He's big and he is handsome!! So big and so handsome!! He turned 8 months old yesterday on the 4th of July. He is not afraid of fireworks but they make him irritable if too many are going off. One went off RIGHT next to us and it scared me to DEATH but he barely flinched. Someone was hiding behind a house--that's just the kind of people that live here.

He weighs 100 pounds!! He has a shiny summer coat and he is looking good. His mane is coming in and he's got all the loose neck skin now!! He looks like a little adult. He is become very protective of my car and we are working on it. He's judgement isn't the greatest, and he freaks out if he sees someone 200 feet away. If I am in the car and he is in the car, he cannot see ANYONE on foot. Someone can be in their car right next to us and it is no problem. If I'm not in the car, people can come up to it no problem.

We found a new trainer because our old one is so popular and busy. She had no idea what to do about him either. I still do most all of his training myself, but it's just nice to have someone to seek advice from--even if I don't always agree with it. I had a proud dog mom moment with our new trainer. He's an old veteran--of what I do not know--and he used to train dogs for the Canadian mounties. He works with obedience, but he also trains personal protection dogs, k9 officers, narcotics, and military dogs.

I was a little bit hesitant to meet him, because I assumed he was going to be really old-fashioned and not understand me when I told him about the breed. I meet trainers and breeders every day that say they want one. I say it's a big commitment, and they say "oh, I'd just give it a good whopping and it will listen." Absolutely not.

ANYWAYS, we went out to meet the trainer, and we just demonstrated some stuff so he could see where we were at and he could not stop saying "wow, he is so alert. wow, he is a really good boy. wow, he is a really handsome and good dog."

Yes, he is.

It was funny, because when I met him I said something about Alphonse being dumb--because I say that sort of thing to him all the time, because I love him-and the trainer cut me off and said, "He'll never be successful if you think that way! You have to act like you think he's the best dog in the world, otherwise your bad energy will travel right down the leash."

He is the best dog!! No acting necessary!!