever they are using to cook up this new breed it has those genes in it. Mine is SO sweet and SO stubborn and requires SO much exercise! He loves people, well he loves making them his scratching servants anyway.
funny blog! regards! v.
Glad you like the blog! If you have any pictures of you pup online, I’d love to see them… feel free to drop a link to them in a comment here, I read them all.
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If the website link shows up, check out my dog, Grizzly. She is a rescue. Looks so much like this guy!
I can’t believe you have been running into us for 5 years!!! He is such a baby in these photos!!
And just as beautiful today as he was then.